The Type Of Knife You'll Never Catch Alton Brown Using

Knives are part of the essential kitchen gear you need to be successful in your culinary endeavors. A good knife is a kitchen tool worth splurging on: When you need to slice, dice, mince, or julienne, this is the tool you reach for. But not all knives are created equal or are equally important to have hanging on your magnetic strip where you store your knives. In fact, per Alton Brown, if you are going to skip buying one knife, it should be a paring knife. "The Kitchen" co-host notes you can manage perfectly fine without one stating, "I hate paring knives. I don't even own one anymore."

Paring knives are used for peeling vegetables and fruits, working with delicate herbs, or mincing some of your go-to aromatics — so what can you use instead? A good chef's knife, which is basically a super-sized paring knife, can easily perform the duties that are traditionally allocated to a paring knife. Brown notes that you want one that is in the 8- to 10-inch range. However, using a chef's knife for these tasks requires a little bit of knife skill mastery 101. If you are not there yet, don't sweat it. There are other options.

You can easily reach for your handy dandy peeler. A vegetable peeler is key to making stress-free homemade coleslaw and for removing potato, cucumber, and apple peels. If you want to borrow a page from Alton Brown, you may want to use a Y-shaped peeler which the cookbook author uses for everything from peeling a lemon for his signature martini to removing skins from sweet potatoes. The beauty of a peeler is how quickly it can get the job done. You also get the added benefit of producing an even and consistent cut with each glide of this tool. A paring knife leaves more room for user error.  

Brown also forgoes using a paring knife when it comes to chopping up herbs. He says a good pair of kitchen sheers can do the job, stating, "I never cut with a knife what I can cut with scissors. After all, I've been using those things since kindergarten." Again, this kitchen necessity is going to be able to do the job faster and more efficiently than a paring knife. So, the next time you make that classic creamy scalloped potatoes recipe and sprinkle it with fresh, chopped chives, ditch the paring knife, use your peeler and kitchen sheers, and thank Brown as you enjoy it.