Using a Mincing Knife
Mincing knives belong in every serious cook’s kitchen! This knife reduces the time to prepare fresh vegetables and spices by allowing the cook to move the knife with her hand natural movements. The main part of the mincing knife is the blade, as with other knives, but the blade on this knife is curved and mounted on the handle at both ends.
Mincing Basics
The purpose of the mincing knife is to allow the user to chop thin items quickly and evenly. These knives work particularly well with small vegetables, like green onions, and herbs and spices, such as gingerroot. To use a mincing knife, hold the blade firmly with your dominant hand. Use the other hand to hold whatever you are cutting into place. Rock the mincing knife back and forth gently to begin cutting.
Quality mincing knives will not require you to rock very hard or press down hard. With a proper blade, these knives should cut quickly and effortlessly. The biggest danger to using a mincing knife is cutting yourself. Because the blade is going back and forth, slipping a finger underneath it is pretty easy to do. Make sure to keep an eye on the blade and give yourself some room. As you become practiced with using a mincing knife, you should be able to chop without holding the vegetable or spice, which will make the knife safer.
Different Types of Knives
The basic mincing knife is the single blade, but this knife comes in a double blade style as well. The double blade is even harder to use. Avoid this type of mincing knife until you become proficient with the single-blade variety. When you begin to use the double blade, rock the knife back and forth three to four times before breaking and clearing away the work area. Gradually work up to chopping entire vegetables without moving the knife. This method of chopping will allow you to cut vegetables in seconds.
