Excerpt from The Best Paring Knife, by Leslie Stockton for The Sweet Home
3 1/4" Victorinox Paring Knife: $8.50 (Item #40600)
What is the Best Paring Knife?
A chef’s knife is the workhorse of the kitchen. It’s what we reach for when we want to dice an onion, cube potatoes, chop up large bunches of hearty greens, and much more. But when you have a small task at hand like removing the stem end of tomatoes, mincing shallots, or deveining shrimp, that large kitchen knife is too unwieldy. This is what makes a paring knife an indispensable tool in every cook’s arsenal.
The perfect paring knife starts with the right blade length. Cook’s Illustrated and my interviewees prefer a blade length of 3 to 3½ inches. Any longer than that and it gets difficult to do in-hand work. Once you get longer than 4 inches, you start getting into utility knife territory.
Everyone agrees that comfort is key. Handles should be easy to grip; blades should be comfortable to choke up on without nicking your gripping hand.
Sharpness and a good, pointy tip are also important. The sharper the blade, the more control the cook has.
Cook’s Illustrated pointed out that Wüsthof and Henckels have adjusted the bevel angle, saying “their cutting edges changed to a typical Japanese 14- or 15-degree bevel angle per side, as opposed to a traditional Western angle of 19 to 22 degrees.” This makes for a considerably sharper blade, but it makes me wonder if the blade might need a little more maintenance to keep sharp. Calls to both Henckels and Wüsthof confirmed that they indeed made this adjustment several years ago.
Value is very important, too. Brendan McDermott noted that while forged knives, like the Wüsthof, are great, they’re more like heirloom pieces you can hand down through generations. If you just want a knife that will be the small-task workhorse of your kitchen, the cheaper, plastic handled Victorinox is your best bet. When you think about it, $8.50 every six to eight years is a great deal for a lightweight sharp knife.
Forged steel isn’t as important when talking about a paring knife as it is when looking at a chef’s knife because your chef’s knife is the one doing most of the heavy work in your kitchen. A paring knife is for light tasks. It’s just a matter of what you’re willing to drop on a piece of cutlery.
Three types of paring knives were mentioned in my interviews: Japanese, Victorinox, and Wüsthof Classic. The review on Japanese paring knives were mixed. Charlyne Mattox, Staff Food Editor at Real Simple, doesn’t like her Japanese paring knife from Korin because whenever she chokes up on it, she cuts herself. She much prefers the Wüsthof Classic that came with her kit from culinary school. Nora Singley, former culinary producer from the Martha Show, says while she loves her Japanese paring knife for being super sharp, she has hesitation to use it on a daily basis for fear of it getting damaged in the daily tussle of food styling. She prefers her Wüsthof Classic for daily work.
Care and Maintenance
Knives can dull with improper handling. Luckily, taking good care of a knife isn’t hard. If you follow a few rules, your knife will give you many years of service.
To keep your knife sharp, we highly recommend a honing steel. Your edge will keep longer with regular use. Run your knife on a steel whenever you feel the blade isn’t as sharp as it should be. There’s no formula or rule of thumb on how often you should hone your knife, but when you see how sharp your edge is after honing, you will want to use a steel almost every time you cook. Feeling a bit squeamish about using a steel or insecure about your technique? Here’s a very informative video.
Honing your knife isn’t the same as sharpening; it’s more like maintaining an edge. Regular usage can cause a knife’s edge to bend, making the blade seem dull, but the edge may just need to be realigned. When you get to the point where honing doesn’t work anymore, it’s time to actually sharpen the knife, which means grinding metal on a whetstone to create a new edge (or bringing your knives to a professional sharpener).
Please don’t put your knives in the dishwasher. The intense heat combined with the knocking around in the machine is a one way ticket to dullsville. I know some companies say their knives are dishwasher safe, but putting them in a dishwasher will still shorten the life of that prized factory edge. Also, don’t let your knives sit in the sink — that’s almost as bad as the dishwasher thanks to being banged around and a constantly damp environment. Wash your knives by hand in warm, soapy water and dry with a soft and clean towel.
If you cut a lemon or other acidic fruit, wash your knife immediately. Acid is the death of a knife. It can damage the steel and eat away at the edge. This applies to tomatoes, limes, grapefruits, oranges, and other acidic items.
About the Author
Lesley Stockton is a former food editor for Everyday Food Magazine and Martha Stewart Living, as well as a contributor to the cookbooks Dinner at Home, Martha Stewart's Cooking School, and Martha's Entertaining. She also consults on menu development for her boyfriend's three restaurants.