kittybart's Profile
Help me with my Henckel knife - Re: Sharpening
I may have to. I can't seem to get anywhere with this sharpener.
Help me with my Henckel knife - Re: Sharpening
Oops...posted the same photo twice and it's not letting me delete it. Here is the top.
Help me with my Henckel knife - Re: Sharpening
Ok, I broke down and took some pictures. I just can't get it sharp...or level at the bottom. Or anything resembling a point at the top.
Do I need these knives?
The idea to just try a cheap, longer knife might be a good one. The recommendation (from others on this post) to borrow from a friend is a good one...but among my friends I probably have the best knives...and that isn't saying much!
The only time I've felt lacking in "power" is when I try and break down a whole chicken. It was hard to get enough leverage to get through some of the cuts, but that was probably due to the lack of sharpness on my santoku.
Do I need these knives?
Thanks...this is really helpful!
I don't find I'm limited by length much with my Santoku...only on very rare occasion. So I'm not sure I need to make the investment. I'm generally happy with it.
But I do think I need a serrated knife. I don't know why I said cakes...I always think when I'm cutting soft pastries or cakes, if I had a serrated knife, that is what I would use. My Santoku works fine I suppose. But if only for tomatoes, I would really use the serrated knife. I think I would probably use it more than my paring knife. Honestly, I keep lots of skin on my veggies and fruit for the fiber, or use my veggie peeler. I only peel by hand when I have to. : )
I like the looks of the serrated above....I did not know there were variations. I was reading that many choose a less expensive serrated and then just replace as needed since sharpening is tricky (for a home cook).
Again thanks for the insight!
Help me with my Henckel knife - Re: Sharpening
Holy cow...yes, my paper test is dismal. Thanks! I'm keep running it through. It is improving. I wish the instructions for the electric sharpener hadn't read "Pass through each side 3 times." Hahah!! I think I've passed it through about 30 times now.
Do I need these knives?
I have another thread open here about sharpening my Henckel knife, and after doing some research, I realize I'm probably not using "the right knife for the right job." However, I'm a home cook who basically just cooks for her family...nothing too fancy but I like having quality tools and can't stand working with crappy knives.
I have a Wustof paring knife, a 6" Santuko Henckel and a 8" Henckel Eversharp Pro mini-serrated ( which my husband bought for carving the turkey one year....not a purchase I sanctioned). I use the santuko for EVERYTHING from veggies, fruits, meat. I'm thinking this is where I need another option...perhaps a longer chefs knife for meats? And I definitely need to add a serrated bread knife. Can I get away with one serrated bread knife that will double for fruits/tomatoes, cakes, etc?
Will I care? Do I need these knifes or since I'm relatively happy with using my santuko for everything, will it matter? I guess I just want to know if I'm missing out by not having some other knives to pick from and using the right type of knife for the job. Thanks!
Help me with my Henckel knife - Re: Sharpening
Ok, I JUST did this. It helped....but the tip of the knife won't cut the paper. Once I force the tip into the paper, the rest of the blade slices pretty well, not jagged as before. How do I get the tip properly sharp? I tilted the blade up at the end as per the directions. Also, the bottom edge of the knife is pretty messed up...not sharp and angular as when it was first purchased....any tips there?
Help me with my Henckel knife - Re: Sharpening
Ok, so the paper test was a failure. I couldn't easily cut the paper. So it seems the edge is not sharp. Maybe I'll take one more look at my electric sharpener and make sure I'm holding it at the correct angle. Thanks!
Help me with my Henckel knife - Re: Sharpening
I have a 6" Pro. S Henckel that is about 5 years old. I have never had it professionally sharpened but I have honed it many times over the years (like 1-2 times a month). I have sharpened it myself using one of those handheld 2 stage sharpeners. I recently purchased an Electric 2 stage Presto Eversharp to sharpen it myself and it just won't get sharp. Any tips? I believe I'm handling it correctly to sharpen.
I use a bamboo cutting board (I know, they're not the greatest).
Morels - Pittsburgh
I found some at Eleven last night....a nice halibut dish with morels and asparagus. Really nice. I asked for extra morels. : )
Morels - Pittsburgh
Any local restaurants have morels on the menu yet? I'm not sure they're even up yet...but it seems like they would be. Thanks!
Ordering in Paris
Excellent! I have several key phrases in my arsenal and of course s'il vous plait and Merci are at the top. Thank you!
Ordering in Paris
Hello all,
I will be traveling with my husband soon in Paris. We only know a few introductory phrases to get us by in French so I am concerned about ordering Paris if the waiter/waitress does not speak English.
I can comprehend the written word better than hearing it, so I'm confident when looking at a menu I can figure out the main dish and ingredients but it seems to me to be very rude to point to a menu item.
Any tips are greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
Yo Rita - Taco Heaven
I too LOVED Yo Rita - The black eyed pea was my favorite but the dish that blew me away was the ceviche. And of course the watermelon margarita was smooth, sweet and pretty pink!
Any cool spots to drink in Pittsburgh?
The Firehouse was mentioned, but try their downstairs bar, Embury - pre-Prohibition era cocktails by a master mixer. Homemade bitters, hard-to-find liquor and just really hip and a lot of fun!
Locally Grown Beef, Turkey, Lamb
I'm actually in PGH - sorry guys, my fault for not posting that. Thanks
Best Margarita in Pittsburgh
Hi - I love margaritas and was inspired by the Philly post (Best in Bucks Co) on the board for best margarita's. So..how 'bout it Pittsburgh - where are the best?
Of course Mad Mex serves up my "staple 'rita" but I need to expand my horizons!
Locally Grown Beef, Turkey, Lamb
Does anyone know where you can buy local meats for home cooking? I know individual farms that take orders for beef and lamb, or poultry and eggs, but I'm looking for a store/farmers market where a nice selection of proteins are available. Thanks!
Easter Sunday Pittsburgh
Any good suggestions for Brunch / Lunch on Easter Sunday? I've had the usual Grand Concourse, Point Brugge, Zenith, Lidia's. I'm looking for something different and special for Easter. I know a couple restaurants are having special menus - Willow, Atria's to name a few but nothing I'm interested in. Any suggestions are appreciated. Thanks!
Pittsburgh: Sunday brunch and Saturday lunch
A short jaunt over to Shadyside to Walnut Grove for excellent Bloody Mary's and a really good crab Eggs Benedict. Although I have not been for brunch, Six Penn Kitchen downtown is now offering a brunch and I have had many a great dinners there. Nice dishes with local meats such as lamb and pork.
For Saturday lunch, I would recommend walking through the Strip District and hitting up some food carts or maybe Eleven in the Strip for a really good Lobster Roll.
