Knives
Good knives are a must for keen cooks. Generally we use knives that are too small. If you can get used to chopping with a larger knife you will fine that it is doing more of the work for you and the results are better. A basic collection of a 20cm/8” chopping knife, a 10cm/4” vegetable knife and a serrated fruit knife will cover general cookery tasks.
Sharpening Knives
The best blades to invest in are high carbon stainless steel. Make sure you sharpen them regularly.
A butcher’s steel is the professional way of sharpening. Hold the steel at right angles to the worktop. Hold the knife blade at an angle of about 10º to the steel. Too acute an angle and you will blunt the knife rather than sharpen it. Draw the knife blade across the steel starting at the top with the point and ending at the bottom close to the handle. Repeat this action on the left and right hand side of the steel until the blade is sharp.
It takes a little practice to get the hang of this. If you are not the patient type try a Chantry knife sharpener. It is rather like the blades of two crossed steels and you simply draw the knife through the middle. 
