Foodie Swellness: Zwilling Pro Smart Chef’s Knife

With more than 30 trips out of town last year, I cooked at home less than often than usual, for sure, but whenever I was home, I did try to prep quick meals and if home for a week or longer I always cook proper meal or two from scratch as I can.

The first time I heard about the Zwilling Pro Smart Chef’s Knife 8″, it was at a media preview where a professional chef was showing how easy it is to use; the special feature of this knife is the raised ridge that helps prevent whatever you’re chopping from sticking to the knife.

I always thought this was only an issue I had when chopping. I always have had to pause and slide carrots or onion off of the blade before continuing to slice. The demo, well, it did seem to work well but watching the chef use it, though, didn’t actually say much to me, because he’s great at chopping precisely and super quickly and without the ingredients staying on the blade because he’s a professional.

But then I got my hands on the knife at home (I’m a Zwilling ambassador) and put on my apron and pretended I was Ina preparing some wonderful meal to welcome Jeffrey home and put this knife to use on some vegetables. First off, wow, it’s so great to have a sharp knife. Definitely made me realize how dull my current regular knife was. (Now I just need to make sure I  keep it sharp!)

This Zwilling Pro Smart Chef’s Knife  is a pleasant weight and feels right in my hand, so much so that I don’t have to steady it with my pointer finger like I usually do when chopping. I know it’s not the proper way to hold a knife but I’ve always found it made chopping easier. But this knife is designed such that I find I can hold it as one should and it totally works like a dream at preventing ingredients sticking onto the blade. My prep time has been cut down and I no longer dread recipes that call for a lot of chopping. I’ve made a lots since receiving it but recent dishes include chicken gnocchi soup and a Bolognese sauce, and dicing the veggies, a task I used to find a chore, was fun. OK almost fun — as much as I enjoy cooking, it’s nice to have meals cooked for you, too, haha!

I think the Pro Smart Chef’s Knife is a great choice if you’re looking for one knife for your kitchen to meet your general slicing and dicing needs (my other must is my bread knife — I use my Staub cocotte to bake no-knead bread). (Oh and btw, did you know there’s a new Zwilling store in Toronto?I have not been yet, but next time I’m in that mall, I’m definitely popping in!)

Leave a Comment January 5, 2017

Foodie Swellness: Staub specialty tomato cocotte

As I’ve mentioned, I’m working with Staub and trying out some of their products, and first up is their super adorable tomato cocotte.

For years, I’ve longed for a Dutch oven, namely Staub or Le Creuset. But the cost always stopped me from investing in one. How much braising and soup-cooking do or would I do, after all? (Oh, in case, you’re wondering what the heck a dutch oven is, it’s a large heavy cast-iron pot that you can use on the stovetop or in the oven. ) Now that I’m in a much smaller space (with limited storage space), is a large heavy pot really something I need?

And the answer is yes. I now wish I hadn’t stalled all these years to get one. For one, you can simply use it in whichever way you use a large pot (even if you’re not braising, I mean), I have no idea why but I never thought of it in this way, I really thought of it only for stews. Plus, this tomato cocotte from Staub is so cute that if you don’t have anywhere to store it, it looks great sitting on your stovetop (and even the classic Staub cocottes do as well). Plus, it may cost you a few hundred but it’ll last you a lifetime. Trust, you’ll come to love your heavy, sturdy cocotte very much.

On top of this, of course, there are all of the wonderful dishes you can make in a Staub cocotte. For one, I only recently learned you can bake the easiest no-knead bread using your Staub. Freshly baked bread is one of my weaknesses but I’ve never been motivated to make it from scratch because it seems like so much work, but this one is virtually zero work. I’m more than a little obsessed with this recipe. (And I run…so it’s OK if I eat all those carbs, right? Or that’s what I tell myself…) And there’s delicious recipes like this healthier version of chowder I made (I mostly followed this Canadian Living recipe for Cauliflower Corn Chowder — I had to substitute a few ingredients based on what I had in my kitchen). Next, I plan on trying a ratatouille recipe, and the recipe for braised brussel sprouts, which you can find on page 19 here in this Staub recipe book.

Leave a Comment June 6, 2016