Boning knife
A boning knife is almost misnamed. Its name implies that it cuts through bones. Actually, it has two main functions, and I’ve added a third. But none of these functions include cutting through bones.
Its main functions are to cut around bones and to get in between joints to separate them. For instance, if you want to separate a chicken into individual pieces (such as leg, thigh, and breast), a boning knife will help you move around the bones more finely and easily. A boning knife is much narrower than a chef’s or utility knife, which means you can maneuver around the meat and bones with more precision and cut exactly where you want to cut. The larger knives are too wide to give you that flexibility. The same is true with beef or other meats, if you need to trim them or separate them into their individual ribs.
Boning knives come in two types: a flexible and non-flexible blade. If you’re going to buy just one boning knife, get the one that’s flexible. This will allow the blade to more easily adjust to the contours of the meat. Which brings up the third, lesser known function of a boning knife: to remove things like fat, gristle, and silver skin from meat. The narrowness of the blade allows you to make small cuts and slices to remove even the smallest imperfections from the meat.
How important is it to have a boning knife? Well, here’s why this is one of the optional knives: it’s time to buy one if you are doing increasingly more boning of meats, poultry, and fish, and you’re not getting the precision and speed that you’d like with a different knife. Yes, you can get the same accuracy with another knife. But it will take you much longer to do it. The knife will pay for itself if you decide to buy whole chickens, rather than the more expensive individual parts. With just a bit of practice, you can cut up the chicken quickly and easily, and save money at the same time.
A boning knife is used for raw meat. If you use it for slicing cooked meat, you’ll find that it’s too short, narrow, and curved to function effectively.
