Whenever I get invited to a product presentation, I try my best to wiggle out of it. You see, I am a sucker where buying products is concerned. I’ve seen presentations of pots and pans, Nikken (makers of magnetic products), Rainbow vacuum cleaners, Kangen water machine, knives and others.
Of these, the ones I use daily are my Kangen water machine and the magnetic products.
In my cooking demonstrations, I have always advised the audience to invest in a good set of pots and pans and quality knives. Many just want to save. We buy cheap, thinking we save more money. But in the long run, we end up spending more because poor-quality products break down easily and we buy again and again.
For pots and pans, I look at the surface, the finish and the weight. Usually, the good-quality ones are heavy. One brand I use often is called Circullon. Since it’s not found here, I wait for it to go on sale at Macy’s in the US.
Saladmaster is one of the best around; its type of steel is of great quality. It is sold locally—not cheap, but if you can afford, go for it.
Lifetime warranty
When I was living in Canada, my nephew Toby called and asked if his friend could do a presentation on Cutco knives. Patay! I told myself I would never buy. But I ended up not only buying but even selling the brand as well. See what a sucker I am?
But, really, Cutco is a great brand of knives and has a lifetime warranty. I broke one of the knives while chopping a tree, and the company replaced it! The knives are heavy, made of superior steel, and I use them to this day.
Just last night, I was in my sister Nina’s home and was enjoying her cook Marge’s lentil with beef Kenchi topped with olive oil and vinegar. Nina and I share many food-related activities. Being the editor of Appetite, she gets invitations to eat in a lot more places than I do. Nakakainggit!
One of the activities she attended was the launch of friend chef Gene Gonzalez’s Masflex Kitchen Pro knives.
I felt no pressure, for she wasn’t selling me the knives. But she went to the kitchen, came back with a chopping board and tomatoes. I thought the tomatoes were to be a topping for my lentil. It turned out she wanted me to sample the knives.
After using the Santoku knife, I was sold. I have to get these for our cooks at Wooden Spoon. The blade goes all the way to the end of the knife. This is a sign of a good-quality knife.
Getting a sharp and sturdy set of knives is not only safer, it will give an amateur cook kitchen confidence.
A lot of people are scared of sharp knives. But it’s when they’re dull that they become dangerous, because if they slip because of the blades that are not sharp, who knows what can happen.
Here’s the best part. The Masflex knives cost only in the hundreds. They are not the best, but for the price you pay, you get quality. In contrast, the German ones will cost you an arm and a leg.