If you are a chef or you frequently perform cooking-related tasks in the kitchen, you will agree that the space would not be the same if specific knives were not present. Knives are essential tools in any kitchen, and it doesn’t matter if you are a professional or not; you will struggle to complete tasks there if you do not have a set at your disposal.
Some kitchen knives stand out among others, and it is not just because of the sublime designs they have. Instead, it is because of their uses, which them almost irreplaceable in any kitchen. The paring knife falls under this category, and the importance of this piece of equipment in the kitchen can hardly be overemphasized. A paring knife is very efficient for performing particular kitchen tasks, and the uses of a sharp paring knife are highlighted below in this article.
Common Uses Of Paring Knives
A paring knife is also referred to as a multi-purpose knife sometimes because its uses in and out of the kitchen are quite numerous, and it can also be used to carry out other knives’ duties in the absence of such knives. However, there are only so many tasks that the paring knife can perform so perfectly, and most of them are listed below.
- Peeling fruits and vegetables:This is the primary use of a paring knife. In fact, the name (paring knife) is gotten from the word pare, which means to peel. Paring knives are well equipped and are the most appropriate knife for peeling the outer skin off fruits and vegetables without cutting deep into the body of the fruit or vegetable.
- Slicing vegetables and ingredients: A paring knife is ideal for slicing vegetables like lettuce, onions, carrot, green beans, and ingredients like garlic, shallot, etc. And where other knives may demand a chopping board to slice vegetables into bits, you may not need one when slicing with a paring knife because it is light and often feels like an extension of the arm.
- Detailed, controlled cutting and pattern making: The paring knife is known for its precision and accuracy, and it is perfect for jobs that require detailed cutting, like cutting shapes into dough. You can also comfortably engrave designs and make patterns on food surfaces using a paring knife, as its small nature allows for much accuracy.
- Hulling strawberries and cutting fruits into sections:You can use the tip of a paring knife to pick out the tiny stem left at the top of strawberries very smoothly. You can also use a paring knife to divide oranges and lemons into sections before eating or extracting the juice. The paring knife can also be used for coring apples chopping small fruits into bits.
Conclusion
While the chef’s knife is widely considered the chef’s favorite, the paring knife is undoubtedly a very close second, considering all its important uses in the kitchen. There are several other uses of a paring knife in the kitchen, but the ones mentioned above are the most common uses of the paring knife.
