Carving Knife

No home should be without a good carving knife, it is probably the most essential knife to own and has a long history. The carving knife is most likely to be one of man’s first tools dating back to before the art of metalworking. While the stone carving knives used by ancient man may seem a bit crude by today’s standards they still did an adequate job in helping man to cut his meat into portions that could then be served to his family.

Once man learned to work with metal the search was on to continuously make better carving knives making it easier to cut and serve meat with each meal. Today the standard carving knife has a length of between 21 to 38 centimeters and has a straight edge rather than a serrated one which make them easier to keep very sharp.

The blade is longer that the average kitchen knife and is also somewhat thinner making it easier to carve nice thin slices of meat, rather than serving your family huge slabs of meat.

Just as there are many different styles of carving knives, the types of metals used to make them vary from manufacturer to manufacturer, and also the price you are willing to pay for them. Typically a good knife is made from a high carbon stainless steel as this metal will take a keen edge and hold its sharpness for a long period of time. Buying a knife made form a softer metal will only result in having one that goes dull quickly requiring constant sharpening.

While almost all carving knives are made of high carbon steel, the thing that sets the more expensive ones apart are the number of layers of steel that are used to create the blade and tang. A properly made knife is created by taking one single piece of steel and continuously heating, flattening and folding it in on itself creating one single piece of metal that in essence consists of many layers that have been forged together. The more layers that are created the stronger the blade will be and the better it will hold an edge.

When buying a good carving knife you will find that they come with either a round or a pointed tip and both are useful depending on what you plan to carve with them. The rounded tip style are used mainly for carving meats such as roast beef and hams where you do not need to poke or prod the meat to find the right spot to cut. The pointed variety were designed to use on turkey, chicken and other birds where it could be necessary to find the right  spot in the joint or to cut the drumstick or wing off.

Traditionally couples might receive a good carving knife and fork set as a wedding gift as this is a good way to ensure that their kitchen is well equipped to start out. The set usually included the knife, a meat fork and steel for keeping the knife sharp in a nice presentation/storage box such as the 3 piece carving knife set by Sabatier. The steel is used to sharpen the edge of the knife and is used much like a sharpening stone by running the sharp edge of the blade along the steel from the tip of the steel to the handle.

While learning to use a carving knife may not seem like a difficult task, for many people it is a somewhat daunting lesson especially when it comes to carving a turkey or goose for Christmas dinner. Using a carving knife and fork to serve a roast is simply a matter of learning how to cut a nice thin slice and then place it on the plate. However learning the proper war to carve a bird takes a little more practice.

While a standard carving knife may be the perfect accessory for some, for others the best choice is an electric knife. This relatively modern appliance uses an electric motor and twin blades to make cutting the Sunday roast an easy task for even those who have less experience carving meat. Electric knives take the worry out of carving a thin slice and can help those who may not be able to handle the task, due to age or disability, still be able to carve the Sunday roast.

When it comes time to buy a carving knife for your family, the best way to choose one is by the way they feel in your hand, pick the one that feels the most comfortable to you. Try not to buy one that is too inexpensive as it will not last, and remember if you don’t feel confident in your carving skills you can always use an electric carving knife to make the job easier.