Sort of a silly question. Do you take your knives with you to cook at someone's house

M

Mike22

Member
So my mother in law had surgery an the family went over to cook her dinner when she got home from the hospital. Just before we leave I ask my wife should I bring a knife? Because her knives are always dull. She says no there will be something to work with. I get over there an start to try an cut bacon into pieces not happening. I really believe I could have used a hammer an it would have cut better. So out comes the pocket knife much better. Move on to cutting up an onion it's bigger than my knife blade so I think let's try another knife. Quick check an it is slightly sharp towards the back of the blade dull as a rock towards the front. Ok gonna give it a try anyways. Definitely not pretty but I got the onion cut an my thumb too. Oh how I hate dull knives. So take your own or be a good son in law an sharpen all her knives?

Thanks

Mike
 
yep. i do, for exactly the reasons you mentioned.

usually, people with crappy knives have never experienced good, sharp knives. when they use one it's a revelation to them that cooking doesn't need to be so difficult. good knives really take the work out of it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I am slowly replacing the wifes store bought decent knives with ones I have made. I say take yours with you. My inlaws are afraid to accidentally cut themselves with a knife so they leave them dull. I come over an help cook an sharpen every one I use. Then later the wife hears how her mom cut herself w a knife I sharpened. Some peoples parents should not be near knives.
 
A couple of times a year or more my Dad would round up all the kitchen knives that my mother used and sharpen them! When my father got thru with a knife you could shave with it. He would always tell my Mom, "I just sharpened all your knives, OK cut your dern fool finger off"

Now my Dad a dry sense of humor at times but, he also knew my mother was going to throw them into her dishwater and forget they were in there. When I was about 12, my Dad had sharpened all of the kitchen knives the day before! I was in the living room when I heard my mother sream out.
My mother had put one of the freshly sharpened knives in the dishwater reached in and grabbed it by the blade. She had immediately grabbed a dish towel and it was covered in blood in the time it took me to run to the kitchen. She cut her index finger to the bone! It took about a dozen stitches to close the wound. She never again put her knives in the dishwater till she was going to wash it and it never left her hand while carefully washing it, after that incident!!

Some people may not need sharp knives, as they forget how sharp they are! Start by sharpening only one knife and then tell your Mother in law how sharp it is and warn her about doing the dish water thing! See how she does with that one. She may request you to sharpen the others, once she sees how good it is too use a sharp knife!!
 
C Craft said:
A couple of times a year or more my Dad would round up all the kitchen knives that my mother used and sharpen them! When my father got thru with a knife you could shave with it. He would always tell my Mom, "I just sharpened all your knives, OK cut your dern fool finger off"

Now my Dad a dry sense of humor at times but, he also knew my mother was going to throw them into her dishwater and forget they were in there. When I was about 12, my Dad had sharpened all of the kitchen knives the day before! I was in the living room when I heard my mother sream out.
My mother had put one of the freshly sharpened knives in the dishwater reached in and grabbed it by the blade. She had immediately grabbed a dish towel and it was covered in blood in the time it took me to run to the kitchen. She cut her index finger to the bone! It took about a dozen stitches to close the wound. She never again put her knives in the dishwater till she was going to wash it and it never left her hand while carefully washing it, after that incident!!

Some people may not need sharp knives, as they forget how sharp they are! Start by sharpening only one knife and then tell your Mother in law how sharp it is and warn her about doing the dish water thing! See how she does with that one. She may request you to sharpen the others, once she sees how good it is too use a sharp knife!!
Click to expand...

Is a great plan but I was asked to not sharpen or make any for them because she knew my idea of dull is her idea of sharp. She doesn't want to cut herself.
 
wall e said:
Is a great plan but I was asked to not sharpen or make any for them because she knew my idea of dull is her idea of sharp. She doesn't want to cut herself.
Click to expand...

I'd bring my own. Problem is everytime I do the people in question use them and I find out why they have dull knives! Glass cutting boards WTH is that all about!! I've always heard that "a Dull knife is more dangerous than a sharp knife"? I always contributed this to having to apply more pressure to make the same cut.
 
A dull knife is more dangerous than a sharp knife...to folks used to sharp knives. A sharp knife is more dangerous than a dull knife...to folks used to dull knives.
So where should the push to learn be...hmmmm? Let's ALL use sharp knifes!

