What basic items does your kitchen need? Is your culinary collection missing some of the most essential knives? Learn the difference between all the chef knives you might use to prepare a meal — and find out how each can improve your culinary life.

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When looking to buy chef knives, remember that a knife should feel comfortable in your hand. When you have the right fit, these kitchen tools make the art of cooking that much more satisfying.

The right knife for the job makes your slicing, dicing, mincing, chopping and detailing an effortless pleasure. If you can give yourself the chance to feel how the proper chef knives feel in your hand before worrying about the price, you can get a better sense for how to narrow things down once you know what you like. It also helps to understand how the different kitchen knives perform for what they are intended.

For example, the Fillet or Boning Knife has been produced to be flexible for the purpose of separating portions of meat without sacrificing the flesh. Separating the salmon from its skin is nothing less than magic in a single movement. It also works well when separating melon from its rind keeping the maximum yield.

The Carving Knife allows you to render the perfect slices of that roast you perfected in the oven and let rest long enough for those juices to reconstitute. When the blade glides through the roast and those juices appear, you are able to appreciate the precision workmanship that makes your efforts worthwhile.

There are specific purposes for the serrated edge blade versus a straight blade, such as with the Bread Knife. This is the best tool to course through a freshly baked tender loaf without mashing it down to a glutinous mass. There are also Granton blades with their characteristic dimpled air pockets running along each side of the blade made for enhanced slicing. There is less shredding of your product, and with better food release, the ease of cutting makes them a popular choice both for professionals and home cooks.

If you are limited right now on what you can spend, focus on a couple of essential items, such as paring knives and chef knives. At least with these two, you can accomplish most of what you need to in the kitchen with success. As you progress, add to your collection of kitchen knives and chef apparel. You will soon see how the right tools for the job makes all the difference in your cooking world. Any chef will tell you that their collection of knives are their prize possession. As you gather your collection, you will know what they mean.