Yep, put the kids down for a nap or wait until bedtime because we have something incredibly fun {and FREE} to share with you today from one of our favorite Kids Activities Blog sponsors, Craftsy!
It is an online video course about how to use a knife properly.
I am a huge fan of food shows on TV. They make it look so easy! A few flicks of the knife here, a few slices there and you have a uniform meal masterpiece!
Unfortunately, when I try to recreate the same recipe in my kitchen, I am limited by my ability to use a knife. Not only does the food end up haphazardly sized, but it takes me forever. Often it takes me so long to do the prep work that I am a little grumpy by the time the actual cooking begins.
Oh, and I have sliced a finger or thumb 3 times this year! <—ouch.
Craftsy’s Complete Knife Skills with Brendan McDermott to the rescue!
I watched this nearly two hour class on my iPad through Craftsy’s app that allows you to take your courses with you. It was really convenient to have the video going while I was in the kitchen and could do some practice while Brendan demonstrated.
It was a nice surprise to find out that most kitchens only need 3-4 knives. He went through the purposes of each and why I could empty out my knife drawer of some extras that I would likely never use.
The Complete Knife Skills class then went on to show how to hold a knife and the four main cutting techniques that would be used to cut nearly every food – even the tricky ones.
I learned that I was holding my knife too far away from the blade. It makes sense that after cutting myself so many times, I would be timid around anything sharp! But once I understood why holding a knife closer could increase the control and safety of my meal prep, the simple changes in hand position really made a difference.
My favorite part of the course was the shortcuts for fruits, veggies and herbs section. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I had been “peeling” an orange like Brendan suggested.
I had been slicing the peel off with a knife, but he had the further suggestion of slicing out each wedge which makes orange eating even yummier! The Complete Knife Skills course taught me to use a pairing knife to:
- Slice off each end.
- Use the knife to slice down the side of the orange between the flesh and white layer.
- Clean up any leftover white – Brendan mentioned the more cuts, the less waste.
- Slice each segment out.
- The leftover orange now resembles a book with pages that can be juiced to get all the good stuff!
The other thing that I really loved learning was an easy way to core a jalapeno. Pico de gallo is a daily necessity at my Texan home, so this is something that will literally change my life!
This easy way to core a jalapeno can cut down on getting too much contact with the spicy core or seeds:
- Cut the end off.
- Insert pairing knife with the BACK spine leading.
- Gently guide the back spine around the interior edge.
- Let the seeds and core drop out.
And speaking of pico de gallo, the tips on dicing a tomato still have my head reeling. The simple two step process to remove the core and mushy parts will be a huge time saver for me.
I had been afraid of using my honing rod. It just looks scary and I didn’t want to do anything wrong. There is a local knife sharpener I had been using regularly to keep the blades sharp, but I hadn’t been honing in between sharpenings. Craftsy’s class showed me how to use the honing rod in a way that I am no longer frightened! And I learned the importance of WHY and WHEN to use it.
I learned a ton and had a really good time with this class. Brendan McDermott is a quiet force to listen too and he really broke it down into tiny dices or brunoise.
One of the reasons I am so excited to share this with you today is that this nearly 2 hour class is free! There is no possible way you won’t learn something and it is a fun educational escape that will pay off next time you make dinner.
Go! Register for the Complete Knife Skills Class today!! It is FREE!
Thanks so much to Craftsy for being a Kids Activities Blog sponsor. We adore sharing all the fun things that we can learn at Craftsy!
