Is push-cutting harder on the blade?

[osakajoe]

Osaka joe can you please clarify how to place the towel on your arm? I would like to practice this technique!

I will upload some pics soon

 

[spoiledbroth]

I will upload some pics soon

thank you my friend

 

[Gark]

Good thread. Where is the best place on-line to learn knife handling techniques?

 

[nortagem]

Good thread. Where is the best place on-line to learn knife handling techniques?

Good question! Anyone?

 

[MAS4T0]

Good thread. Where is the best place on-line to learn knife handling techniques?

Rick and Salty's videos.

Here:

[video=youtube;Rx1U-bja3i8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rx1U-bja3i8[/video]

[video=youtube;K7LtTbxIlTE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7LtTbxIlTE[/video]

If you look through their channels you'll find all you need.

 

[FireDragon76]

I notice with duller knives and harder vegetables (thick carrots, broccoli, etc.), that it's harder to get an even, soft push-cut without getting a loud "chop" on a board.

 

[daveb]

Yep. It's cause your splitting the product - not cutting through it

 

[Asteger]

I notice with duller knives and harder vegetables (thick carrots, broccoli, etc.), that it's harder to get an even, soft push-cut without getting a loud "chop" on a board.

You need to apply more force, and when things give way you come down harder on the board. Boom

 

[FireDragon76]

You need to apply more force, and when things give way you come down harder on the board. Boom

Maybe... but not with a 5" santoku or 6 1/2" kiwi. Maybe a heavy Chinese "cleaver". As it is, trying to cut the carrots with the faberware santoku resulted in a few bits rolling off the counter (not a clean cut). It's strange because the knife slices paper OK. I think the blade profile of the santoku is more like an axe, if that makes sense.

 

[Pensacola Tiger]

Maybe... but not with a 5" santoku or 6 1/2" kiwi. Maybe a heavy Chinese "cleaver". As it is, trying to cut the carrots with the faberware santoku resulted in a few bits rolling off the counter (not a clean cut). It's strange because the knife slices paper OK. I think the blade profile of the santoku is more like an axe, if that makes sense.

The point being made is that if a geometry of a knife is such that you need to apply a lot of force when cutting, that when the blade finally gets through the product, it will impact the board with more force - or "chop". The overall weight of the knife has little to do with this.

Slicing paper tells nothing of the geometry of the blade, and you are using the term "profile" incorrectly. What you mean to say is "geometry".

 

[Asteger]

Nah, you don't need a heavy knife. You'd have the same dynamic with a small petty that's too thick: the blade wedges into the food and stalls, tension builds, the food splits apart instead of being cut, tension is released and the knife hits the board with more force than it should. Just as daveb and I said above

 

[Dardeau]

One of our prep cooks did this today with an eight inch Dexter, right into her finger. Seven stitches in a tiny cut because it went so deep because of the force behind it.

Good geometry.., it doesn't just cut well, it saves you ER visits.

 

[FireDragon76]

Yeah... the blade wedges, that's exactly what's happening. Like an axe getting stuck in wood. Maybe this is an issue of knife size? Maybe a 5" knife is too small to be cutting a carrot? The ends of the carrot cut OK (still not as sharp as the Kiwi), but when I got up to the thicker part, then I started getting the knife wedged into the carrot.

 

[Asteger]

Will say it again: too thick

 

[Pensacola Tiger]

Yeah... the blade wedges, that's exactly what's happening. Like an axe getting stuck in wood. Maybe this is an issue of knife size? Maybe a 5" knife is too small to be cutting a carrot? The ends of the carrot cut OK (still not as sharp as the Kiwi), but when I got up to the thicker part, then I started getting the knife wedged into the carrot.

No, it's not an issue of knife size. Asteger has given the reason - twice. The geometry of the knife is causing the wedging. It is too thick and needs to be thinned. Refer to this thread: http://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/showthread.php/25511-Plans-to-thin-an-SRS15-santoku.

 

[daveb]

This is not an infrequent area of confusion - I hear variances of the same question weekly.

Perhaps it would be useful to compare the edge of the blade to the bow of a ship (6 yrs Navy ya know). The bow of a Destroyer! is sharp, tapered and meant to cut through a lot of water quickly. It is not meant for a lot of torsional abuse and must be guided by a skilled hand. Similarly the edge of a well made knife is meant to cut through a lot of product but is not robust enough for hitting bones or other torsional stresses.

A knife like your kiwi and to some extent most German knives are built more like an Icebreaker. They are designed to take more abuse, plow through anything but not to move through product effortlessly. Hence the wedging you've observed.

Suggest you swap the Kiwi for a ball point pen, throw the Santoku off a bridge and get yourself a knife. For a hundred bucks you would never have to worry about the physics of carrots again. Smiley.

 

[FireDragon76]

I'm taking that into consideration but I'll point out the kiwi doesn't wedge in food. It's probably my favorite knife I have at the moment, but it's not the best for slicing meat (that's OK because most of the stuff I cut are vegetables). Here's a link to the knife: http://www.amazon.com/Kiwi-Brand-Chef-Knives-172/dp/B008QPBPLO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1451278866&sr=8-2&keywords=kiwi+knife I think Kiwi is a good example of something that performs better than its price.

My experience with the Faberware santoku was so bad I returned the knife and an unopened pairing knife of the same brand and got my money back. I guess this brand is not what it used to be.

 

[Pensacola Tiger]

My experience with the Faberware santoku was so bad I returned the knife and an unopened pairing knife of the same brand and got my money back. I guess this brand is not what it used to be.

It never was.