Is halving a chicken knife abuse?

Ok. Sadly I am getting the feeling that Karambit is saying what a lot of others are thinking. I really don't understand what part of my question made me come off as a six-year-old-spoiled-brat-jerk-script-kiddie. Do I have to apologize that I can't cook? Or should I apologize for wanting to learn how to properly use a knife and what knifes are appropriate for a particular task? I don't get it. So Karambit: please enlighten me as to how my post offended you to the degree that you felt it was necessary to reply with such a sour attitude instead of sharing your obviously infinite well of wisdom with a young man wanting to learn.
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The knives you referenced for this task, (Opinel, Fallkniven, Becker, Spyderco) can handle cutting bone in raw chicken like the video showed, and a whole lot more. If ANY knife is chipped by doing exactly what the video showed, then you need to trash it, because the only thing it is good for is slicing cucumbers and carrots, which is 2% of what a kitchen knife will be used for.

You said you wouldn't be confident using an Opinel to process raw chickens. This implies that you have never done it. Opinels are used in the kitchen for this task everyday and have been used everyday for this for many years.

Just go buy a few chickens this weekend and quarter them up and throw them on the grill and see for your self. Common mechanical sense goes a long ways while using knives also.
 
Insipid Moniker said:
More geometry than steel. Almost any outdoors blade and most modern folders will cut raw chicken bones without any damage. Honestly, most kitchen cutlery will do the same. Problems start to come up if you're using blades that are ground very thin and really optimized for slicing. A proper cleaver will give you the best results, but don't worry too much about damage unless you have some very, very lean grinds in your collection.
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^This.

To the OP, note in the video when he switches knives to baton through the thicker bones? The 'boning knife' has a thinner edge-geometry, hopefully ~0.010" at the edge-shoulder and ~15-dps, an efficient slicer that can handle thinner bones and resist blunting/twisting. As a point of comparison, an Opinel #8 sharpened to 15-dps will be ~0.012" behind the edge, plenty stout for this type of work - if it blunts, it's because the steel was too soft at the edge. In comparison, the butcher-knife used to punch through the thicker bones was probably ~0.025" behind the edge and 15-20 dps - quite a bit more stout and resistant to twists that could fracture the edge. He probably could have used the boning-knife but may have blunted the edge if the steel was too soft. Most outdoor knives are ~0.030" behind the edge and 15-20 dps to withstand hard use. Here is a schematic comparing a few knives: A box-cutter utility blade 0.017" 8-dps (similar to opinel #8), a thin custom (originally ~0.005" behind the edge), a Spyderco CalyIII (~0.015" comparable to some folders), and an ESEE Izula (>0.025" comparable to most outdoor blades). The only ones I would NOT use for punching through bone are the box-cutter (too soft and thin, weak) and the thin custom (it could do it but is designed for lighter tasks)

Small+Blade+Geometry+EDIT2.jpg
 
Karambit777 said:
If your Gyuto cant handle processing chickens in the kitchen (although it most assuredly will) then you have a lemon that was ground way to thin. I agree that there are certain knives designed for certain tasks, however simply processing chickens should not harm any knife or blade grind. Im just saying that processing chickens like the video demonstrated was nothing abusive at all. ZERO for any knife. A quality kitchen knife is designed for that. a "Chefs" knife design is made to handle almost everytask including processing proteins, or veggies. Yes a Boning knife is optimal for processing whole game, but they all can do it, no luck required.
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May I ask what gyutos you've used for this task?
 
You think your the only one has Gyutos in their kitchen or something? Its a shame to assume that someone paid $250 plus for a knife only to slice veggies. If that's your goal with yours then so be it. That's why the game shear market is doing well. Shears are used when a good knife is not available, or the user just likes using shears.
 
Karambit777 said:
You think your the only one has Gyutos in their kitchen or something? Its a shame to assume that someone paid $250 plus for a knife only to slice veggies. If that's your goal with yours then so be it. That's why the game shear market is doing well. Shears are used when a good knife is not available, or the user just likes using shears.
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That's a rather defensive reply. I'm wondering which ones you've used and how the edge has held up. I think it's a fairly valid question given the claims you're making.
 
Ok I cave. Quartering or halving chickens is utter abuse for any knife. Do not do it! Ever! This is strictly a job for 3 pound cleavers and super heavy duty game shears. Please don't ruin your blades!
 
TLoFP said:
Stabman, congrats on your journey through University. I am stuck there myself, still looking for an escape plan.

- T
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Going back was the escape in my case...in a couple of years I'll have to plot an escape from the escape. :D
 
TravisH said:
Doesn't mean that the Native couldn't do it. ;)

Go compare your Native 5's blade to the boning knife in your kitchen.
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Aye, but to be fair, I wouldn't use a boning knife to halve a chicken either. Sheers , as mentioned, are probably best and a cleaver is the most fun. Especially a big, heavy, hand-forged one.
 
To answer the original question though... Is using a PM2 or any othe EDC folder to halve a chicken knife abuse? Yes, the same way using a MacBook pro to hammer thumb tacks into a window sill is laptop abuse. It'll do it, sure, but that's not what it's for and there is a tool for that job.

That said, it's your knife. If you want to halve a chicken, or even a cow for that matter, with it... Go right ahead. Abuse or not.
 
I have a 14" Sabatier chefs knife that I like better than a cleaver for those jobs.
 
TLoFP said:
Hi,

I always thought that cutting bone with a knive would be a sure way to chip the edge and it would be considered abuse. But I saw a member here half a chicken with one of his knifes and it made me think. I then came across this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVNwHvS6EBM

So apparently a knife is an accepted tool for halving a chicken. Would you consider this abuse? Do I have to worry about chipping the edge? What knives are appropriate for this and which are not?

For example, I would have zero confidence doing it with my Opinel. And I would feel ridiculously overconfident with my BK9. But what about a Spyderco Military. Would you use a milli to cut through the bone? What about a fallkniven.

Thanks - T
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Hey man, all the previous hoo-ha aside, I've halved and quartered chickens, both raw and cooked, with my S30V millie and my MT19 which I believe is thinner than the millie. Absolutely no problems and I thought it was actually easier with the thinner, slightly shorter mule. Have no fear man, you're good.
 
I don't get it. The chicken in the video was sliced apart, not chopped. When is slicing "abuse"?

An Opinel would work much better than a fat bladed BK9. (Not that getting chicken gunk into a folder is a good idea.)
 
Do a search for "Western Deba Chicken" and look at the kitchenforum video by Theory. This convinced me to get the Tojiro Western Deba. I have used it on chicken with no edge damage and no loss of sharpness. The knife is made for this sort of heavy work. It makes my 8" Sabatier look like a light weight slicer.
 
Many years ago, when I was first learning to cook, I read a Consumer Reports test of kitchen knives. They said, “Cutting chicken bones is within a chef’s knife’s purview.” And that’s one of the things they did with each chef’s knife involved. I’ve used kitchen knives on chicken bones ever since. Never a problem.

I don’t use folders for food prep if I have a choice. Not because of the blade; because of the pivot. It’s easy to inadequately clean it. Do I want a colony of botulism or e-coli in there, just eager to infect the next salad?

There’s nothing wrong with using kitchen shears. But the same concerns apply. I only use break-apart scissors in the kitchen. Separate the two blades, and they are as easy to clean a a boning knife.
 
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