Keen cooks in this Forum?

Forge

Any other chaps all about cooking and kitchen knives in here?

Fretwired

Oh yes ... ;-)

capo4th

Of course I love getting busy on the 5 ring induction hob

digitalscream

Not exactly. I'm absolutely useless at cooking, but I'm determined to learn...tonight was the third attempt at making a decent red wine reduction to go with steak. I deliberately bought a rather expensive steak, so that I didn't fuck it up like the last two gos.

As it happens, it worked out pretty bloody well.

Next up: Tom Kerridge's chocolate tart from his show on the Beeb last night. Not sure what to substitute for the nuts (not allowed in this house)...think I might make some tiny meringue drops to keep the texture similar-ish.

breakstuff

I do all the cooking in our house.Mrs B's sh*t hot at ironing but would burn a salad if I didn't watch her.

Forge

breakstuff said:

I do all the cooking in our house.Mrs B's sh*t hot at ironing but would burn a salad if I didn't watch her.

Same here, the Mrs is better kept away from the pans. I recently upgraded my kitchen knives and went from sharp to "scary I will take a finger off" sharp. It's incredible how a great tool can make you life easier.

stickyfiddle

I'm very much the main cook in our house. 

I have a handful of Globals. Excellent knives and very easy to keep super-sharp.

Le Creuset for most other stuff. Their stoneware is alright, but their metal stuff, the big cast pots, stainless pans and toughened non stick frying pans, is awesome.

chillidoggy

I always do the cooking in the household: it's safer.

Forge

Globals are awesome, I nabbed a trio of them heavily discounted. In the same spirit you have the Tojiro Sharaku line, same metal and designer but bigger handles and they are at 50% off at the moment....most recommended. For my workhorse I went for the Fujiwara hand forged chef knife (I probably use it for 95% of the tasks), it is rustic and as sharp as a razor. They are half the price ordered directly from the artisan.

Phil_aka_Pip

I do all the cooking. If I didn't, there's no-one else to do it for me. Sometimes I CBA with it and go to the pub instead, other times I do it just to keep from feeling hungry.  I like to think that most of the time I get it right, and nobody I've ever cooked a meal for socially said I couldn't cook.

chillidoggy

I used to have a ceramic knife, which was superb, until I dropped it, and it broke.

paulnb57

If I didn't cook we would starve, the pink one can burn water, and cut herself doing it! shes a star with an iron though, and though I say so myelf Im a bloody good cook! and modest.....

WezV

i do most of the cooking too.

I would love some decent knives and would happily buy them for myself... but every few years someone seems to buy me a knife block for xmas,  and i end up with another cheapish set i wouldn't have brought myself but i feel obliged to use    I have got pretty good at sharpening cheap knives

Hootsmon

Hooters/sprig of thyme/pot noodle/mars bar and buckfast wine*

* menu for Sundays only...the rest of the week we wing it

Forge

WezV said:

i do most of the cooking too.

I would love some decent knives and would happily buy them for myself... but every few years someone seems to buy me a knife block for xmas,  and i end up with another cheapish set i wouldn't have brought myself but i feel obliged to use    I have got pretty good at sharpening cheap knives

My best advice is to sell or give the cheap ones, keep one small knife and one bread knife then buy a kick ass quality chef knife or santoku. You will find most of the work can be done with one knife and you can go Japanese if you look after them extremely well (stone sharpening and immediate wiping and cleaning) or European if you want fuss free tools. A bad knife is way more dangerous than a very good one.

VimFuego

WezV said:

i do most of the cooking too.

I would love some decent knives and would happily buy them for myself... but every few years someone seems to buy me a knife block for xmas,  and i end up with another cheapish set i wouldn't have brought myself but i feel obliged to use    I have got pretty good at sharpening cheap knives

pretty much the same here, got given a cheapish knife set a few years back that have good handles and the blades I keep shaving sharp. TBH, I have them in a condition that they only need a quick polish with a steel every day or so. I'd say I do 95% of food prep with the one knife.

holnrew

I bought a ceramic vegetable knife yesterday, I'll be putting it to the test preparing a chilli today.

Forge

holnrew said:

I bought a ceramic vegetable knife yesterday, I'll be putting it to the test preparing a chilli today.

Don't drop it!

chrispy108

I've got these from Costco: http://www.costco.co.uk/medias/sys_master/root/h9c/h10/8836852678686.jpg

http://www.costco.co.uk/view/product/uk_catalog/incoming/800115

Really nice, especially for the money!

Karlos

This 100% represents my skill in the kitchen. My wife is a great cook and bakes as well - thank god.

chillidoggy

holnrew said:

I bought a ceramic vegetable knife yesterday, I'll be putting it to the test preparing a chilli today.

For once I wasn't joking. The Japanese ceramic knives are marvellous tools, but they are of course brittle, although not as expensive as they once were.