What kind of cutlery/knives are you using

[thegleek]

If you put a high dollar item on the registry and the item is really nice and can mean a lot to the couple, friends will band together and pool their resources for that. So you should put a items of varying prices on there. At least that's what I would think, but what do I know, I'm not even dating.

thats ok, cuz theres tons more high-priced items we would like, such as:

wine fridge from crate & barrel $179
bamboo cutting board from williams & sonoma $99
ps3 $???.??

lol and tons more.. what do ppl generally put on their registry anyways? give me some tips

[zgirl]

Sheets or bedding in general, dinner settings, fine china (for the wife), flatware, anything you can use in the kitchen, blenders, food processors, pots, pans.

We put rather expensive cam-corder on the list. 15 of her and my friends all chipped in and got it for us. We were blown away.

[Usacomp2k3]

Don't forget thing tools for the shop.

[Buub]

Or a car!

Nice buy Gleek!

[thegleek]

Sheets or bedding in general, dinner settings, fine china (for the wife), flatware, anything you can use in the kitchen, blenders, food processors, pots, pans.

there no blender/mixer or food processor in the world that can top the ones we already own:

mixer: KitchenAid Professional 600 Series (-linky-)

food processor: KitchenAid KFP750 (-linky-)

[Usacomp2k3]

For that price it'd better be one heck of a mixer.

[thegleek]

For that price it'd better be one heck of a mixer.

it is. again, cuz we cook so much, we enjoy tools of the trade that tend
to stick with us for a lifetime... that 600 series mixer is the same one
emerill uses on food network... and when beth makes her xmas cookies
her arms dont hurt anymore from hand mixing the dough!

[Darkmage]

Gleek, have you seen the food processors where the motor is in the top? You drop the stuff in through the hopper and it slices as it falls down into the bowl. The cool part is the when you're done, you just lift the lid with the motor and use the bowl for whatever. No scooping the stuff into another bowl, cleanup looks really easy...

Hey, you might want to add this coffee machine to your registry. I have one and it rocks!

[thegleek]

Gleek, have you seen the food processors where the motor is in the top? You drop the stuff in through the hopper and it slices as it falls down into the bowl. The cool part is the when you're done, you just lift the lid with the motor and use the bowl for whatever. No scooping the stuff into another bowl, cleanup looks really easy...

lol no! plz provide a link to that! i gotta see this!

Hey, you might want to add this coffee machine to your registry. I have one and it rocks!

yeah currently, we use the hamilton beach 12 cup maker, which costed us under $50 and it works swell for time-being.

[zgirl]

there no blender/mixer or food processor in the world that can top the ones we already own:

Quality units, we have the the same mixer. Point is I do not know what you have in your house, but think of things you need. You live there not me.

How about a new BBQ grill?

Better still how about a nice set of Kitchen Knifes....nevermind.

[Darkmage]

I have just the opposite problem as Gleek. I'm an old fart, so my wedding registry has nothing typical on it.

Them: "Do you need a blender?"
Me: "I have one, thanks."
Them: "How about a food processor?"
Me: "I have one, thanks."
Them: "A new set of towels?"
Me: "I have one, thanks."
Them: "Some china?"
Me: "I have a full set. Thanks."
Them: "So what do you need?"
Me: "A place to store all this crap in my house."

So... we're registered at Home Depot. We're building a deck this summer and I could use a buttload of joist hangers and possibly a low-voltage lighting system...

[Nikto]

i'll have to try out both the wusthoff's and shun's next time i go back to that williams-sonoma store.

If you decide on the Wusthoffs, don't buy them at Williams-Sonoma if you've got access to Costco. They sell the same set for much less coin.

Out of curiousity, what price is the set going for at Costco? I assume it's in-store since I can't find it on their website.

Maybe he's thinking of Henckels instead. They do sell those.

[mattsteg]

i'll have to try out both the wusthoff's and shun's next time i go back to that williams-sonoma store.

If you decide on the Wusthoffs, don't buy them at Williams-Sonoma if you've got access to Costco. They sell the same set for much less coin.

Out of curiousity, what price is the set going for at Costco? I assume it's in-store since I can't find it on their website.

My bad, it's the Henckels that Costco carries, not the Wusthofs.

http://www.costco.com/Browse/Product.as ... d=10045499

Those aren't the same line. They're Henckel's "value" line that's of non-German origin.

[SpotTheCat]

Sorry for the resurection, but this thread had a lot of good reading directly applicable to what I'm doing now.
We're putting a registry together and I've come across a bit of a problem.

Do I want to get a nice set of knives (calphalon is what we have selected right now) with steak knives, or get a higher end set of knives without steak knives and get "everyday" steak knives that I won't feel bad if I throw in the dishwasher.

