Good Knives

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Started 5 months ago by ninakk
Latest reply from snosie
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maco
Member

I have a 7" Calphalon santoku. It's wonderful. I diced an onion last night much more easily than I have ... ever. I think my other knives need to be sharpened. I have another knife about that size. Having two is handy on stir-fry nights, because then the boyfriend and I can both chop at the same time. I also recently got a paring knife, and promptly cut myself on the first use, coring an apple (oops). Those are pretty much all I use, though I do have a bread knife for the few occasions when I buy fresh bread.

My mom & her husband prefer the Wusthofs, but the Calphalon has a good balance, IMO.

Posted 5 months ago #
Ella
Member

I'm bumping up this thread to ask a related question about knife storage...

I'm fed up with trying to make my magnetic knife bar work inside a drawer. The knives slip around every time the drawer is opened. I don't want the bar hanging on the wall (I had it that way in my last home, but don't like how it looks, too cluttery).
I prefer to keep my knives in the drawer just beneath the countertop cutting board, but it's a very shallow drawer only 2 inches deep. As most of you know by now, I'm stuck with this itty bitty kitchenette and no room to expand.

Today I bought the smallest size of in-drawer knife block. Thought it was just the right size, but it doesn't fit once the knives are in it, so back it goes for a refund. For now, I've removed the magnetic knife bar and laid in a folded placemat with ridges, with the knives lying on top. The ridges keep the knife blades from bumping each other... sort of. It's an imperfect solution, but I'm out of ideas. Help...?

How do you all store your knives?
lucy1965: You mentioned Knife Safes. What are those?
ninakk: You planned to buy a knife block for the drawer. Did you get it yet?

Posted 3 months ago #
djk
Member

What about simply lining the drawer with heavy non-slide drawer liner and just laying your knives on top?

Sticky drawer liner comes in various kinds, the heaviest does not permit slide. Also, using sticky-back Velcro dots or strips to hold the rubbery liner also works.

Posted 3 months ago #
ninakk
Member

Ella, no not yet since there was always something more important to pay for, but it looks like this and my sis has it:

I imagine it can't be impossible to find something similar in a cookshop or even department store with greater selection. I had a standing knife block once, but had to donate it due to the same reason; knives were wider...

The problem with the solution djk suggests may be the amount of knives versus size of the drawer; they shouldn't touch even one bit because scraping up against each other means the blades get dull.

Posted 3 months ago #
Ella
Member

ninakk: The in-drawer block I bought today is almost identical to the one you've shown. But my drawer is too shallow, so I'll have to return it.

Posted 3 months ago #
ninakk
Member

Sigh, sorry Ella, I read it as a countertop block!

Posted 3 months ago #
lottielot
Member

Ella: could you store them in a knife roll? They're supposed to be for transporting them but if you're tight on space maybe it could work for storage?

Posted 3 months ago #
Ella
Member

Well, I do use them (3 knives, and sometimes a 4th) at almost every meal every day, so they should be ready at hand. There's room enough for the knives laying flat in the drawer, if I could secure them in some way to keep them from sliding around.

But how do all you folks store your knives?
Maybe hearing about your own storage solutions will spark an idea for mine.

Posted 3 months ago #
irishbell
Member

I've used a magnetic strip on the backsplash, above my main prep area,
it takes up no space, and they are right there, at the ready.

Posted 3 months ago #
bandicoot
Member

i have a magnetic strip, but it is now nowhere near the new main chopping station.
so i will be pondering that in the next couple of weeks.
really, my knives could live in a small tray on a shelf in my new island bench.

Posted 3 months ago #
Katha
Member

I like lottielot's idea of a knife roll - not rolled up, but spread in the drawer, with a compartment for each knife.
Else the sticky drawer liner solution, but with the addition of something (styrofoam pieces? rolled-up kitchen towels?) between the knives to protect them from each other. Not very aesthetically pleasing, I should guess, but could be functional. But this second solution sounds very much like your placemat solution - just with higher ridges.

