The right technique makes cutting easier
By Paul Hope
Kitchen knives, and chef’s knives in particular, are among the most useful and flat-out coolest tools in your kitchen. But used improperly, they can also be dangerous. According to data compiled by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, more than 340,000 people landed in emergency rooms in 2024 with a cut or laceration from a kitchen knife or other cutlery.
Good technique and safe storage habits can significantly reduce that risk, not to mention make it easier to chop onions, carrots, celery, and more.
To find out how consumers use their chef’s knives, we conducted a study with 15 participants, asking questions about everything from how they grip the knife to how they store it. We also asked about sharpening and cleaning habits. The group had men and women of various ages and skill levels, all of whom had owned a chef’s knife for at least 6 months and some who had owned and used one for more than a decade.
We also talked with experts about using and caring for knives. Branden Lewis, a professor at the College of Food Innovation & Technology at Johnson & Wales University in Rhode Island, teaches culinary school students as well as novices who attend his knife skills courses at the university. And like so many chefs, he’s also a knife enthusiast. In addition, we consulted with Carolyn Morabito, a chef, caterer, and instructor in the Food Enthusiasts Program at the Culinary Institute of Technology (aka CIA) in Hyde Park, N.Y. They weighed in on safe, effective knife technique, as well as proper knife care to ensure easy cutting for years to come.
To be clear, we’re focusing on chef’s knives, the 8-inch-or-so workhorse of Western kitchens, and for most chefs and home cooks, the most important blade in the knife roll. You can see our recent assessment of chef’s knives for help with finding the best ones, or start with our kitchen knife buying guide for more general shopping advice. Here’s what you need to know to get great performance from your chef’s knife.
Knife Technique
Hold the Knife Right
Using the appropriate grip for your chef’s knife maximizes control, improves speed, and minimizes the likelihood you’ll cut yourself. The cutting style of our study participants varied, with some gripping the entire handle almost like a “shake hands” grip that might be used with a tennis racket or hammer. Others reported that they simply did whatever felt comfortable. But the best approach is to use what professional chefs call a pinch (or pincer) grip.
Illustration: Brown Bird Design
“Pretend your dominant hand is a lobster claw,” Lewis says. “The small claw is your thumb, and should rest on one side of the blade, while your remaining fingers form the larger part of the claw, which should rest on the opposing side of the blade.” You should be pinching the blade just above the handle, where it meets the blade. This approach provides the perfect blend of control and leverage. If the pinch grip continues to feel unnatural even with practice, try the standard “shake hands” grip, shown below. Wrap all five fingers around the handle of the knife. This creates a grip that may feel secure, but because you’re farther away from the blade, you actually sacrifice some control. Never place your index finger on the back of the blade. That move should be reserved for master sushi chefs using specialized blades. And if a knife feels unwieldy with the pinch grip or the “standard” grip, consider downsizing to a 6- or 7-inch chef’s knife.
Guide Food With Your Opposing Hand
Once you’re holding the knife correctly, focus on your nondominant hand. It may seem like an afterthought, but your other hand is very important because it holds and positions the food you’re cutting, and does so safely, so you can avoid cuts.
In the video at the bottom of this article, watch how Morabito curls her fingers so that the tips are gripping the food. She calls this position a “bridge.” Her fingers between the first and second knuckle are flat and gently support the flat part of the knife blade, with her thumb tucked out of the way. This approach ensures that even if the knife grazes your fingers, it will be the flat side of the blade that rubs against the flat part of your fingers. The fingertips are protected.
While TV and YouTube videos may depict chefs shredding an onion with blazing speed, pros like Morabito emphasize precision so that they end up with diced pieces or slices that are the same size and will cook evenly.
Illustration: Brown Bird Design
Knife Use and Care
Keep Your Chef’s Knife Sharp
A sharp knife makes cutting easier—and more fun—but it also makes for safer prep work. “I’ve long said that the sharper your knife is, the safer it is,” Lewis says. “With a dull knife, you’re forced to exert more pressure, making it more likely that the knife will slip, leaving you prone to injury.”
Instead of fighting with a dull blade, periodically sharpen your knife to keep it working its best. Almost all of the participants in our study reported sharpening their knives regularly, but the interval varied from once a week to once a year. You can use a sharpening stone, which is what most chefs use, or an electric or handheld knife sharpener.
Illustration: Brown Bird Design
But just because a knife feels dull doesn’t mean it needs to be sharpened. After using a knife for a while, it can often remain essentially sharp but the cutting edge can be ever-so-slightly rolled over. That means it’s time to hone your blade to realign its edge. Honing, which involves running a knife over a honing rod several times on each side at an angle specified by the manufacturer, can often restore a sharp edge. If you’re unfamiliar with honing, rest assured that half the participants in our study either didn’t hone their knives or didn’t know what honing was.
The difference between honing and sharpening is simple. When you cut with a knife, the sharp edge—which is fairly brittle, thin metal—curls in one direction over time. Running the knife on a honing rod—which is usually about 12 inches long—can straighten out the edge, helping the knife cut well again. Sharpening, on the other hand, strips or grinds away the metal edge, forming a new one. You should always try to hone a knife first before sharpening, because sharpening removes a little bit of metal each time, which gradually wears down the size of the blade over time, especially if you use an electric sharpener. If you have a really high-quality knife, you might try a leather strop mounted on a flat board for honing. It’s gentler on the blade and can restore a knife that’s only slightly misaligned to a razor-sharp edge.
Washing Your Chef’s Knife
Most of the participants in our study reported that they always wash their knives by hand, which is the way to go. The hot water and high-temperature drying of a dishwasher can wreak havoc on a knife handle, especially those made from wood, and cause it to discolor or even come apart over time. And even for knives with a metal or dishwasher-safe handle, the dishwasher is still a bad idea because the knife can bang into other items, dulling the blade, or worse, someone can easily get cut when they encounter a sharp knife while unloading the dishwasher.
Illustration: Brown Bird Design
Storing Your Chef’s Knife
In our study, folks varied in how they preferred to store their knives. Some used magnetic knife strips, while others used storage blocks. Some just kept them in a kitchen drawer, sometimes sheathed and sometimes in a holder or organizer that separated the knives. “I like to display my knives on a magnetic strip, but any alternative is fine, too,” Lewis says. “The only thing to avoid is leaving knives loose in a drawer. The edge can dull prematurely if your knives are bumping into each other, and worse, you can get cut easily when you reach in to grab a knife.”
Illustration: Brown Bird Design
Consumer Reports is an independent, nonprofit organization that works side by side with consumers to create a fairer, safer, and healthier world. CR does not endorse products or services, and does not accept advertising. Copyright © 2025, Consumer Reports, Inc.