[Captain Ned]

Do I want to get a nice set of knives (calphalon is what we have selected right now) with steak knives, or get a higher end set of knives without steak knives and get "everyday" steak knives that I won't feel bad if I throw in the dishwasher.

I'd vote for better working knives and cheapo steak knives. Table cutlery that can't go in the dishwasher harshes my mellow.

[SpotTheCat]

Do I want to get a nice set of knives (calphalon is what we have selected right now) with steak knives, or get a higher end set of knives without steak knives and get "everyday" steak knives that I won't feel bad if I throw in the dishwasher.

I'd vote for better working knives and cheapo steak knives. Table cutlery that can't go in the dishwasher harshes my mellow.

Thanks! I'm glad I'm not the only one that sees that as a problem.
Right now we're tentatively registered for this
http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product ... 264&RN=395
My biggest problem with that set is that the paring knife is too big for me, and the steak knives I won't want to use regularly.

[Captain Ned]

For the same price I'd go with this Henckel's set:

http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product ... 68&RN=395&

It's not their best stuff, but I like the traditional riveted handles. The steak knives are stamped steel, so they're clearly OK in the dishwasher.

[SpotTheCat]

For the same price I'd go with this Henckel's set:

http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product ... 68&RN=395&

It's not their best stuff, but I like the traditional riveted handles. The steak knives are stamped steel, so they're clearly OK in the dishwasher.

eh, we're trying to keep everything in sets of 8, for some reason.
ninjaedit: and I am trying to find a set I like that has a 3.5" paring knife that I can try in-store, I really prefer the smaller paring knives.

[Hance]

Sorry for the resurection, but this thread had a lot of good reading directly applicable to what I'm doing now.
We're putting a registry together and I've come across a bit of a problem.

Do I want to get a nice set of knives (calphalon is what we have selected right now) with steak knives, or get a higher end set of knives without steak knives and get "everyday" steak knives that I won't feel bad if I throw in the dishwasher.

Most good sets of knives are not going to come with steak knives. I am with ned get a good set of kitchen knives and a cheap azz set of steak knives that you can toss in the dishwasher and not care. Inform your soon to be wife that she will be beaten to death with a garden weasel if she ever thinks of putting the good knives in the dishwasher. Personally i like the look and feel of wood handles on my knives I dont see much in that reguard at bed bath and beyond though.

[LicketySplit]

Chicago Cutlery with the walnut handles are beautiful functional knives..if you want good steak knives..get a good set..nothing worse than cheap knives IMOHO


http://www.amazon.com/Chicago-Cutlery-W ... 540&sr=1-8

[Inkling]

Back when I made real money... I bougt my wife a set of Wustof knives. Quite possibly the best gift ever. She cooks a lot (and is quite good at it, I might add), and she said those knives increased both her efficiency and enjoyment when preparing food.

I got the classic handles with full tangs. (BTW, that little red devil's pitchfork was just a sticker on my set; they eventually came off.) I think the set I got included a chef's knife, parer, boner (heh), bread knife, scissors, steel, and something else, don't remember what. All other knives in the kitchen were quickly relegated to the workshop to be used only for assorted dangerous jobs that should never involve a knife.

I highly recommend investing in quality knives if you prepare food at home at least once a week. And from my experience, Wustof Classics are exceptional.

Two and a half years later I feel even more strongly about our Wustof knives. They're now about seven years old and are still a pleasure to use. I get the paring knife and chef's knife sharpened about once year; the others have been sharpened once or twice in the seven years. They hold an edge amazingly well. I can't say enough -- can you tell I like them?

[SpotTheCat]

Yeah, I'm still looking around for other sets, but I don't think I can swing the $300 for the wusthof knives... we'll see what the rest of the family thinks (if nobody will go in and get them for us, I'm not going to bother putting them up). With small weddings you have to be careful about the registry.

That said, I've swapped out for the henckels set that the good captain suggested. I'll go in the store and see how they feel later, but I'm not happy with a 4.5" paring knife on the calphalon set, I already know that will feel too big for me, and defiantly too big for my fiancee.

I'll hold it all in the store before guests get ahold of the registry, but this is what I'm looking for. Any more set suggestions are welcome
8" chef's knife. fairly standard, will use it all the time
paring knife (3.5" preferred)
santoku knife
boning knife (or fillet knife if that's what it comes with)
bonus points for a utility knife, a bread knife, and a carving knife.

I also need 6-8 steak knives, I've got a set of low end chicago cutlery picked out that I won't feel bad replacing in 5 years.

quick question: If I get a decent bread knife and I manage to keep it's use to only bread, it will never go dull, correct? How do you go about keeping a serrated knife?

[Captain Ned]

quick question: If I get a decent bread knife and I manage to keep it's use to only bread, it will never go dull, correct? How do you go about keeping a serrated knife?

