[kisaacs]

So, I was out of ideas for DH this year for his birthday. He's been into cooking lately, and we have terrible knives ($30 for the set of henkels). They're the ones with only one little man on the blade and they're not very good.

So, I went on the hunt for a knife. I didn't really want to spend $150 but I was having trouble finding something that was midrange. Because I love orange, and I love Rachel Ray, I decided to check out her line. I ended up getting this knife:

Amazon.com: Furi Rachael Ray Gusto-Grip 7-Inch East/West Knife: Home & Garden
(which I conveniently found at my local HomeGoods for $20...score!)

and I also got this sharpener to try to improve our other knives:


Amazon.com: Furi Ozitech Diamond Fingers Pro Knife Sharpener: Home & Garden

Man, I gotta tell you...what a difference! The new knife is so great to hold, easy to control, sharp as heck, and awesome to chop with. And the sharpener is super easy too and made a big difference in our other knives. They actually cut now!

For relatively little money, this has made a huge difference in the ease of preparing meals. Oh, and now we have a nifty magnet thingy to hold the knives too. Funny how I've managed to buy DH a present that I really wanted and he's psyched abou it!

Kristen

[Gloria]

Nice find! I'm terrible with birthday presents. I'd rather DH just pick out something he really wants vs. me racking my brains. It's great you were able to surprise him with something you both can use and enjoy.

I like orange too.
Gloria

[kisaacs]

Yeah, I figured there were enough people who liked cooking and maybe not so much the spending lots of cash that I would share

Smiles,
Kristen

[Emmie9999]

That knife looks way cool! How is it on mincing garlic?

I have an old set of knives. A few years ago I got an electric sharpener. I paid $70 at cooking.com, but saved about $300 in professional re-honing costs. It's not good on serrated blades like the cool Rachael Ray one, though.

[kisaacs]

Yeah, actually, this one doesn't do serated blades either, unfortunately. I haven't minced garlic with it yet, though DH might have. I usually press my garlic because I haven't had a good knife. WHen I try it, I'll let you know.

[bogiesan]

America's Test Kitchens is probably the best place I've ever found for honest evaluations of everything.
Registration at the site is required, it's FREE, and you can opt out of the email junk they send out every week but if you're a serious cook, it's wonderful reading.
America's Test Kitchen

Their reviews and specifications for what constitutes the basic necessities (and the best values) for any kitchen are fabulous. Knives are a frequent topic and amazingly complicated. Their favorite is the Victorinox Forschner Fibrox chef's for about $30. Got one. Faboo.

Sharpening is something I know about after many years of woodworking with superbly edged hand tools. I have a great electric sharpener and touchup steel. They recommend the Chef's Choice systems (models 110, 120 and 130; $85 to $140) for all the reasons I have one. They publish the best cookdoboks I've ever had, too.

david boise ID

[kelly]

I love my chef's choice electric- had it for at least 15 years and all my 18-year old knives are in great shape.