Knife Skills —

a kitchen guide to using the right knife the right way

This site will give you the confidence to choose and use the knives and other nonelectric sharp tools in your kitchen. It’s also a reference site that you can use as you improve your skills and acquire the tools that will make you a better cook!


Pastry wheel cutters

These round bladed tools cut through thin dough, such as piecrusts, or simple dough, such as cheese straws. Pastry wheel cutters allow you to quickly and evenly cut your dough into pieces or strips. Yes, you can do the same thing with a paring knife by dragging it across the dough. But if you do that, you run the risk of cutting or scratching your countertop.

Or worse, having uneven slicing. Plus, many pastry wheels have ridges, which give your dough a finished, fancier look. If you do this on your countertop, be aware that it may cause scratches. Consult your countertop manufacturer or owner’s manual for their recommendations.

A pastry wheel
A pastry wheel cutting cheese straws

A knife-wound heals, but a tongue-wound festers.	Kurdish proverb

A knife-wound heals, but a tongue-wound festers.


He likes it, as a goat likes the knife, that kills him.	Hungarian proverb

He likes it, as a goat likes the knife, that kills him.


No matter how sharp it is, a knife will never cut it’s own handle.	Kikuyu proverb

No matter how sharp it is, a knife will never cut it’s own handle.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Criticism should not be querulous and wasting, all knife and root-puller, but guiding, instructive, inspiring.

Hilary J. Bader

The bigger the smile, the sharper the knife.

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The information in this site is true and complete to the best of our knowledge.
The author disclaims any liability in connection with the use of this information.
All recommendations are made without guarantee.