Don't worry about it. Mine has sliced thousands of bagels over the past decade and is still plenty sharp.

[Inkling]

quick question: If I get a decent bread knife and I manage to keep it's use to only bread, it will never go dull, correct? How do you go about keeping a serrated knife?

Don't worry about it. Mine has sliced thousands of bagels over the past decade and is still plenty sharp.

Agreed. The bread knife that came with our set has never been sharpened, only been used to cut bread and bread-type products while on a cutting board, and hasn't seemed to dull at all. And, by the way, we only eat home-made bread, so it gets used multiple times every day.

[Heiwashin]

quick question: If I get a decent bread knife and I manage to keep it's use to only bread, it will never go dull, correct? How do you go about keeping a serrated knife?

Don't worry about it. Mine has sliced thousands of bagels over the past decade and is still plenty sharp.

Although if your skilled with manual sharpening you can use a serrated style stone, whether curved or edged. I think they have electric sharpeners that do that as well.

[Captain Ned]

Of course, once you have the knives you need the right setting for them:

http://www.johnboos.com/food_service/pr ... ry=jbc0006

I've got a TNS 24"x60" table in the middle of my kitchen; it's the best thing we ever bought for the kitchen. A huge prep surface that is completely knife-friendly. Wipe it down with mineral oil every month or so and all is well.

[SpotTheCat]

I'm actually not set on the henckel's international ones. They're made in china, and I'm not exactly that happy with them at the moment. So are the calphalon, so I'm going to keep looking.

I think I might just not get a block set at all. I'd like to use a magnetic (with soft walls) knife holder to free up counter space, and my fiancee really likes how that looks. With no kids I'm not worried about it right now.

I'm glad we got bedding out of the way already, and I'm glad it wasn't this difficult. She's picking out dishes and I'm picking out knives, we're both stumbling along.

[computron9000]

I prepare a lot of food. To me, it is dangerous to have a dull or unsharp knife. If it costs me $150 for a knife instead of $50--and the end result is that I do not put a giant gash in a finger because the blade slipped off some meat or a slippery vegetable and went into my hand--then I think that $100 extra was well worth it. It also makes me faster. If you've ever prepared and trimmed pork spare ribs, for example, you'll know just how dangerous it can be if you try it with a dull blade. Most people don't realize that it is is the dull blades that cause injury (because instead of penetrating the surface with pressure applied they slide off) rather than share blades (which immediately enter the intended surface, leaving your fingers safe if you use proper technique).

I like my Wusthof knives. I'm sure there are better, but they work nicely. The key is what you cut on. i.e. Plastic vs. Glass vs. Wood. Some surfaces will demolish the cutting edge rapidly, while wood, for example, leaves it sharp the longest.

Many times you can find individual blades on sale at stores where your average stereotypical housewife shops. Often at a significant discount.

I really don't think you need a whole set. I usually only need a 4-6" paring knife, a Chef's knife or two, and a fillet knife.

[SpotTheCat]

I like my Wusthof knives. I'm sure there are better, but they work nicely. The key is what you cut on. i.e. Plastic vs. Glass vs. Wood. Some surfaces will demolish the cutting edge rapidly, while wood, for example, leaves it sharp the longest.

Which line?

Many times you can find individual blades on sale at stores where your average stereotypical housewife shops. Often at a significant discount.

This doesn't work on a registry. I am actually going to contact a relative that's into cooking a lot (she gave us a really nice pan set and an extremely nice wok. The wok is so good, in fact, I feel completely unworthy using it) and I might just leave the cutlery off of the registry and have her bargain hunt for us and just nab stuff when she finds it. She found our cookware for $150 and it is ridiculously nice.

I really don't think you need a whole set. I usually only need a 4-6" paring knife, a Chef's knife or two, and a fillet knife.

I agree, which is why I've been taking a second look at the whole set. I found a $30 set of steak knives by Henckels international (the china/taiwan brand of Henckels) that I won't feel bad about putting in the dishwasher, and I'm stuck on finding a good chef's knife, paring knife, santoku, and a serrated bagel/tomato knife at a price that guests wouldn't say "WTF" when they see.

[Heiwashin]

I prepare a lot of food. To me, it is dangerous to have a dull or unsharp knife. If it costs me $150 for a knife instead of $50--and the end result is that I do not put a giant gash in a finger because the blade slipped off some meat or a slippery vegetable and went into my hand--then I think that $100 extra was well worth it. It also makes me faster. If you've ever prepared and trimmed pork spare ribs, for example, you'll know just how dangerous it can be if you try it with a dull blade.

Agreed. I've cut a nice sized fillet off my thumb and in another incident sliced through through 3 fingers nails at once pretty badly(causing them all to fall off at their own pace) because of such things at previous jobs.