Octaveman

Thanks. Yep, brought them close to the house underneath the covered portion of the porch. I think they weathered the chills here. I haven't used any of the lemongrass yet because I'm trying to get it really big before I start hacking away at it. I got the lime tree at http://www.fourwindsgrowers.com/lore/kaffir_lime.html. Very happy with the leaves it produces. I got the 2-3 year tree. Good luck on your lemongrass project. Keep us updated. Bob

I don't fish nor would I probably ever be in a situation where I lop off heads and filet my own fish but here's what I've heard from people who do. A good heavy duty knife for breaking down (head, tail) and a good flexible filet knife for the rest of the job. As it's not necessary to get super high quality many have bought the Tosagata brand of Japanese knives for this purpose. They are double beveled, strong and quite good for the money. They have a rustic look to them that many find appealing. This Atsu Deba is used specifically for fish in Japan. Source on the East coast Source on the West coast As far as a filet knife, I have no clue what to recommend as Tosagata doesn't make one. The goal is flexibility with them and I would imagine any decent brand would be fine. HERE is a website that has many to choose from. Bob

I have the Falk 11" fry pan and the 11" sauciere and I find myself using the sauciere way more often. The height of the fry pan is pretty low but still can be used to make sauces. It's good for browning meats and finishing in the oven while you make your sauce. The sauciere just opens up more options though. I made a chicken dish the other night where I browned a whole chicken (in pieces), sauteed some onion, put in stock and other stuff, put the chicken back in a simmered for an hour until done. The frying pan could not have handled it due to it's height as the food/liquid came up 2/3 of the way. I also use it when I'm sauteeing mushrooms as the height easily handles the bulkiness of the shrooms which would spill over in a fry pan. Spaghetti sauces, curry dishes, deep frying, braising, etc. are things you can do that can't be done with a fry pan. Sure, you can say the fry pan does a better job of frying as the steam from the meat is released better but in my opinion, it does a fine job of frying. Just don't crowd the pan. A 2qt saucepan is pretty small to begin with so I wouldn't suggest going smaller. The Sitram is good and would work fine. The ebay seller you reference looks good to me. Great price on the 11" sauciere. They are located in Belgium so it will probably take a while to get it and the shipping will not be cheap...I think I saw around $45 or $50. Still cheaper than elsewhere. Hope this helps a little.

Dianne, your picture link should start with "IMG" and end with "/IMG" both contained in brackets [ ].

The timing of this thread bumping up is impecable as my crappy electric opener is just not doing it for me anymore. So, the consensus is either the Rosle or the Kuhn Rikon? Does it honestly matter all that much which one? Porthos, I'm with you on the cat food can lid. There's only 1 that I will buy without a ring top but all others must have it.

Last night I made Poussin Chasseur (Hunter's Chicken) for the first time. Sauce was excellent and deep in flavor thanks to the Porcini's. Served with rice.

Last June I thought about growing my own lemongrass and Kaffir lime tree out of financial necesity as well as having a supply on hand when all the stores were out of stock. I resisted though because I'm known for killing anything in a pot. Well, I finally took the plunge and started the lemongrass from a lone stalk bought at 99 Ranch. I kept it in a vase with water and it took about 2 weeks before starting to sprout. A few weeks later, the sprouts were 2 inches long and the stalk got planted. Below is where it is today after 5 months. I also bought a dwarf Kaffir lime tree pictured below that is going strong. It started with just two branches of leaves and has blossomed quite well. The leaves it produces are very fragrant and tasty. I think all the Aztec gold has been returned and the Curse of the Black Thumb has been reversed. I apparantly CAN keep things alive in a pot. On a side note, maybe I should get my own orange and lemon tree next.

Don't fight it...you gotta try it. Get the double-double with fresh onion. There is also animal style but I think it best to try the original first then go back again for the animal style. Before In-N-Out came down to San Diego, I would drive almost an hour to get to the nearest one. Well worth the trip.

Yummy, Lumas.

