Knife Skills – Post Class Notes
Thank you for attending the knife skills session. These notes are designed to help you practise and develop your technique at home.
Method
Key Principles
- Create stability – always start by forming a flat base on your ingredient
- Use the claw grip – keep fingertips tucked in and guide the knife with your knuckles
- Work with control – use smooth, steady movements rather than force
- Prioritise consistency – evenly sized cuts ensure even cooking
Core Vegetable Cuts
- Practising these cuts will improve both your presentation and cooking results:
- Allumette (matchstick) – fine strips
- Julienne – slightly thicker batons
- Batonnet – larger batons, often used for chips or crudités
- Brunoise – fine dice
- Macédoine – medium dice
- Small, Medium and Large Dice – used depending on the dish and cooking time
- Slicing – even, uniform cuts (e.g. onions)
- Chiffonade – finely sliced leafy vegetables or herbs
- A useful approach is to cut evenly sized slices first, then into strips, and finally into dice where required.
Knife Selection
- Use the appropriate knife for each task:
- Chef’s knife – general purpose chopping and slicing
- Serrated knife – suited to bread and soft-skinned items such as tomatoes
- Paring knife – for smaller or more precise work
- Choose knives that feel balanced and comfortable to hold.
Knife Care and Storage
- Proper care will extend the life and performance of your knives:
- Hone regularly to maintain the edge
- Sharpen periodically using a whetstone or sharpener
- Wash by hand in warm, soapy water and dry immediately
- Avoid dishwashers where possible
- Store safely in a knife block or on a magnetic strip
- Do not store loose in drawers
Practice at Home
- Regular practice will help build confidence and consistency:
- Dice onions as evenly as possible
- Julienne vegetables such as carrots or peppers
- Practise slicing and chiffonade techniques with herbs and greens
- Focus on accuracy first; speed will improve naturally with experience.
Ratatouille
Serves: People
Ingredients
- 1 Red pepper quartered and deseeded
- 5 g Fresh basil 1 tbsp, leaves
- 5 g Fresh thyme about 1 sprig or Oregano
- 1 tbsp Vegetable oil for cooking
- 1 Courgettes roughly chopped
- 1/2 Aubergine chopped into large chunks
- 1/2 Red onion roughly chopped
- 2 clove Garlic sliced
- 1/4 tsp Granulated sugar to taste
- 1 tbsp Red wine vinegar
- 400 g Chopped tomatoes 1 tin
- 1/2 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling
Method
- Heat the grill to high. Lay the pepper quarters skin-side up on a baking tray and grill until the skins are black and charred. Tip into a bowl, cover and leave to cool. Peel the charred skin off the peppers, then cut into strips, and toss back in the juices collected in the bowl. Tie the basil stalks and thyme/ oregano sprig together using kitchen string and set aside.
- Heat the oven to 160C. Heat the oil in an ovenproof pan dish and fry the courgettes and aubergine for 15 mins until nicely browned. You may need to do this in batches, adding more oil to the pan as needed so the pan is never dry.
- Scoop the veg out of the pan and set aside. Add a drizzle more oil, tip in the onion and cook for another 15 mins until softened and starting to brown. Add the garlic and leave to sizzle for a moment. Scatter with sugar, then leave for a minute to caramelise and splash in the vinegar. Stir in the cooked vegetables along with the pepper juice, season generously, pour over the can of tomatoes and bring everything to a simmer.
- Nestle in the herbs, cover the dish and transfer to the oven for 1 hr. Remove the lid and give it another 30 mins until everything is cooked down and jammy. Leave the ratatouille to cool until just warm, then stir through most of the basil leaves and the extra virgin olive oil. Scatter with the rest of the basil and serve with bread or toasted sourdough
Pont-neuf Chips
Serves: People
Ingredients
- 600 g Maris Piper potatoes or similar floury potatoes
- 1 tbsp Vegetable oil
- Sea salt to taste
- Cracked black pepper to taste
- 5 g Fresh thyme 1 tbsp leaves, no stalks
Method
- Preheat oven to 200°C.
- Square off the edges of the potatoes by trimming off each side and both ends, then cut into Straight, thick-cut rectangular chips
- Toss the potatoes in a bowl with everything else.
- place on a baking tray and roast for 20-25 minutes, turning halfway through.
Citrus Slaw
Serves: People
Ingredients
- 1 Lime or lemon zest and juice
- 1 tsp Caster sugar
- 3 tbsp Olive oil
- 5 g Fresh Coriander 1 tbsp, chopped
- ¼ Red cabbage shredded
- ¼ White cabbage or Chinese leaf shredded
- 1 Carrot grated
- 1 Banana Shallot sliced
- 1 Green chillies sliced
- 1 tbsp Kewpie mayonnaise optional
- Sea salt To taste
Method
- Whisk the lime/lemon zest, juice, sugar, olive oil, and optional mayo in a bowl to create the dressing. Combine the shredded red cabbage, white cabbage, grated carrot, sliced shallot, chilli, and chopped coriander in a large bowl. Toss the salad with the dressing, seasoning with salt to taste
Vegetable Spring Roll
Serves: Portions
Ingredients
- 1 tsp Plain flour to make a glue
- Water to make a glue
- 1/4 Red chilli thinly sliced, optional
- 1/2 clove Garlic to your preference
- 1 Carrot medium, Very fine strips/batons
- 40 g Chinese leaf or white cabbage.
- 20 g Bamboo shoots tinned, cut into strips
- 40 g Closed cup mushroom any type finely sliced
- 12 g Beansprouts
- 3/4 tsp Oyster sauce
- 1/4 tsp MSG or vegetable stock powder.
- 1 tsp Soy sauce
- 1 tsp Sesame oil to cook
- Sea salt to taste
- White pepper to taste
- 5 Spring roll pastry wrappers
- 5 tbsp Vegetable oil for stir frying & shallow frying
Method
- Mix the flour and water together in a small bowl to create the "glue" and set aside.
- Heat the sesame oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and chilli, if using, and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add the vegetable oil and increase the heat to medium-high. Add the carrot, Chinese leaf, bamboo shoots and mushrooms. Stir-fry for 2–3 minutes until softened. Add the beansprouts and cook for another minute.
- Stir in the oyster sauce, MSG, soy sauce, and white pepper. Mix well. Remove from heat and let the filling cool completely. This is crucial to prevent soggy pastry.
- Place a spoonful of filling on a wrapper, fold according to package directions, sealing the edge with your flour glue
- Add vegetable oil to the pan and shallow fry for about 8 minutes
We hope you enjoyed the class!
If you have any feedback about the class or questions for chef get in touch. Email: lovetocook@foodsorcery.co.uk
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