kitchen utensils
when i first moved to London, I was hugely skint, and couldn't really afford anything but the most basic equipment for my shabby bedsit. However, I really needed some kitchen knives. Any sensible being would say, I'll wait until I get paid, then spend more than a pound on a complete set of kitchen utensils. I am not that sensible.

I went to a wonderful poundstore where I bought a set of 5 kitchen things for £1. This contained
* a pair of scissors with a gap of about 5 mm between the blades - they didn't cut so much as bend everything I tried to use them for.
* a can opener which looked to be of a lower quality than the shit you find in christmas crackers - it didn't even dent the tins I tried to open, so I gave it to a friend who was actually cheaper than me. He threw it away for me I think.
* a paring knife so blunt it couldn't reliably cut butter. I've seen folk with sharper noses than this thing.
* a 'proper' kitchen knife with a 7 inch blade. this was sharp enough to cut through individual collagen fibres, but not much else. On its second use the blade snapped in two and the handle fell apart.
* my favourite find of all, a plastic chopping board, whihc I nearly threw out, thinking it was part of the packaging. It lasted me 2 years before my boyfriend melted it on the oven. I was just about big enough to cut a single tomato up on it. fantastic.

After this success, my next knife purchass were from IKEA - still quite shit, but with my £1 knife sharpener they lasted about 6 months. My boyfriend took pity on me last month though, and got me a Sabatier set with his christmas bonus - worth every single penny he spent.

and i will never again buy knives from a pound shop.

chopping boards, on the other hand...
( ascorbate, Tue 8 Jan 2008, 11:26, 2 replies)

Still
got all my Sabatier set from when i was a Chef, lasted years they have and still sharp enough to split a hair.
( Trollman, Tue 8 Jan 2008, 11:29, closed)

I'm a bit of a knife-snob
My mother, having been to catering college, has instilled in me a love of high-quality kitchen knives.
My Sabatier is all well and good - but, oddly, it cannot hold a candle to a Gary Rhodes-endorsed 12" chef's knife that was half price in Woolies about 10 years ago. It has a wonderful weight, perfect balance and I love it so much I sometimes take it to bed with me.

That last bit may not be true... but it is a truly excellent piece of kit that, being a snob, I would never have looked at twice had it been me that found it.
( Enzyme is powered by sunlight, Tue 8 Jan 2008, 14:06, closed)