I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
Argos - is there really a need?

What do you recommend as a knife set?

blackhead wrote:
> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
> Argos - is there really a need?
>
> What do you recommend as a knife set?

It depend on your needs and budget.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kitchen_knife

Any knife block set with 15 knives for 29.99 ( in just about any
currency) is going to be pretty close to useless. You probably can buy
a decent paring knife for CDN$29.99.

--
John Kane, Kingston ON Canada

blackhead wrote:

> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
> Argos - is there really a need?
>
> What do you recommend as a knife set?

Certainly not one with 15 knives for $29.99 You will end up with 15
knives, none of which are worth owning. There are a number of good
brands of knives out there. There are fairly expensive. Sometimes you
can get a good deal on them when you buy a set, but you may be better
off just picking them up one or two at a time. If you take care of them
they will last a lifetime.

> blackhead wrote:
>
>> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
>> Argos - is there really a need?
>>
>> What do you recommend as a knife set?

That $30 set will get you someone else's selection of $2 knives.Take your
$30 and buy one good knife. When you have another $30 to spare, get another
one. And so on ...

Felice

On Sat, 15 Mar 2008 18:25:40 -0400, "Felice" >
wrote:

>
>> blackhead wrote:
>>
>>> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
>>> Argos - is there really a need?
>>>
>>> What do you recommend as a knife set?
>
>That $30 set will get you someone else's selection of $2 knives.Take your
>$30 and buy one good knife. When you have another $30 to spare, get another
>one. And so on ...
>
>Felice
>

i think i can get one for less than thirty bucks. it's going to be a
very informal murder...

your pal,
blake

"blake murphy" > wrote in message
news
> On Sat, 15 Mar 2008 18:25:40 -0400, "Felice" >
> wrote:
>>
>>> blackhead wrote:
>>>
>>>> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
>>>> Argos - is there really a need?
>>>>
>>>> What do you recommend as a knife set?
>>
>>That $30 set will get you someone else's selection of $2 knives.Take your
>>$30 and buy one good knife. When you have another $30 to spare, get
>>another
>>one. And so on ...
>>
>>Felice
>
> i think i can get one for less than thirty bucks. it's going to be a
> very informal murder...
>
> your pal,
> blake

Oh, well, if what you're after is a single-use knife ...

Felice

On Sun, 16 Mar 2008 14:44:40 -0400, "Felice" >
wrote:

>
>"blake murphy" > wrote in message
>news
>> On Sat, 15 Mar 2008 18:25:40 -0400, "Felice" >
>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> blackhead wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
>>>>> Argos - is there really a need?
>>>>>
>>>>> What do you recommend as a knife set?
>>>
>>>That $30 set will get you someone else's selection of $2 knives.Take your
>>>$30 and buy one good knife. When you have another $30 to spare, get
>>>another
>>>one. And so on ...
>>>
>>>Felice
>>
>> i think i can get one for less than thirty bucks. it's going to be a
>> very informal murder...
>>
>> your pal,
>> blake
>
>Oh, well, if what you're after is a single-use knife ...
>
>Felice
>

i suppose keeping it for later use in the kitchen would be rude.

your pal,
blake

blake murphy wrote:
> On Sat, 15 Mar 2008 18:25:40 -0400, "Felice" >
> wrote:
>
>>> blackhead wrote:
>>>
>>>> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
>>>> Argos - is there really a need?
>>>>
>>>> What do you recommend as a knife set?
>> That $30 set will get you someone else's selection of $2 knives.Take your
>> $30 and buy one good knife. When you have another $30 to spare, get another
>> one. And so on ...
>>
>> Felice
>>
>
> i think i can get one for less than thirty bucks. it's going to be a
> very informal murder...
>
> your pal,
> blake
That was official retail price that was quoted, I'm sure. Forced
inheritances don't count.

--
John Kane, Kingston ON Canada

blackhead wrote:
>
> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with
> 15 knives from Argos - is there really a need?
>
> What do you recommend as a knife set?

After decades of using only one knife, I acquired
a second one which I use frequently.

My main knife is of course a standard chef's knife.
It's used for everything, mostly chopping vegetables
and slicing meat.

