Japanese Knives
Most world chefs have now become converts to Japanese knives. Once difficult to get, they can now be found in multiple outlets in every city. Kitchen knives. Sur la Table, Williams Sonoma, Crate and Barrel and even Bed Bath and Beyond sell Japanese knives. The most well know brands to Americans are: Shun, Global, & Miyabe. Many professional chefs even go to Japan to have knives custom made for them there. Knife making is really an offshoot of sword making in Japan with many of the knives being manufactured by generations old samurai sword makers. The Katana, was probably the most efficient killing sword ever engineered. It was designed to be sharp and strong enough to cut a man in half with a single blow (and it was and it did).
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Traditionally Japanese knives were made out of high carbon steel as this steel held its edge the best, but these knives require a lot of care as the tended to rust and discolor.Now most common knives are made with alloys added to make them non staining and easier to maintain. Japanese knives appear to be sharper than Western knives because they are honed to a steeper angle making them cut more efficiently. They are also usually crafted from harder steel alloys enabling them to keep their edge longer.
I usually only use 3 knives. I use a slicing knife, a Chef's knife and a paring knife. You can also add a Nakiri to your collection as this is a nice knife to use with vegetables. You can substitute a Santoku with the Gyutou if you prefer the Santoku have a different shape and shallower edge angle. |
Knife Sharpening
There is a common misconception out there that sharp knives are dangerous, in fact the opposite it true. Sharp knives are thousands of times safer than dull knives. The reason being is that sharp knives glide through product quickly and easily without you having to exert much force on the knife. Dull knives on the other hand require significant amounts of force to cut through product and are prone to slipping across whatever item you're trying to cut as the edges can't bite into the surface. When you watch any movie about samurai or any movie that features swordsmanship on a large scale, you'll see them spending a lot of time preparing their swords for battle. Imaging a samurai having to hack at his opponent multiple times because his sword was too dull to penetrate the unfortunate victim. You want your knives to be as sharp a humanly possible. Japanese and German craftsmen have spent centuries honing their skills in forging blades designing them specifically to hold sharp edges whether your cutting through a carrot or a warrior.
Take the time and spend the money to get your knives professionally sharpened at least once per year. In the restaurant we sharpened our knives by hand using multiple whetstones to get the edges we wanted. Now I take my knives down to a professional to have them sharpened. I use Perfect Edge Sharpening. Bud has been sharpening knives and bladed implements for many years. He is also the only authorized sharpener for Shun knives outside of Kai/Shun in Oregon. |
Immersion Blender
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After my knives, this is the thing I use most in the kitchen. I use it pretty much exclusively to blend soups in the pot. It's just so much easier to blend them in the pot versus pouring them into a blender. It's much easier to clean too, just rinse the blade part in the sink and you're pretty much done cleaning it.
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Mandolin/thin slicing things
Do you really need one of these things? The answer is yes and no. When I am making sunomono (Japanese cucumber salad) I usually slice the cucumbers by hand, however I have the knife skills to do so and it doesn't take me very long to go through an entire case of cucumbers (probably because I did this on a daily basis when I was working in the restaurant). For the home chef you might want to use a mandolin or another thin slicing device. I even broke down and bought one myself, I found one at Daiso (more on Daiso later). Whenever you use a mandolin be very, very careful as these things are razor sharp and it's easy to cut yourself. There's tons of gruesome pictures on the internet of sliced off finger tips from mandolin users or perhaps they are now former mandolin users. These things all come with a finger guard for a reason, so use the finger guard people!
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Sushi rolling mats
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Traditionally sushi rolling mats were made out of bamboo. We used bamboo rolling mats in the restaurant. Bamboo is naturally antibacterial so it can be easily and sanitarily cleaned. This is one of the reasons that throughout China they use bamboo steamer baskets. Sushi rolling mats have a flat surface so your sushi rolls come out perfectly flat. Don't buy sushi rolling mats that do not have flat surfaces. Now you can get a silicon, non stick, rolling mat for uramaki (rice on the outside) without worrying about the rice sticking to the mat. Daiso has a great assortment of sushi rolling mats for $1.50.
