Knife Advice for Claire

Dear Spatulatta,

can you suggest a good chopping knife for carrots? i am almost 11. my grandma won't let me use her knife because she says it's too dangerous!

Claire



Dear Claire,

Your grandmother is being cautious because she doesn't want you losing any of your fingers. Grandma has probably cut herself a few times and she want to spare you the pain. Ask her about it.

Carrots are tough. Anytime you have to cut carrots you have to use a sharp knife or a mandoline. But even a mandoline has a very sharp blade.

t's not the knife but how you use it. A lot of this has to do with what's called "fine motor skills" or how well you can coordinate your hands, your eyes and your thoughts. And that develops as you get older.

You need to learn how to hold the knife and position the vegetable so that your fingers are never in the line of cut. And actually a sharp knife is better than a dull one because it cuts cleanly and won't slip.

Is there a cooking school near you that gives knife skills lessons? It might be something to research. Try asking grandma if she would feel comfortable letting you use her knife if you had knife lessons. It might be something you'll have to save up for.

Once you learn the correct technique you'll prove to grandma that she needn't worry about you cutting carrots without cutting you fingers anymore.

Keep Cooking!