Knife Skills 101: The Cuts Every Cook Should Know

The chef's grip is the most important thing to learn before anything else. Hold the blade by pinching the base of it between your thumb and the side of your index finger, with the remaining fingers wrapped around the handle. This grip gives you control over both the angle of the blade and its lateral movement. The other hand forming a "claw" -- fingertips curled under, knuckles forward -- guides the food and protects the fingertips. The knuckle acts as a guide for the blade, which should never rise above it during cutting.

The seven cuts worth mastering are: rough chop (random large pieces for stocks), chop (1-2cm cubes), large dice (2cm cubes), medium dice (1.2cm), fine dice (6mm), brunoise (3mm tiny cubes), and julienne (thin matchsticks). The standard progression for any onion, carrot, or celery in a recipe is to first square off the sides to create a flat surface for stability, then slice into planks, then sticks, then dice. Working this way is faster and produces more uniform results than attacking the vegetable at random angles.

Keeping knives sharp is as important as technique. A sharp knife is paradoxically safer than a blunt one -- it requires less force and is predictable. A honing steel does not sharpen a knife; it realigns the microscopic teeth of the edge that fold over with use. Use the steel every time you cook. An actual sharpening stone or wheeled sharpener removes metal to create a new edge and should be used every few months depending on frequency of use. A knife that drags on a ripe tomato skin, rather than gliding through with no pressure, is due for the stone.