My second knife came with a vegetable peeler.
I needed a new peeler, and I noticed I could get
the peeler with a paring knife cheaper than a
peeler alone. The peeler was a cheap piece of
junk which got thrown away years ago, but I've
still got the paring knife which I use quite often.
Because it has lots of tiny teeth, it can cut
things like tomatoes without crushing them.
It can saw through a small baguette, which is
the only bread I every buy.

Those two knives pretty much cover anything.
I used to have a kitchen shears, which was quite
useful. If I were to have a third kitchen cutting
implement (not counting the peeler), it would be
shears. A cleaver would be useful for making
large quantities, because it is also useful
for transferring chopped food from the cutting
board, but a large chef's knife does that well
for smaller quantities. I don't often make
large quantities, so I really don't need a
cleaver.

15 knives? I can't imagine 15 useful knives.
I can imagine a few more knives than what I've
got, like a special knife for chipping away the
frost in my freezer. That's what killed the
predecessor to my current main knife -- the old
knife broke off at the handle due to excessive
use for defrosting purposes. But 15 knives?
That makes no sense to me.

I get the cheapest Chinese-made stainless steel
knives, and they work well. They're cheap
enough I don't have to worry about ruining them
because I used them to defrost the freezer or
as a screwdriver. It's true that they lose
their sharpness fairly quickly and no amount of
sharpening will bring the edge back to new.
But they don't rust.

Of course, if you're getting 15 knives for
$29.95, you're going to be getting exactly that
level of quality. And, $2 each is not bad for
that level of quality. But I'd prefer most of
them to be the same knife, so that as each one
broke it could be replaced by an identical one
rather than the next smaller size.

Mark Thorson <Mark Thorson >> wrote:

> blackhead wrote:
>>
>> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with
>> 15 knives from Argos - is there really a need?
>>
>> What do you recommend as a knife set?
>
> After decades of using only one knife, I acquired
> a second one which I use frequently.

Maybe you should pick up 3 or 4 knives insetad of all this antique
stuff. I could live with 4 cutting knives, and life would be much
more difficult with 2. You must not cook much, or else you just
don't realize what you're missing (kinda like how my friends use my
knives and like that they're actually sharp and useful)

9" Carving knife
6-7" Chef knife
Bread or serrated utility knife
7-8" Santoku

I have more knives, but these are the only ones I really use. I
have never had a need for a paring knife, FWIW. I did have a use
for a cleaver the other night, but I made do with my heavy 9"
carving knife - chopped right through those chicken thigh bones with
no splinters.

-sw

Sqwertz wrote:
>
> Mark Thorson <Mark Thorson >> wrote:
>
> > After decades of using only one knife, I acquired
> > a second one which I use frequently.
>
> Maybe you should pick up 3 or 4 knives insetad of all this antique
> stuff. I could live with 4 cutting knives, and life would be much
> more difficult with 2. You must not cook much, or else you just
> don't realize what you're missing (kinda like how my friends use
> my knives and like that they're actually sharp and useful

I cook every day, all of my meals. I never eat out,
except when invited for some kind of gathering of
family or friends. And I cook most of my stuff from
scratch, except pasta and bread.

You don't need much of a knife for that.

Since the demise of my oven and my cooling off
on barbeque, I haven't handled many whole birds
or sides of ribs. But even when I did, I did
not find having only a chef's knife a handicap.

> 9" Carving knife
> 6-7" Chef knife

My chef's knife is 8". I think it does just fine
for anything I'd use either of those two for.

> Bread or serrated utility knife

I don't buy bread, except rarely soughdough
baguettes, and as I said before, the small paring
knife can saw through one of those.

> 7-8" Santoku

Don't know why I'd want one of those.

> I have more knives, but these are the only ones I really use.
> I have never had a need for a paring knife, FWIW. I did
> have a use for a cleaver the other night, but I made do
> with my heavy 9" carving knife - chopped right through
> those chicken thigh bones with no splinters.
>
> -sw

On Mar 15, 9:12*am, blackhead > wrote:
> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
> Argos - is there really a need?

