Latest news with #culinarySchool
CNET
23-07-2025
- General
- CNET
I Test Cooking Tools for a Living. This Is the Best $25 You Can Spend on Your Kitchen
As a former girl scout I believe in leaving a place better than I found it. As a food writer and former culinary school student, this entails leaving behind a certain feature in any kitchen where I've lived. (As a former NYC resident, there were numerous kitchens.) It's the first thing I buy for a new kitchen, without even needing to take measurements. Where I put it might be up for grabs, but it's guaranteed to be going somewhere. I'd sooner live without a microwave or a (*gasps*) air fryer than this indispensable piece of kitchen infrastructure. And it rarely costs more than $25. So, what is this magical piece of kitchen equipment? It's a magnetic knife strip. It's going up before I unpack the first box labelled "kitchen," and I never question leaving it behind when I move again to make life better for the next tenant. I'm a culinary-school trained non-chef, but even chef chefs recommend this invaluable tool: "I first tried a magnetic strip in my home kitchen a few years ago and I'm hooked," says Melissa Araujo, Chef/Owner of Alma Café in New Orleans. Here's a litany of reasons, personal and chef-approved, why you should consider adding a magnetic knife strip to your home. A magnetic knife strip is a major space saver The more you can get up on your walls, the more space you'll have on the counter and in drawers and cupboards. Pamela Vachon/CNET All of the many reasons to own a magnetic knife strip are great reasons, so it's hard to know where to lead off, but as someone who has usually been at a loss for meaningful counter space in urban apartments, I'm going to go with this one. Freeing up space that would otherwise be occupied by a knife block, or in a silverware drawer, is perhaps the number one reason for home cooks to consider a magnetic knife strip. Read more: These Kitchen Organizers Will Give You Miles of Extra Counter Space Space-saving is also a motivating factor in professional kitchens. "I even started using them in my restaurants," says Araujo. "Plus they look cool, and you can see all your knives at the same time so it's easy to know which one to pull," she says. Keep your knives sharper for longer A knife strip won't dull your blades the way some storage types do. Jacobs StockWhether you've got new knives, or freshly sharpened knives, storing them on a magnetic knife strip has myriad benefits in the staying sharp department. (If your knives behave more like bludgeons than blades, first things first, get them sharpened.) First, the knife strip prevents your knives from knocking around in a utensil drawer, which can lead to dulling over time. Wooden knife blocks are okay for this purpose, but they still create a little more wear and tear than simply mounting them al fresco does. And, as Araujo's point above, you're not constantly pulling them in and out of the block in a guessing game of which-knife-went-where several times a day. Read more: Want to Completely Ruin Your Kitchen Knives? Here's How For me, there's also another element to keeping knives sharp that is enabled by the knife strip. The honing steel isn't a sharpener, per se, but its function is to help preserve the sharpness. Even as someone who was trained to use it, I have a very out-of-sight-out-of-mind relationship with this tool, but with the magnetic strip, the honing steel is very much in sight all of the time, which means I'm more likely to employ it. It's more sanitary than a knife block Knife blocks can grow mold in the slots and are difficult to clean, making magnetic knife strips a more sanitary storage option. Gourmetop Are you concerned about places in your kitchen where bacteria may be hiding? Your magnetic strip is not one. But your knife block…? "Knife blocks trap moisture in the slots," says Araujo, which can cause microorganisms like mold spores and bacteria to thrive. (She would know, in a humid place like New Orleans. What's the dew point in your neighborhood right now?) Even if you put your knives away without fully drying them first -- don't do this, but if you do -- at least the magnetic strip gives them some air circulation. This helps not only with keeping things sanitary, but also with keeping things sharp. Best practices for using a magnetic knife strip Always put the knives spine-down on your strip so you don't chip the edges. Pamela Vachon/CNET If you're now convinced of the superiority of the magnetic knife strip, there are a few things to consider. Get a good one: "Spend the money," advises Araujo. "Cheap ones aren't strong, especially if you have solid, high-quality, heavy-duty knives." Fortunately, there's only so high the price can go here, and if you've dropped some real coin for your professional-grade knives, the magnetic strip will be a very small investment toward keeping them in good condition. A few magnetic knife strips we like: The most straightforward magnetic strip look: I've owned this $20 metal holder