My favorite kitchen accessory is the knife. I love to go into Williams Sonoma and stare longingly at them. A well-constructed knife, with perfect heft, balance and hone is culinary zen for me. I will probably end up spending the majority of my end of the wedding registry requesting knives. Maybe some other items, which I will mention later, but not in this post.
The fact of the matter is, no kitchen is complete without a good set of knives. I have good knives, and I keep them safe in a proper knife roll to ensure that they remain sharp and don't get pinged up in the drawer. As well, I try to maintain a keen edge on them at all times. What I really want is GREAT knives. Something like a beautiful Kasumi. Japanese knives are not only aesthetically pleasing, but they feel great in the hand and provide a competent cook the means of creating dishes that look as good as they taste.
There are several different styles of these knives, but the current tool of choice for the neophyte and the professional tends to be the Santoku. This style of knife is being produced by many companies and can be found at pretty much any price range. Even Target offers them to shoppers. I prefer the hollow blade style, which is a knife that has grooves at the edge of the blade, allowing the food that is being sliced to fall off the blade instead of sticking to it. This means that people can create finer slices of whatever they want to cut. Perfect to julienne vegetables.
Now that I am going to be working at a sushi restaurant, I get to spend more time oogling these knives. Of course, maybe, i'll be able to cajole my new co-workers to help me find the best knife at the best price. Really, who better to ask about Japanese knives than the people trained in the use of them as sushi chefs?
Damn, I can't wait.
