An Edge in the Kitchen: The Ultimate Guide to Kitchen Knives -- How to Buy Them, Keep Them Razor Sharp, and Use Them Like a Pro
by Chad Ward
List Price:
Our Price: $17.41
You Save: $17.54 (50%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Chad WardEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2008-06-01
ISBN: 0061188484
Number of pages: 240
Publisher: William Morrow Cookbooks
Book Reviews of An Edge in the Kitchen: The Ultimate Guide to Kitchen Knives -- How to Buy Them, Keep Them Razor Sharp, and Use Them Like a Pro
Book Review: Most complete & best value book on the subject
Summary: 5 Stars
I own two books on kitchen knives and knife skills, this one and Weinstein's Mastering Knife Skills. Chad Ward's book is the best of the two by its breadth and wealth of information and is objectively a very good book.
Physically, the book is a medium sized hard cover, well edited. There is a number of good B&W pictures through the book to illustrate specific points, and there's a central section of 48 pages of glossy color pictures depicting specific knife techniques (battonets vs. julienne, onion, tomatoes, cutting a chicken, butterflying a piece of meat, skinning salmon, carving a turkey, steeling a knife, several sharpening methods, etc).
The book is organized as follows:
1 - Choosing the right kitchen knife:
This section is about 90 pages, so it's a sizeable part of the book. The author goes through the various knife types, costs, etc. Generally, Chad advocates staying away from knife block & sets, and explains that a home cook can do most everything with 3 knives: 8" to 10" chef, paring, and a serrated (or scalloped) bread knife. So his recommendation is to get the best of those. What is really helpful is that the author gives specific recommendations for all budgets - below $100, $200, or "the sky's the limit". Too many books just say "get what feels best". Chad goes beyond this to give a range of specific endorsements. This part also includes 10+ pages on cutting boards and how to take care of them.
2 - Kitchen knife skills:
This section is about 30 pages but also has most of the color pictures in the center section. This is where the key knife skill concepts are explained, how to hold the blade and the item to be cut, etc. This is similar to other knife skill books, but with one major improvements which is a few recipes to practice the skills. Those recipes are really welcome, and because they are basic recipes that can be used as base for a number of varied dishes, they are great recipes to include in this book.
3 - Knife sharpening:
This section is about 70 pages and covers the theory & science of knife sharpening as well as specific reviews and advices for several methods. Chad reviews the sharpening of Western as well as Japanese style knives, and several sharpeing systems (e.g., Spyderco, EdgePro, etc).
At the end of the book are several pages of resources to buy knives, boards, sharpeners, etc.
In short, I think this is a complete book that covers the key concepts of knife skills, but also addresses knife selection and care. If you buy only one kitchen knives & skill book, I would recommend it.
More An Edge in the Kitchen: The Ultimate Guide to Kitchen Knives -- How to Buy Them, Keep Them Razor Sharp, and Use Them Like a Pro reviews:
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4
Cooking, Food & Wine Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Audiobooks on Cassette
- Audiobooks on CD
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- e-Books
- Engineering
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Medicine
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Cooking, Food & Wine Books
Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocratsby Sally Fallon
NewTrends Publishing, Inc.; Published: 1999-10-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $16.73
Price in other shops:
The Flavor Bible: The Essential Guide to Culinary Creativity, Based on the Wisdom of America's Most Imaginative Chefsby Karen Page, Andrew Dornenburg
Little, Brown and Company; Published: 2008-09-16; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $21.95
Price in other shops:
Biggest Loser Family Cookbook: Budget-Friendly Meals Your Whole Family Will Loveby Devin Alexander, Biggest Loser Experts and Cast, Melissa Roberson
Rodale Books; Published: 2008-11-11; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.97
Price in other shops:
Hungry Girl: Recipes and Survival Strategies for Guilt-Free Eating in the Real Worldby Lisa Lillien
St. Martin's Griffin; Published: 2008-04-29; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.63
Price in other shops:
Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cookingby Michael Ruhlman
Scribner; Published: 2009-04-07; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $16.47
Price in other shops:
Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Bakingby Jeff Hertzberg MD, Zoe Francois
Thomas Dunne Books; Published: 2007-11-13; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $14.89
Price in other shops:
The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Mealsby Michael Pollan
Penguin; Published: 2007-08-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.14
Price in other shops:
Hungry Girl: 200 Under 200: 200 Recipes Under 200 Caloriesby Lisa Lillien
St. Martin's Griffin; Published: 2009-04-14; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.69
Price in other shops:
Cook Yourself Thin: Skinny Meals You Can Make in Minutesby Lifetime Television
Voice; Published: 2009-04-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $10.99
Price in other shops:
The Bartenders Black Book 9th Editionby Stephen Kittredge Cunningham
Wine Appreciation Guild; Published: 2008-11-11; Plastic Comb; Book
Best price: $8.08
Price in other shops:
Similar books summaries and other product reviews
Diamond Machining Technology CS2 12-Inch Ceramic SteelDMT; Tools
Best price: $30.81
Price in other shops:
Cookingby James Peterson
Ten Speed Press; Published: 2007-10; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $21.89
Price in other shops:
Victorinox Cutlery 8-Inch Chef's Knife, Black Fibrox HandleR H Forschner by Victorinox; R.H. Forschner by Victorinox; Kitchen
Best price: $13.10
Price in other shops:
Minosharp Sharpening Guides 2-Piece SetSointu USA, Inc (Global); Global; Kitchen
Best price: $11.95
Price in other shops:
On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchenby Harold McGee
Scribner; Published: 2004-11-16; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $23.50
Price in other shops:
The Flavor Bible: The Essential Guide to Culinary Creativity, Based on the Wisdom of America's Most Imaginative Chefsby Karen Page, Andrew Dornenburg
Little, Brown and Company; Published: 2008-09-16; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $21.74
Price in other shops:
In the Hands of a Chef: The Professional Chef's Guide to Essential Kitchen Tools (Culinary Institute of America)by The Culinary Institute of America (CIA)
Wiley; Published: 2007-12-26; Paperback; Book
Best price: $13.57
Price in other shops:
Mastering Knife Skills: Cutting-Edge Tips, Tricks & Techniques Used by Professional ChefsRelease date: 2007-12-03; DVD
Best price: $14.00
Price in other shops:
The Complete Guide to Sharpeningby Leonard Lee
Taunton; Published: 1995-10-09; Paperback; Book
Best price: $13.86
Price in other shops:
Mastering Knife Skills: The Essential Guide to the Most Important Tools in Your Kitchen (with DVD)by Norman Weinstein
Stewart, Tabori & Chang; Published: 2008-05-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $19.31
Price in other shops: