Just keep in mind that the "index" finger is the one closest to the thumb ...

Also known as: trigger finger, pointer finger, forefinger, digitus secundus, or digitus II.

Ace in the Hole

A really good knife, a really good cutting board...and some really good Band-Aids(TM) just in case.

JamesF

@Maurik: I read here I think about cutting the cone out of the bottom of an onion to avoid tearing up.

Brad Isaac

Cool! Now how do I cut an onion properly?!

Maurik

Wow, I've always been envious of chefs for their mad knife skillz. Now I can emulate them in my very own shabby kitchen. Cool vid!

witeowl

Lauram: This method keeps you from cutting off the tip of your finger. The blade rides up and down on the knuckle. It is a good method for small objects and quick chopping. Once you get the hang of it you relax your hand and it doesn't look or feel nearly as awkward as the video makes it appear.

maztec

Hmm. The using-the-fingers-to-guide-the-blade is a good, fundamental tip, but he's skipping over some of the subtleties of how the knife is held and moves. The blade doesn't really go "up and down", but there's also a lateral slicing motion. For knife control (with this type of cutting work), you'll also want to hold the blade itself rather than the handle.

I have the CIA knife skill book somewhere on the shelf, which shows how to do various odd shaped vegetables and meat. I haven't found all the techniques to be that useful, though. Mangoes, for example, I tend to just peel with a vegetable peeler and then just cut around the seed, rather than trying to score/crosshatch the flesh and then cut away the skin.

cjc

I spend a lot of time chopping up veggies ( think I'm pretty fast and neat) and I can see no good reason to adopt this fairly awkward method.

Lauram

@Ace in the Hole: Oh yeah, I noticed that, too. But then I just let the pure awesomeness of the video take over.

witeowl

Shit Entry & Bad Bad Bad Bad Bad Vid Choice! -Shame on you, LH! -Do Better Research!!!!!

I am not a chef, but worked at a few shops awhile ago and the 1 thing I was told everywhere is:
Make sure the very ends of your (left or steadying hand) fingers CURL IN -as if you were gripping something lightly (almost like the top of a capital letter 'P'), to take them out of the cutting path.

You always keep the flat of the blade very lightly near the flats of the second bone in from the end, ie: the middle phalanx. (it usu. touches the f,m&r fingers)

The pro on this vid can screw around and not tell you b/c he's internalized the details already.

-BUT when you work in a shop where 12" pro knives are precision reground every 2 weeks, 1 slip-up is Huge. I have literally sliced a parabolic section out of a fingernail and missed doing the nailbed & my fingertip by ~1mm.

CURL THOSE TIPS IN!!!!!!!!!!!! -please!

(other things: you should usu. apply Almost No Force; the knife should do all the work. I've also seen some chefs employ a very slight fore & back as they go to increase the cutting area used. gripping the choil with your thumb + fore can help control, also.)
Anyway, find a MUCH more pro vid to teach you, esp. if you're using truly sharp knives.

Here are some pretty good links:
[youtube.com]
[forums.egullet.org]
[www.foodnetwork.com],1904,FOOD_19001_1726456,00.html
[www.savvyvegetarian.com]

spaceman7

totally agree with spaceman7

When I first entered school, I had to adapt to his so called "awkward" style. But it is a really good foundation for people who want to polish their knife skills.

I can challenge anyone to cut faster than I can with this style and come up with more uniform cubes of potato, carrots or celery dice.

Sharp knives are definitely safer than a dull knife while cutting, a good sharp knife should cut through the vegetable without having you put too much force/weight behind it...

Keep practicing with potatoes if you want good knife skills (potatoes are cheap and you can cook em even if they're all weird lil cubes) before you pick up your own groove and style.

Also don't try to show off.... I've seen more than one fool try to show off at a get together and cut themselves into a blood messy.

and for those gunning for a career in the kitchen, if you hone your basic knife skills really well...your employer will be really impressed.

Solidsky

Hahaha, that French accent. I'm going to go watch Ratatouille again.

calpchen

@spaceman7: Did you actually watch where his finger was or just listen to his instruction? Because I can see very clearly that he's holding his finger slightly curled and it's obvious that the knife is touching the flat part of his finger.

wooleyduck