I believe I found what you're looking at. For 29.99 British pounds
($60.78US) they offer six steak knives, 7 knives of various types,
shears, a "sharpener" and the block. The knives a
Chef (unknown size).
Carving.
Bread.
Cleaver.
Utility.
Paring.
Small paring.
6pcs steak.
Shears.
Sharpener.

It seems like a lot of stuff for the money but much of it is of little
use. The steak knives will be serrated blades with unattractive
wooden handles and you won't want to use them. The shears will be
lightweight and not safe to use on a chicken carcass. The utility and
paring knives all serve the same purpose and will be of the quality
that $5US would get you at the supermarket. The bread knife will be
serrated, not scalloped, and will function like a dull saw. It's
possible the carving knife could be good the first couple of times you
use it.

So the question is, will the quality of the chef's knife and the
cleaver justify the price? The website I found didn't give any
information about the kind of steel or even the size of the knives.
>
> What do you recommend as a knife set?

Personally, I think most people should select the best knife they can
find for the most-used kitchen tasks. That's a chef knife for most
people, a Chinese cleaver for me. Find one that you can keep sharp
and whose weight and balance fits your hand. The second most used
knife in the typical kitchen is some kind of paring knife. I think
inexpensive ones work fine and they can be replaced frequently for
little money. After those two, what will be next most useful depends
on what you cook. Do you cook a lot of big roasts? You might like a
good slicing knife. Do you bake bread? Definitely find a good bread
knife -- scalloped blade rather than serrated if you can find one. Do
you cut up whole chickens? Fillet fish? A good boning knife or
fillet knife will be useful.

In other words, two or three well chosen knives will serve you better
than a lot of cheap knives that will just sit in a block. -aem

"aem" > wrote in message
...
On Mar 15, 9:12 am, blackhead > wrote:
> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
> Argos - is there really a need?

I believe I found what you're looking at. For 29.99 British pounds
($60.78US) they offer six steak knives, 7 knives of various types,
shears, a "sharpener" and the block. The knives a
Chef (unknown size).
Carving.
Bread.
Cleaver.
Utility.
Paring.
Small paring.
6pcs steak.
Shears.
Sharpener.

It seems like a lot of stuff for the money but much of it is of little
use. The steak knives will be serrated blades with unattractive
wooden handles and you won't want to use them. The shears will be
lightweight and not safe to use on a chicken carcass. The utility and
paring knives all serve the same purpose and will be of the quality
that $5US would get you at the supermarket. The bread knife will be
serrated, not scalloped, and will function like a dull saw. It's
possible the carving knife could be good the first couple of times you
use it.

So the question is, will the quality of the chef's knife and the
cleaver justify the price? The website I found didn't give any
information about the kind of steel or even the size of the knives.
>
> What do you recommend as a knife set?

Personally, I think most people should select the best knife they can
find for the most-used kitchen tasks. That's a chef knife for most
people, a Chinese cleaver for me. Find one that you can keep sharp
and whose weight and balance fits your hand. The second most used
knife in the typical kitchen is some kind of paring knife. I think
inexpensive ones work fine and they can be replaced frequently for
little money. After those two, what will be next most useful depends
on what you cook. Do you cook a lot of big roasts? You might like a
good slicing knife. Do you bake bread? Definitely find a good bread
knife -- scalloped blade rather than serrated if you can find one. Do
you cut up whole chickens? Fillet fish? A good boning knife or
fillet knife will be useful.

In other words, two or three well chosen knives will serve you better
than a lot of cheap knives that will just sit in a block. -aem
>
>
Most excellent response! One thing I'm finding at my mom's house are
(mostly empty) knife blocks in the oddest places. Some were gifts. Dad was
pretty handy in the kitchen and he culled the best and most useful from each
set and put them in one block. Your point about the serrated steak knives
is on point (heheh). They've never been used. One thing lacking is a good
Chinese cleaver. Dad used to have one; I've no clue where it went.

Jill

"blackhead" > wrote in message
...
> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
> Argos - is there really a need?
>
> What do you recommend as a knife set?