several times over. It has tens of thousands of positive Amazon ratings, comes in six different sizes, and maxes out around $35 for a 24-inch strip. I swear by this $20 knife strip from Amazon. Pamela Vachon/CNET Another good option is this $20 model with a dual-strip look and hooks for hanging other kitchen tools for a comprehensive storage solution. There are magnetic strips that hold more than just knives. Eco Kitchen An Amazon best seller, this $21 magnetic strip has a wood finish to suit a particular aesthetic, if that's a reason why you're hesitant to give up a wooden knife block. CNET's Home and Kitchen Editor David Watsky uses this very one. Mount it correctly: If your knife collection is small, you may be able to get away with the double-stick tape mounting that is included with some magnetic strips, but the much safer bet is to go the hardware route to make sure it is flush against the wall. I had a pro drill into the tile backsplash in my current kitchen in order to accommodate the knife strip. It looks sharp and is extremely secure. (Having your knives clatter to the ground because of an inappropriately installed strip isn't exactly enabling all of the benefits of owning one.) Store your knives appropriately: "ALWAYS put the knives spine-down so you don't chip the edges," advises Araujo. When pulling a knife off of the strip, it's also important to tilt the blade away from the strip, rather than slide it off, to help preserve its sharpness.
Daily Mail
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Gordon Ramsay insists his 'unspoilt' kids will never be nepo babies and 'aren't dependent on their parents' as they forge their own careers
Gordon Ramsay has insisted that his 'unspoilt' kids will never be nepo babies. The famous chef, 58, has children Megan, 26, twins Jack and Holly, 25, and 23-year-old Tilly with his wife Tana. The also have younger kids Oscar, 6, and one-year-old baby Jesse. But in a new interview he was adamant that none of his children are 'dependent on their parents' and are forging their own successful careers without his input. His daughter Tilly has made the decision to follow in his footsteps by training at Ireland's Ballymaloe Cookery School. But Gordon has now told Closer magazine: 'She paid for herself - worked, saved the money, and has gone off to culinary school. 'I said goodbye and put her on the ferry and I thought, 'F***, why didn't she ask me to teach her? Is that my first big major f*** up?' From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new Showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'I can't wait to ask that question - but it just goes to show how unspoilt my kids are. They're individually following their own path and aren't dependent on their parents. I think that's a good call.' Meanwhile, Gordon pointed out his son Jack has decided to avoid the trappings of fame by joining the Royal Marine Commandos where starting salaries are only £17,549. Tilly started at the cooking school last autumn. Sharing a snap of her donning a white chef's jacket and trying on several pairs of black clogs at the time, Tilly gushed she was 'so excited for this next chapter'. She wrote: 'So I went a different kind of uniform shopping yesterday.... @gordangram took me out to buy my first chef whites as I am off to culinary school this September!! 'I am so excited for this next chapter and dad and I had the most exciting day getting all my uniform and equipment. P.s I think this look is kind of a vibe'. Culinary schools comes as the natural next step for Tilly, after she has already shown an affinity for cooking and built an impressive career as a budding chef. Her famous father Gordon is well known for the likes of Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares, Hell's Kitchen, Gordon, Gino and Fred: Road Trip and Kitchen Nightmares. Tilly started at the cooking school last autumn And showing the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, Tilly has starred on several cooking shows and even published her own cookbook when she was just 15. In 2015, she bagged her own cooking show on CBBC, called Matilda And The Ramsay Bunch, following her as she whipped up dishes for her family on holiday and running until 2019. She also appeared alongside Gordon on This Morning in a series of cooking segments called Big Chef Little Chef, and was judge on the ninth season of MasterChef Junior with her dad. While she also competed in series two of Celebrity MasterChef Australia, finishing in second place. The star also enjoyed a spell at Gordon Ramsay's Academy as she took to Instagram to share her array of impressive recipes including her six ingredient carbonara and lamb koftas. Tilly also had the pleasure of cooking with Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds as she and the Deadpool star went head to head against her dad and Hugh Jackman in a chimichanga challenge. In 2021, Tilly swapped the kitchen for the dancefloor as she competed in Strictly Come Dancing alongside professional dance partner Nikita Kuzmin.
