James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
Forschner Victorinox Chinese Cleaver Chef’s Knife | Asian Kitchen Cutlery, Curved Blade w/ Walnut Handle 40090
1 min read
Victorinox’s Chinese Cleaver with walnut handle isn’t the butcher’s cleaver western chefs know. This lighter version of the butcher’s blade is the Asian equivalent of the chef’s knife, the workhorse blade that an expert uses to dance through nearly every common kitchen chore.
Smaller than you’d expect a cleaver to be (if you’re a westerner yourself), this lighter chopping and slicing knife has a strong blade eight inches long and three inches wide. Thinner steel blade stock makes the Chinese Cleaver a better slicer than the western types, but this knife is not made for chopping through bone. Use it like a santoku for slicing vegetables, or rock it over fresh herbs on a cutting board for rapid mincing. The convex edge allows an action similar to a mezzaluna and more balanced than a cook’s knife.
In an expert’s hands, the limits of this knife are few — but if you’ve not used one before, it will take some practice. To truly get the idea it’s best to watch someone who knows — which could literally be anyone who grew up around a Chinese kitchen. This is one of the most common and most valued knives in Asian food prep.
Construction of the R.H. Forschner Victorinox Chinese Cleaver is less bulletproof than the usual Victorinox style. A narrow rat tail tang inserted through a metal ferrule joins the turned walnut handle to the blade. This isn’t a dishwasher-proof knife, and even a long immersion in dishwater could cause the wood handle to first swell and then loosen. Wash the knife by hand in mild detergent.
James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
The Diamond Edge Pro knife and scissors sharpener from Smith Abrasives combines electric and manual sharpening systems for quick and accurate refurbishing of knives...
Victorinox’s Chinese Cleaver with walnut handle isn’t the butcher’s cleaver western chefs know. This lighter version of the butcher’s blade is the Asian equivalent of the chef’s knife, the workhorse blade that an expert uses to dance through nearly every common kitchen chore.
