An Edge in the Kitchen » Technique of the Week

Steeling Your Knife

Chad — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 15:28:45 +0000

Proper technique for steeling your knife, keeping the edge sharp

That metal rod thingie that came with your knife set is called a steel or honing rod. Unless you purchased your steel separately, you probably ended up with a medium grooved steel. That’s okay, but a finely grooved steel is better. A completely smooth steel [...]

Faster than a Speeding Chef’s Knife

Chad — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:17:53 +0000

Coleslaw for a crowd and gratin by the cubic yard are not a problem if you have a mandoline in your arsenal.

Top to bottom: the mighty Shun mandoline, a Borner V-slicer, a Kyocera paddle slicer and my battered Matfer mandoline

What you need to know

1) You don’t need one (but they’re damn handy)

A mandoline (French [...]

Apple Cinnamon Granola

Chad — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 19:49:50 +0000

When we began our cooking from scratch experiment I knew I was going to have to find a replacement for commercial breakfast cereal. My kids were only going to put up with so much toast & peanut butter or yogurt before demanding something they could put in a bowl and pour milk on. Puffing my [...]

Low Budget Knife Skills Videos

Chad — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 16:27:52 +0000

Two videos on basic knife skills. Felini they ain’t, but The Pinch & The Claw are your keys to making precision knife cuts with speed, safety and style. The Onion Cheat is a quick and easy way to dice an onion.

Chicken Breakdown 101 (Mike Pardus)

Chad — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 15:54:00 +0000

Chef Mike Pardus is a CIA instructor, one of Michael Ruhlman’s early mentors, and a frequent contributor to Bob del Grosso’s A Hunger Artist blog. He has posted a series of three videos detailing the proper way to break down a chicken, one of the most important things any cook should know. He does a [...]

Technique of the Week: The Onion Cheat

Chad — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 15:18:51 +0000

The classic technique of making a series of horizontal slices across an onion intimidates some people. That’s why there is the Onion Cheat. This was referred to as the Quarter Roll Trick in the book because you start with an onion quarter rather than a half. It’s a little slower than the classic technique but [...]

Knife Sharpening: Coin Trick & Magic Angle Finder

Chad — Thu, 29 May 2008 13:31:06 +0000

Here’s a quick Technique of the Week to get us started. You often read that you should sharpen your knife to 20° or 15° or some other seemingly arbitrary number. If you have a standard European-style (German, French or something along those lines) chef’s knife, it probably has edge angles of 20-25° per [...]

The Pinch & The Claw

Chad — Thu, 22 May 2008 21:55:17 +0000

Can you say, “low budget”?

Coming Soon: Technique of the Week and more

Chad — Wed, 21 May 2008 19:37:03 +0000

Things are still perking along behind the scenes here at Edge in the Kitchen world headquarters. I’m told that the printing gnomes have nearly finished their jobs. The finished books should be coming off the presses today, well ahead of the June 10 on-sale date. I’m certain there will be Harry Potter-like midnight [...]