Don't buy any set get knives that you need and the best for your needs. All
most cooks even pro chefs need is a chef's knife (size you feel comfortable
with), 3.5" paring and if you do a lot of roast etc perhaps a carving or
bread knife if you eat a lot of hard crusted breads. Other than that perhaps
a 5 to 6 utility knife. Buy a set and most of the knives you won't use but
what you need and you can get better knives.

Joe Cilinceon

Joe Cilinceon wrote:
> "blackhead" > wrote in message
> ...
>> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
>> Argos - is there really a need?
>>
>> What do you recommend as a knife set?
>
> Don't buy any set get knives that you need and the best for your needs. All
> most cooks even pro chefs need is a chef's knife (size you feel comfortable
> with), 3.5" paring and if you do a lot of roast etc perhaps a carving or
> bread knife if you eat a lot of hard crusted breads. Other than that perhaps
> a 5 to 6 utility knife. Buy a set and most of the knives you won't use but
> what you need and you can get better knives.
>
> Joe Cilinceon
>
>
I think most professional cooks would include a boning knife but it's
probably overkill for home use.

--
John Kane, Kingston ON Canada

On Sun, 16 Mar 2008 15:11:27 -0400, John Kane >
wrote:

>Joe Cilinceon wrote:
>> "blackhead" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
>>> Argos - is there really a need?
>>>
>>> What do you recommend as a knife set?
>>
>> Don't buy any set get knives that you need and the best for your needs. All
>> most cooks even pro chefs need is a chef's knife (size you feel comfortable
>> with), 3.5" paring and if you do a lot of roast etc perhaps a carving or
>> bread knife if you eat a lot of hard crusted breads. Other than that perhaps
>> a 5 to 6 utility knife. Buy a set and most of the knives you won't use but
>> what you need and you can get better knives.
>>
>> Joe Cilinceon
>>
>>
>I think most professional cooks would include a boning knife but it's
>probably overkill for home use.

i have a fairly inexpensive boning knife (chicago cutlery) that i use
quite often, but rarely for boning. carbon steel, and easy to keep
sharp with a whetstone.

your pal,
blake

blake murphy wrote:
> On Sun, 16 Mar 2008 15:11:27 -0400, John Kane >
> wrote:
>
>> Joe Cilinceon wrote:
>>> "blackhead" > wrote in message
>>> ...
>>>> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
>>>> Argos - is there really a need?
>>>>
>>>> What do you recommend as a knife set?
>>> Don't buy any set get knives that you need and the best for your needs. All
>>> most cooks even pro chefs need is a chef's knife (size you feel comfortable
>>> with), 3.5" paring and if you do a lot of roast etc perhaps a carving or
>>> bread knife if you eat a lot of hard crusted breads. Other than that perhaps
>>> a 5 to 6 utility knife. Buy a set and most of the knives you won't use but
>>> what you need and you can get better knives.
>>>
>>> Joe Cilinceon
>>>
>>>
>> I think most professional cooks would include a boning knife but it's
>> probably overkill for home use.
>
> i have a fairly inexpensive boning knife (chicago cutlery) that i use
> quite often, but rarely for boning. carbon steel, and easy to keep
> sharp with a whetstone.
>
> your pal,
> blake

I am not sure that a boning knife is accepted in the best serial killers
circles but far be it for me to dictate fashion.

I am a bit puzzled though. What would one normally use a boning knife
for (in the kitchen) other than boning?

--
John Kane, Kingston ON Canada

On Mar 17, 9:44*am, John Kane > wrote:
>
> I am a bit puzzled though. What would one normally use a boning knife
> for (in the kitchen) other than boning?
>
I use it for cutting chicken breasts off the bones, for removing skin
from fish fillets, for removing silverskin and membrane from meat, for
slicing tomatoes and anything else where a narrow, slightly flexible
blade will serve a purpose. -aem

"John Kane" > wrote in message
...
> I am a bit puzzled though. What would one normally use a boning knife for
> (in the kitchen) other than boning?
>
> --
> John Kane, Kingston ON Canada

I have 3 different types of boning knives two of which are Japanese styles.
They can also be used as a utility knife in most cases as well. Most are in
the range of a 5" to 6" blade. My most used personal knives are a Chinese
Chef's knife (thin bladed cleaver) and a paring knife. I do about 90% of all
kitchen duty with this from slicing, dicing etc. All of my knives are
Japanese made with high grade steels.

