Handling a knife may be scary for some people. You may see a chef handle a knife with so much ease, but you have to realize that it took a lot of practice before they were able to master how to hold a knife and slice veggies and meat with ease and perfection. It is one of the skills that they learn in a culinary institute.

Cooking Skills: Time to Learn Now

You cannot avoid holding a knife when cooking, so you might as well start learning to hold it the right way because that is part and parcel of your cooking skills. But first, you have to remember that your knife should always be very sharp. It makes slicing so much easier. You just need to have a sharpening stone in your kitchen and slide the knife gently on both sides.

Once you have a sharp knife, you can learn to handle a knife like a chef by following these tips:

The Grip

One of the cooking skills you have to learn in the kitchen is how to grip a knife with your dominant hand. The thumb must be placed on the blade and not on the handle of the knife. Your index finger should be wrapped completely around the blade. So your thumb and your index finger should be opposite one another on both sides of the blade, while the three fingers are holding the handle of the blade. In this way, you have better control of the knife and you reduce the chances of cutting yourself.

Hold the Food Properly

If you are right-handed, your left hand is called the non-knife hand or your guiding hand and it is used to hold the food and prevent it from slipping from the chopping board. One of the cooking skills you have to master is how to handle the food well and how to prevent your non-knife hand from being hurt. The technique is to tuck your nails under the food. It is also referred to as the ‘claw-grip’. You keep your fingers tucked inward and gripping the food with your fingernails. So if you hold the food in this manner, you prevent yourself from being cut.

Slice an Onion Like a Pro

This is one of the cooking skills you have to master because a lot of dishes require the use of an onion. First, peel the onion and trim the ends on both sides. Cut it in half, and then cut crosswise from right to left. Then depending on the kind of food you are cooking, either you cut the onion into smaller cubes (mince) or you just slice the onions in a crosswise manner. Remember to hold the knife with your thumb on the left side of the knife and your index finger on the right side of the knife. The remaining fingers are holding the handle of the knife. Be firm with your grip and hold the onion like a claw with your non-knife hand.

So the proper way of handling a knife is one of the cooking skills you need to master in order to cut veggies and meat like a real chef. With these tips, mastering knife handling is very easy.