My MIL was at my house prepping food with my wife. Using my good Santoku as a cleaver of sorts to whack her way through carrots (they were making soup). They were yacking while whacking and mil was not watching her fingers which were extended over the carrots non-chef style....I warned her three times about how sharp the knife was. She was used to a knife so dull you HAD to cleave your carrots. She got irritated with me by the third warning and said..."I heard you the first time Ted....!" Okeee-dokey....40 seconds later....whack! "That knife is so,so,so SHARP!!" she says as we're tryin' to stop the bleeding....

I don't bring my knives anywhere. I do buy friends good knives as gifts....telling them I will keep it sharp for them. Then I don't offend folks as a knife nazi....

Seeing middle aged people afraid of a sharp knife is sadly pathetic somehow.....
 
Smallshop said:
A dull knife is more dangerous than a sharp knife...to folks used to sharp knives. A sharp knife is more dangerous than a dull knife...to folks used to dull knives.
So where should the push to learn be...hmmmm? Let's ALL use sharp knifes!

My MIL was at my house prepping food with my wife. Using my good Santoku as a cleaver of sorts to whack her way through carrots (they were making soup). They were yacking while whacking and mil was not watching her fingers which were extended over the carrots non-chef style....I warned her three times about how sharp the knife was. She was used to a knife so dull you HAD to cleave your carrots. She got irritated with me by the third warning and said..."I heard you the first time Ted....!" Okeee-dokey....40 seconds later....whack! "That knife is so,so,so SHARP!!" she says as we're tryin' to stop the bleeding....

I don't bring my knives anywhere. I do buy friends good knives as gifts....telling them I will keep it sharp for them. Then I don't offend folks as a knife nazi....

Seeing middle aged people afraid of a sharp knife is sadly pathetic somehow.....
Click to expand...
Soo true. MIL will not touch knives in our house for the reason of they are sharp.
My wife has gotten to the point of telling me her chef is dull when she has to use a saw motion to get it cutting into a tomato.
6 to 10 passes on the ceramic back to the sharp cutter she loves.
It is sad for grown adults to be scared to have a sharp knife. Or is the lazy person who refuses to mind their fingers.
I am teaching my 16 yo to keep her fingers knurled chef style when cutting and mind the edge of the blade.
 
The problem is two-fold. Most people have never had decent knives, and because of that they've never learned knife skills. If you watch most women, they will reach for a 4 inch knife to cut everything. It will be the fat handled, beefiest knife they have- the one that looks like a pregnant steak knife. They will then proceed to push it straight down through whatever they are cutting. Well, except meat. They will saw that with a serrated knife.

I'm not downing people, this is just the way that 99% of home cooks cut things. (Fantastic cooks, by the way). The older generation of grandmas raised family of 7 with two crappy knives and three crappy pans. Nowadays, infinitely better pans are available and most home cooks have at least decent cookware. The problem is they still use crappy knives.

Having sharp knives is a godsend, but learning knife skills is just as important. A crappy knife slips and you need a band aid. A razor sharp knife slips and you need stitches.
 
John...hit the nail on the head! In the soccer-mom-driven-world-of-safety-at-all-costs-over-responsibility...we should all favor dull knives....'cause band-aids beats stitches any day!!

I've had guests over that ask how I can "cook so fast..." what they really are noticing is that I can prep fast. Due to using the correct SHARP knife. Cooking is fun when you don't have to beat the food into submission...Lol.

The time in the pan or oven is static (pretty much) The only place you gain time is on the cutting board.

I've been married 23 years to the most kind decent woman I know. I've asked her if she would like to learn some prep skills over the years...nope. She still wields a knife like the MIL...except she has gotten used to sharp knives....by cutting herself many times. Sigh....
 
My wife has gotten a lot better. She still uses her knives like a guillotine, though. Thank goodness for decent cutting boards and good steel. She can cook like a pro chef, so I'll put up with the knife abuse. The only thing she still does once in a blue moon is toss a knife into the sink. My hair catches on fire and my eyes spin in circles. "Babe! All you have to do is wipe it with a wet cloth! It doesn't have tar on it!" But that has gotten to a very rare occurrence, thankfully.
 
John Wilson said:
Walt! Where in the world have you been?! Good to see you around.
Click to expand...
Life and home ownership has cut into my online time.
Also my version of tapatalk has pooped out on me. Now am busy with my endless honey do's and sneaking in knife time, and getting my Yuk fixed and on the road.
All of which have managed to keep me busy.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top