Joe Cilinceon

On Mon, 17 Mar 2008 13:44:29 -0400, John Kane >
wrote:

>blake murphy wrote:
>> On Sun, 16 Mar 2008 15:11:27 -0400, John Kane >
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Joe Cilinceon wrote:
>>>> "blackhead" > wrote in message
>>>> ...
>>>>> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
>>>>> Argos - is there really a need?
>>>>>
>>>>> What do you recommend as a knife set?
>>>> Don't buy any set get knives that you need and the best for your needs. All
>>>> most cooks even pro chefs need is a chef's knife (size you feel comfortable
>>>> with), 3.5" paring and if you do a lot of roast etc perhaps a carving or
>>>> bread knife if you eat a lot of hard crusted breads. Other than that perhaps
>>>> a 5 to 6 utility knife. Buy a set and most of the knives you won't use but
>>>> what you need and you can get better knives.
>>>>
>>>> Joe Cilinceon
>>>>
>>>>
>>> I think most professional cooks would include a boning knife but it's
>>> probably overkill for home use.
>>
>> i have a fairly inexpensive boning knife (chicago cutlery) that i use
>> quite often, but rarely for boning. carbon steel, and easy to keep
>> sharp with a whetstone.
>>
>> your pal,
>> blake
>
>I am not sure that a boning knife is accepted in the best serial killers
> circles but far be it for me to dictate fashion.
>
>I am a bit puzzled though. What would one normally use a boning knife
>for (in the kitchen) other than boning?

for me, most often making thin slices of pork or beef from a steak for
stir-fries, or cubes for stew or chili. it seems easier than, say, a
chef's knife. the slices don't stick to the knife. also for a roast
chicken.

your pal,
blake

"blackhead" > wrote in message
...
> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
> Argos - is there really a need?
>
> What do you recommend as a knife set?

As the others have told you, you do not need a set of knives. You really
only need a few very good knives. I have Henckels, and I think they are the
very best. I like the line they call "fine edge pro". One of the reasons I
like it is the polypropylene handle. They can take hot water, the
dishwasher (I know, but I do put mine into the knife rack of my DW), and
bleach. It is not their most expensive knives. I have two of the 5" utility
knives that are the knives I use every day. By having two, if I am cutting
meat, I can switch to a clean knife for raw foods. I also have their 3
paring knife, the 8" carving and the 8" chef's knives for bigger jobs. I
keep them sharp and they will cut anything. It is amazing to cut a ripe
tomato and see the knife glide through it with no effort. These can be
found at any department store with a kitchen department. I buy mine at Bed,
Bath and Beyond.

DP

blackhead <blackhead >> wrote:

> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
> Argos - is there really a need?

Don't they have one for cheaper than that? Seems awfully expensive.

-sw

blackhead wrote:
>
> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
> Argos - is there really a need?
>
> What do you recommend as a knife set?

Don't buy a set at all and Argos is no place to get decent knives
anyway; the listed ones aren't high quality. Go to John Lewis/affiliates
or else a restaurant supply and buy your knives one at a time. The
handle for a large chef's/chopping knife needs to be different than for
a small paring knife and cleavers different again.

Arri London <Arri London >> wrote:

> blackhead wrote:
>>
>> I'm in two minds to buy a 29.99 knife block set with 15 knives from
>> Argos - is there really a need?
>>
>> What do you recommend as a knife set?
>
> Don't buy a set at all and Argos is no place to get decent knives
> anyway; the listed ones aren't high quality. Go to John Lewis/affiliates
> or else a restaurant supply and buy your knives one at a time. The
> handle for a large chef's/chopping knife needs to be different than for
> a small paring knife and cleavers different again.

Another advantage of buying your knives one at a time as you can
afford them is that you learn how to use them for different purposes
and appreciate them more.

The first "real" knife I bought was a 4-Star Henckles cleaver. I
treasured it, but I also learned what it could cut well and what it
wasn't meant for as soon as I got my second knife...

-sw