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Wok this Way
Woks have been used in China for thousands of years. The wok is a versatile, round bottom pan originating from China’s Han-era (206 B.C.E. – 220 C.E.), traditionally used to roast tea and dry out vegetables and meats. Since then, its function has changed numerous times and now is now synonymous with stir-frying, owing its origin to the imperial cooks of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). Both the concave shape and material of the wok allow heat to distribute evenly and prevent the formation of “hot spots,” which cause food to stick and burn. Woks migrated throughout Asia as Chinese merchants travelled throughout Asia. Woks were the original all purpose pan.
If you don't have a wok I suggest that you get one. The Wok was the original nonstick pan. Woks can be used for all cooking methods: Boiling, Braising, Steaming, Baking, Roasting, Smoking, Pan Frying, Deep Frying and of course Stir Frying. Woks are typically used over nuclear temperature heat so they sear everything that's put into them immediately. For the hardcore I suggest that you get a stand alone extreme BTU heat source and either install a hurricane force kitchen hood or do your woking outside. Home stoves typically can generate 10,000-15,000 BTU's, high end home stoves (Wolf, Viking) can generate up to 30,000 BTU's, a typical Chinese restaurant wok burner can generate 100,000-200,000 BTU's. Don't let your lack of a nuclear burner detour you from getting and using a wok. Get yourself a carbon steel or a lightweight cast iron Wok and follow the seasoning directions and you'll be woking and running in no time.
If you don't have a wok I suggest that you get one. The Wok was the original nonstick pan. Woks can be used for all cooking methods: Boiling, Braising, Steaming, Baking, Roasting, Smoking, Pan Frying, Deep Frying and of course Stir Frying. Woks are typically used over nuclear temperature heat so they sear everything that's put into them immediately. For the hardcore I suggest that you get a stand alone extreme BTU heat source and either install a hurricane force kitchen hood or do your woking outside. Home stoves typically can generate 10,000-15,000 BTU's, high end home stoves (Wolf, Viking) can generate up to 30,000 BTU's, a typical Chinese restaurant wok burner can generate 100,000-200,000 BTU's. Don't let your lack of a nuclear burner detour you from getting and using a wok. Get yourself a carbon steel or a lightweight cast iron Wok and follow the seasoning directions and you'll be woking and running in no time.
Get yourself an authentic Wok, not one of those Bourgeoisie expensive ones manufactured by those high end Western cookware manufacturers typically sold through mall based kitchen stores. I get my Woks from the one of the original sources of Woks on the West Coast, San Francisco Chinatown's Wok Shop. Mrs. Tane Chan has been operating the Wok Shop on Grant Street in the heart of SF Chinatown for 48 years. Ms. Chan will tell you that Chinese are practical people and they are also cheapskates. For the most part so they want Woks that are inexpensive and that will last forever. She is truly the ambassador for Woking in the U.S.A. Her story is the very essence of the American Dream. Watch her story in the video below. To purchase an authentic Chinese wok visit Ms. Chan at the WokShop SF. www.wokshop.com
The Wok Shop also sells most every gadget you'll need for the Asian kitchen. If they don't have it you probably don't need it.
The Wok Shop also sells most every gadget you'll need for the Asian kitchen. If they don't have it you probably don't need it.
Seasoning your new best friend
Ms. Chan will tell you just like friends, woks get better with age. When you purchase your new wok it needs to be seasoned to give it that special nonstick surface. I seasoned my woks in the oven and on the stove with virgin flaxseed oil. Why flaxseed oil? Because it has a high smoking point and will not breakdown under high heat. There are tons of videos on youtube on how to season a wok so I won't go into too much detail here. Oven seasoning is the easiest method but i also recommend that you use the stovetop method as well as this will breathe life into your wok. I actually did both, I oven seasoned it first then I stovetop seasoned it. To oven season your wok simply rub it with oil inside and out being careful not to use too much oil, we want to coat it not saturate it, and put it into a 450 degree oven for 30 minutes. To stovetop season simply cut up some onions, garlic, and ginger and add some oil into the bottom on the wok. Stir fry until the onions and other ingredients are charred well making sure that they rub up against all sides and surfaces of the wok. Obviously throw out the burnt alliums and wash your newly seasoned lifelong friend with just water. The alliums tend to remove all traces of metallic tastes that would have remained in the wok. Overtime as you use your wok some of the flavors of what you're cooking will infuse themselves into the oil patina that builds up inside of the wok, this is what gives Wok cooking that special unknown unquantifiable depth of flavor that is also called the "breath of the Wok" Eventually your wok will turn black both inside and out the more you cook with it.