Knife Skills 101: Cut Faster, Safer and More Evenly

If there's one skill that pays off in every single recipe you'll ever cook, it's knowing how to use a knife well. Good knife skills make prep faster, safer and far more enjoyable - and because evenly cut food cooks evenly, your finished dishes turn out better too.

The good news: you don't need a drawer full of fancy blades. One decent chef's knife, kept sharp, will handle the vast majority of kitchen tasks.

Hold it like you mean it

Most beginners hold a knife by the handle alone, with the index finger pointing along the spine. Instead, use a pinch grip: pinch the base of the blade between your thumb and the side of your index finger, then wrap your remaining fingers around the handle. It feels odd for the first five minutes and natural forever after. The pinch grip gives you far more control because your hand is closer to the cutting edge.

Protect your fingertips with the claw

Your other hand guides the food - and it's the one most likely to get nicked. Curl your fingertips under into a claw, so your knuckles face the blade and your fingertips are tucked safely away. Rest the flat side of the knife against your knuckles and let them act as a guide, moving them back as you cut. Slow and safe beats fast and bleeding every time.

Let the knife do the work

Don't chop straight down and don't saw back and forth. A sharp chef's knife wants to rock - keep the tip in light contact with the board and push the blade forward and down through the food in a smooth motion. You're using the length of the blade, not just brute force.

Aim for even pieces

This is the part that actually changes how your food tastes. If your onion is cut into a mix of big chunks and tiny slivers, the slivers burn while the chunks stay raw. Uniform pieces cook at the same rate. You don't need them to be perfect - just consistent. A few seconds spent making your dice roughly even will reward you with vegetables that brown evenly and a sauce with a better texture.

A quick reference for common cuts:

• Dice - even cubes (small, medium or large) for sauces, soups and stews.
• Slice - even flat pieces for stir-fries and roasting.
• Julienne - thin matchsticks for salads and garnishes.
• Mince - very fine, for garlic, ginger and chilli.

A sharp knife is a safe knife

It sounds backwards, but a dull knife is more dangerous than a sharp one: it slips off food instead of biting in, and it needs more force, so when it does slip it slips hard. Keep your knife sharp and cutting becomes effortless.

Two tools, two jobs:

• A honing steel realigns the edge and should be used often - a few strokes before each session.
• A sharpener or whetstone actually removes metal to create a new edge, needed every month or two depending on use.

And never put a good knife in the dishwasher - wash it by hand and dry it straight away.

Set yourself up for success

Before you start cooking, do your prep first - chefs call this mise en place, French for "everything in its place". Cut and measure everything, put it in little bowls, and then turn on the heat. Cooking becomes calm instead of chaotic.

Stabilise your board with a damp cloth or paper towel underneath so it can't slide, keep your blade sharp, use the pinch grip and the claw, and aim for even pieces. Practise on a big batch of onions or carrots and you'll feel the difference within a week. Then put it to use on any of our recipes - prep will fly by.