A 12-piece knife set may look impressive, but Consumer Reports says most are “a waste of money.” CR home editor Paul Hope says most of us only need three knives.
A great chef’s knife
“They come in lengths of 6 to 10 inches., but most people will probably be most comfortable with an 8-inch chef’s knife,” Hope said. “And that’ll do everything from mincing garlic, cutting up veggies, to breaking down a chicken.”
A serrated bread knife
You’ll use this to cut the few things you can’t cut with a chef’s knife.
“Things like cutting a really soft loaf of bread,” Hope said. “It’s also really nice to have for fruit with a thick skin, like pineapple, or in a pinch, you can use it for a tomato to get a really thin slice.”
A small paring knife
“This isn’t essential,” Hope said, “but it’s great for those small tasks, like cutting up a grape tomato in half, halving grapes, anything that’s really just too small to be tackling with a big chef’s knife.”
Based in its tests, Consumer Reports says you don’t have to spend a lot to get a good knife.
“In our assessments, we actually found that some knives as inexpensive as $40 were among our top picks,” Hope told me.
When it comes to choosing a chef’s knife, CR recommends trying it before you buy it – see how it feels in your hand. If you can’t get to a store, and you order online, make sure the site has a good return policy.
More Info:
CR: Kitchen Knife Buying Guide
Best Chef’s Knives From Consumer Reports’ Tests
