Fruit & Vegetable Knives

Chopping, dicing, slicing and mincing fresh fruit and vegetables is an important part of any chef’s duties. However monotonous this process may be, someone has to do it. Make sure you have sharp enough blades on your fruit knives to slice right through the skin. Also, get a couple of vegetable knives that let you chop onion upon onion without feeling as if your hand is about to give out. Williams-Sonoma offers some of the most advanced technology in vegetable knives on the market, making sure that your kitchen has all the tools necessary for the best dinner possible.

One of the most useful tools for chopping large amounts of produce is the Nakiri knife. The blades on these knives have slight depressions in them to reduce the amount of sticking while slicing and chopping. The knife features a similar shape to a meat cleaver, giving you the ability to pick up what you chop, and then transfer it to a saucepan or a salad bowl. Most Nakiri knives feature ergonomic handles made of slip-resistant synthetic material to avoid slippage and make large projects in the kitchen more comfortable.

When you have your basic chopping needs down, you need something to make more intricate cuts. A peeling knife has a unique blade, similar to that of a bird’s beak, which slices into the very skin of the fruit or vegetable, but does not rupture the nutritious portion inside. These knives are great for working on rounder fruits and vegetables with skin, such as kiwis, potatoes and onions. You can also use these knives to make decorative garnishes similar to the ones you see in your favourite housekeeping magazines and websites. Another tool for smaller cuts is the paring knife. These knives allow you to work with smaller fruits and vegetables, such as lemons and limes, to make delicate slices and to remove pits.

If it is your goal to make the most intricate cuts possible for decorating, consider an entire garnishing kit. These kits come with paring and slicing tools, and they feature more specialty items, including melon ballers, zesters and double-edged peelers. These types of tools are perfect for making garnishes for your favourite dish when you enter it into a competition and wedged on the rim of your favourite bar glasses when you want to unwind with a cocktail.

For a unique style of cutting, a rocking knife allows you to chop once on your cutting board, and then rock the knife back and forth to finish the project. This type of knife is perfect for cutting onions and shallots into small pieces, and you can also use it to mince a couple of cloves of garlic or to cut nuts up into tiny pieces for trail mix.

Knives with serrated edges are great for getting through large heads of lettuce when you need to make a salad. The perforation on the edge of the knife creates a shredded effect that would normally take longer when using a general chef’s knife. A bonus of getting a knife with serrated edges is that it can effortlessly slice through a fresh loaf of bread from your oven without smashing it.

The perfect tomato slice is hard to come by. When you get a fresh one from the grocery store, most knives smash them, leaving you with crushed fruit. Special tomato knives are sharp enough to break through the skin, but do not crush the fruit inside, leaving you with pristine slices for placing between bread. These knives also have forks at the end that allow you to pick up individual pieces for serving.