Or you could take one last shot at making your magnetic strip work inside the drawer: As the problem is knives sliding on it, you could try slipping rubber bands (or rope or some such) over it to make "compartments" for your knives. This should keep them from sliding further than the next rubber band.
Like this:

End of strip\\ knife \\ knife \\ knife \\ knife \\Other end of strip

("\\" being the rubber bands - sorry, I am no good at visualizing...)

(Full disclosure: My own knives are on a magnetic strip, which is fixed to the outside of the door of an overhead kitchen cupboard - now I wonder if the same thing could work with the magnetic strip strip fixed to the inside of the door, to make it less visible)

Posted 3 months ago #
Anita
Member

Last year I convinced the boyfriend we don't need 8 dull knives to do the job of 2 sharp ones. We now own 3 knives:

1. a decent sized santoku (Global) that's used for pretty much everything
2. a huge Cutco chef's knife that's usually too big to be truly useful, but it was boyfriend's first "good" chef's knife and he's attached to it
3. a cleaver that boyfriend insisted on, and uses on occasion.

I'm planning on adding a small paring knife, since our last one was a cheap thing that gave up the ghost a while ago, and possibly a serrated knife although that's very low on the list of priorities.

We have blade protectors for each knife, and a dedicated spot for knives in our one and only (but fairly big) cutlery drawer. We debated the magnetic strip, but we don't trust the cats around sharp objects; also debated a knife block, but we have very limited counter space, and no block would fit the enormous Cutco knife.

Posted 3 months ago #
Scarlet
Member

Ella, I haven't used this product myself (so I can't recommend it in any way), but your dilemma made me think of this drawer organizing product that was making the rounds on different websites a few months back:

http://www.drawerdecor.com/

I remember looking at it and thinking that it wouldn't work for me (I think I prefer cubbies and throwing things in their different compartments), but it sounds like a mat with a few inserts is just what you're trying to do for your knives.

Posted 3 months ago #
chacha1
Member

I have a big enough drawer that my knife block fits in it *sideways*. But I have too many knives for it. My Santoku is in its original box in front of the block. The arrangement is not aesthetically pleasing, but it's functional enough.

If I had a too-small drawer, I think ... I would line it with some heavyweight real suede. Knives won't slip around on it, and also won't readily cut it.

Posted 3 months ago #
s
Member

@Katha's suggestion also reminded me do DrawerDecor, but @Scarlet beat me to it. I think I saw something about it on Unclutterer or Lifehacker a few months ago.

Posted 3 months ago #
Scarlet
Member

@s: Great minds think alike, or at least read the same websites! ;) I went to Lifehacker to find the name of the product & the link to it.

Posted 3 months ago #
Ella
Member

Aha, the DrawerDecor might be just the right solution. Thank you! I see that Brookstone carries it... there's a store nearby, so I'll go take a look.

Posted 3 months ago #
Ella
Member

I looked at the DrawerDecor, and I was very tempted. It's cleverly designed to customize and optimize storage space for multiple utensils of various sizes. But it's way over the top for my simple needs. So far, the ridged mat seems to be doing a decent job of keeping my three knives secure. But if it fails, I think I'd like to try chacha's suede idea.

I have another question:
I'm all thumbs when it comes to using a sharpening steel... just can't get the hang of it. Some of you have mentioned using a knife sharpener. What brand do you recommend?

Posted 3 months ago #
JulieK
Member

Ella,

I think we might have similar challenges when it comes to knife storage. Personally, I am very happy with the Victrinox BladeSafe Knife Covers (perhaps similar to what Anita mentioned using). Each knife gets its own case and then they're put into a drawer divider/container. No matter how much they slide around in the drawer each knife is kept safe. Originally, I thought it would be a hassle but it isn't at all. As a bonus, it makes it really easy to transport knives, which has happened on many occasions when I'm going to cook at someone else's house but want the comfort of using my own knife (most of my friends are still at the stage of life where essential kitchen cookware has yet to be purchased).

Posted 3 months ago #
JulieK
Member

Here is a link to the particular blade cases that I purchased.

http://www.amazon.com/Victorinox-Cutlery-BladeSafe-10-Inch-Blades/dp/B000MF47B6/ref=pd_sim_k_5

Posted 3 months ago #

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