When I do stir fry's I usually do 2-3 dishes at a time so I have plenty of yummy leftovers. Last night was no exception. Sichuan Peppercorn Chicken Spicy Basil Beef General Tso's Chicken

Many people on knife forums I frequent have bought knives ranging from the $50 Tojiro DP's to the $1,500 Murray Carter customs and they all do their own sharpening. They use whetstones or they use various sharpening devices but they all do their own sharpening. Why? Because it's not hard to learn. All you need is a few single stones or a few combo stones (double sided with different grits) and the video that Korin sells. That's how I got started and that's really all it takes. Well, that and the desire to learn a new skill. Maintenance of these knives on the whetstones with everyday use involves about 10-15 minutes of time every few weeks. This would be basically light honing on your higher grit stones versus an all out sharpening. For the newbie sharpener, it may take up to 30 minutes because it's new and you want to go slow to get it right. But it won't take long to get proficient. I actually enjoy working on my stones and I get into this zen like mode where I'm concentrating on what I'm doing and I rarely hear anything beyond the sound of the blade going back and forth on the stone. Not even the kids or the TV. It's quite relaxing actually. This light honeing that's done is not a whole lot different from a technique standpoint than doing a full sharpening. Just a different goal. I don't know who you talked to at Korn...maybe Mr. Sugai, their resident sharpener which BTW will give free sharpening lessons if you make an appointment, but it's not all that labor intensive. You could sharpen you Goldhamster on them and even if you think it still has a factory edge after 5 years, I can gaurantee it will get significantly sharper. A steel as I'm sure you already know is not supposed to be a sharpening device. It's used to realign your edge to straight. You can use a steel with Japanese knives but the glass smooth steel sold at www.handamerican.com is what is recommended. Even then it should be used with very little pressure. Anyway, Korin sure is cool and glad you got the chance to go. My wallet and my wife are both greatful for living 2,791 miles away. Cheers

I've had isues with Rubbermade where the lids just don't fit. I'll muscle that last corner on only to find it lifted off later in the fridge. I have some tupperware that I use to store left overs and am happy with the fit and quality of them. They're not the microwave friendly versions but that's okay for me. I rarely eat out of them anyway. I might get a couple of the microwavable ones just to have on hand.

Firedogut, where do you live? There may be a shop that carries the knives I recommended above. It would be a shame for you to get substandard knives just so you can have them in 24-48 hours. If you order from THIS website, they will ship your knives today for $7 and they will arive most likely by Thursday or Friday...even from Japan...yes, I said $7. They use the EMS system that is shipped from Japan overnight air to the states and then delivered via US postal service once it clears customs. The USPS treats it like a high priority package and will stop at nothing to get it to you. The website obove doesn't carry the MAC slicer though but are sold at Knife Merchant dot com and they ship quickly too. If you still want to get them something by tomorrow then the only brand I'd be willing to recommend that may be at local knife stores would be the Messermeister Meridian Elite but you will not get more than one or two knives on your budget. I guess you need to make the decision to get mediocre knives by tomorrow or really good knives in 3-4 days. Scubadoo, the MAC slicer is a serrated bread knife and a very good one to boot. Good luck

What kinds of things do they use their knives for...general prep, slicing, boning? It's not necessary to get a whole set as there are three knives that can do just about all of the work and I like to add one more for heavy duty work like boning chickens. Tojiro DP 240mm Gyuto $60 Tojiro DP 120mm petty $33 MAC Superior: Bread/ Roast (SB-105) $55 Tojiro DP Honesuki (boning) $50 The above set is stainless and is the best bang for the buck in Japanese knives. The edge will last longer than a typical Euro branded knife and with average usage could easily last 5 months before needing sharpening. You will not need any other knife. Above total is $198. The gyuto could double as a slicer if you didn't get the MAC but hard crusted bread would be a problem for the knife and might cause it to chip. My $0.02 Cheers

So...anyone take the plunge yet?

