Knife needed for beets.

I hate beets🤮. My younger sister, age two or so, once sneezed a mouthful of the disgusting veggie up the sleeve of the starched white dress shirt of my Dad, who was feeding her in her high chair. You can't get that stuff out so the shirt was ruined. Haven't changed my opinion in the 70+ years since.
 
I seldom cut up raw beets. I usually roast them 1st, in which case, they are very easy to cut up.

Depending on how finely/evenly I want to cut them up, I will use an thin 8" Chinese slicing cleaver and/or a 10" Japanese serrated meat/bread slicer. These are what I use but really any knife of sufficient size can be used to cut up roasted beets but, if you are cutting them up raw, then I'd go w/the cleaver.

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Beyond that, my main "tip" for cutting up beets is to wear latex gloves so that the beet juice doesn't stain your hands.

I also keep a spray bottle filled w/diluted bleach on my counter to santize my cutting boards but it is also very effective in removing beet stains from my white nylon cutting boards and my hands, if I didn't follow my own advice and failed to glove up 1st.
 
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As a real professional chef, I strongly recommend AGAINST using a serrated blade. The raw beets will bind up, causing you to have to pull the blade out of the beet forcefully.
Extremely hard vegetables, incl. potatoes, are the number one cause of ER visits.

Keep your fingers clear! When we serve beets, they always get boiled or roasted before we peel and cut them up, saving us from having to cut them in the raw state. Cook your beets before cutting, and save yourself the aggravation.
 
Zulus said:
Old Hickory got specialized line of professional knives
Hop, cotton, cabbage and others
Check that line first :^)
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I like the Ontario 7" Hop knife and the 6" cabbage knife. Thin full flat ground with a wee bit of secondary. $8-$10 bucks each, factory seconds for $5 or $6. Inexpensive knives made for field work ...

I haven't used my cotton knife yet.

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Malty Falcon said:
As a real professional chef, I strongly recommend AGAINST using a serrated blade. The raw beets will bind up, causing you to have to pull the blade out of the beet forcefully.
Extremely hard vegetables, incl. potatoes, are the number one cause of ER visits.

Keep your fingers clear! When we serve beets, they always get boiled or roasted before we peel and cut them up, saving us from having to cut them in the raw state. Cook your beets before cutting, and save yourself the aggravation.
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I agree against using serrated blades for RAW beets but (as you and I both do), I usually only cut up beets after they are ROASTED. Don't think it matters what type of knife you use after that.

The same "safety" rules apply to the use of all blade types but particuarly if you are cutting up any tough raw veggies like beets where your blade is likely to slip.

BTW, I was "trained" by my father who was a professional sous chef. ;)
 
Richard338 said:
This almost calls for a bushcrafting knife! On the other hand there are many types of knives that excel at bushcrafting tasks...
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Is beetcaft a thing, or are you just beeting around the bushcraft....
KenHash said:
That's a nice Nakiri. What's the core?
Mr Nagao did some fine work until he retired. I have and use two Aogami Super Tenmijuraku knives of his.
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Not sure what the core is, but its very hard carbon steel that takes a wicked edge. Mr. Nagao did have a relationship with Hitachi, so maybe #1 white as that seems a popular choice or these types of blades, but I can't say for sure. I got it cheap, direct from somebody in Japan second hand.
 
sgt1372 said:
I seldom cut up raw beets. I usually roast them 1st, in which case, they are very easy to cut up.

Depending on how finely/evenly I want to cut them up, I will use an thin 8" Chinese slicing cleaver and/or a 10" Japanese serrated meat/bread slicer. These are what I use but really any knife of sufficient size can be used to cut up roasted beets but, if you are cutting them up raw, then I'd go w/the cleaver.

dozRRrQ.jpg


Beyond that, my main "tip" for cutting up beets is to wear latex gloves so that the beet juice doesn't stain your hands.

I also keep a spray bottle filled w/diluted bleach on my counter to santize my cutting boards but it is also very effective in removing beet stains from my white nylon cutting boards and my hands, if I didn't follow my own advice and failed to glove up 1st.
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I use a very similar bread knife for beets, it might even be the same one. When they’re in season, I’ve just washed them off and ate them raw like an apple. Can’t beet it.
 
Dergyll said:
Try this guy, it gets through my large cabbages and radishes like nothing.
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You could try wedging o chopping them, but I think sawing motion works better here.

If you're not looking for kitchen knives, I think Cold Steel makes alot of large serrated knives.

Good luck!
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Wow. That looks to be just what i need. Where did you snag that?
 
I think I got mine years ago at a william Sonoma se for like 99$. The serrated shuns are not popular and frequently go on sale. Mine is actually a Classic Bread knife lol.

Of course, you don't have to get a shun, anyone will do. A quick search on Ebay gets tons of hits.

Good luck!
 
Plain edge chef with a toothy edge, right off of 400-600 grit. This what I keep a few of my kitchen knives sharpened at for things that most people use serrated blades for. I’m not a big serrated fan anymore.
 
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