Hey Bob, I notice they have 3 grades of porcinis. Which one(s) do you get? Thanks. ← I get the AA's. They are very strong so it doesn't take much to go a long way. I probably would go for the AB for misc stuff but I don't use a whole lot and they don't have any smaller sizes than 16 ounces for the AB. Maybe I will some day.

Crunchy Jalepeno Cheetoh's

Thanks, Paula. Nobs down...got it...I'll give it a try. This is my first glass top stove and I had no idea how to use it so I did some reading. One thing this "reading" said was to only use pans that sit flush with the glass. What are the ramifications of using pans/simmer mats, etc. that don't sit flush? When my rifi started burning, I thought it was because it wasn't sitting flat due to the hand-made nature of the pot. I then got nervous to use my Chamba cassarole on it and haven't used it except in the oven.

I recently moved to a place with a glass top stove and my riffi started to burn. Tried putting a diffuser underneath and it too started to burn. Very dissapointing. I thought I read somewhere on egullet that their diffuser melted during use. I can't find it to determine if it was on a glass top stove.

This is where I get mine. A simple search on google will bring up may other online stores as well but I've been happy with the quality from this place. http://www.jrmushroomsandspecialties.com/

Yes, Iwatani is very good. I have the torch burner that's fun to use. BTW, you can get a case of BU-6 fuel for $12.50 at Instawares.com

My week is usually a hodgepodge of planning and winging. When I go to the store, I have a few meals in mind that I've been craving or just haven't had in a while and then fill the rest of the cart with stuff that looks good at the time. Then I'll take stock of what I got in the fridge on a nightly basis to determine what I'll make that night. Last night I stopped at the store to get a few things I knew I needed for tonights dinner of Sichuan Peppercorn Shrimp and this weekends attempt at Bavarian Pot Roast and hot spinach salad. After that I have no clue what I'll be making so it's back to the fridge to put stuff together.

Damn, I hate to hear stories of peoples knives being ripped off even if the knife wasn't that good to begin with. Paul, most people who have a heavy German chef's knife say they're happy with it because they've never tried a Japanese blade. Of course, there are some that have and still prefer their German knives but for the life of me, I don't know why. You have an opportunity with Korin to hold some of the best knives available and it would be a shame if you didn't at least fondle the Gyuto's there. Unfortunately though, I don't think they'll let you whip out a couple of carrots and an onion to test them. So they are just going to feel like you're holding a lighter knife than yours...kind of tough to take a leap of faith and buy it just based on a few minutes of holding it. One has to see for themselves I guess during actual usage how these knives perform to believe what I'm sayin here. Check out the Ryusen Damascus (exactly the same as the Hattori HD), the Misono UX10, the Misono Swedish Steel and the Tojiro DP and of course, the uber knives they have. Plan at least a couple of hours there. They will let you hold any knife they have. While you're there, buy a 240mm Tojiro DP gyuto. Take it home and give it a try. If you don't like it, put it on ebay where it will be gauranteed to sell. If you just don't want to give it a try, then to answer your direct question, sure a Santoku would be fine if you want a shorter knife than your current chef's. A Santoku is typically thinner than a gyuto and would be good. There might be a better choice depending on what "things" you're referring to. A Nakiri could be an option. What things do you need a new knife for?

Hehe, yeah, a santoku or gyuto shouldn't get near bones. The Honesuki is a great boning knife with plenty of knuckle clearance to easily get through joints and taking meat off the bones. Nice, thick, beefy, fun to use. Ever get your knife repaired? Did you chip it or fold the edge over? It doesn't surprise me that the 10" chef was your most used knife. Larger knives can just do more than shorter ones. A 240mm (9 1/2") is a great knife for the average user. I prefer the 270mm because when using a pinch grip, it still gives me 240mm of comfortable, usable edge.

On a side note but related, someone on a knife forum who's used German knives all her life just received her Tojiro DP the other day and thought people would like to read a first hand impression of her new Japanese Gyuto. This is what she had to say about it (submitted with permission).....