Martha Stewart's Double-The-Trouble Knife Trick For Faster Prep
Martha Stewart knows a lot about cooking, after all, she has been sharing and writing recipes since 1982. However, the celebrity chef doesn't always do things by the book. For starters, she's cooked eggs in a cappuccino machine in a Food Network video and peeled garlic by shaking it around in two mixing bowls in an episode of "The Martha Stewart Show". Though she's long established herself as a cooking expert, the truth is Stewart never actually went to cooking school, according to her website, and that's precisely why her methods are sometimes unconventional.
When it comes to chopping fresh herbs, it comes as no surprise, therefore, that Stewart has another unique cooking technique that she learned from another chef. Instead of using a single knife for the job, she uses two at the same time. As Stewart demonstrated in a clip from "Martha Cooks" which she shared on TikTok, she positions the knives so they are parallel to one another, grasping the handles of both knives in one hand. With her other hand, she carefully holds the opposite ends of the knives from above, making sure not to touch the sharp edges. Stewart then begins to chop, bringing the blades straight down to the cutting board and repeating the motion until the herbs are minced to her liking.
A technique perfect for mincing herbs
In the episode of "Martha Cooks," Martha Stewart showcased that the knife trick works just as well on ingredients other than herbs. However, as evidenced when she applied the same technique to some gherkins, it doesn't yield a very even chop, and therefore is really only helpful if you're ultimately trying to achieve a minced consistency. Some commenters also pointed out that you need two identical knives to effectively pull off the hack. A pair of mismatched knives will make it harder to control each blade without potentially nicking yourself in the process.
@marthastewart Cut your prep time in half with this trick @therokuchannel #marthacooks #knifeskills #cookingtips
Stewart says using two knives cuts prep time in half, and considering she ran her own catering business before she became a household name, we can only assume she knows how to be efficient when working with big batches of ingredients. It's definitely worth trying, particularly if you happen to have two of the same knife.
Martha Stewart once sold a kitchen tool with a similar function
Martha Stewart has high standards for knives. She once shared in an interview with Today that Japanese-style knives are a must in her kitchen, and revealed in a TikTok that she hates when they're dull. It comes as no surprise therefore that Martha Stewart created her own knife collection, and at one point it included multi-blade scissors that functioned similarly to the knife-cutting hack she shared on "Martha Cooks."
A Macy's exclusive at the time, Martha Stewart's herb shears had five blades that were designed to make chopping herbs easier and faster. Unfortunately, according to customer reviews, it didn't work very well, as the herbs would get stuck between each blade. The product is no longer available, and judging by the comments under the "Martha Cooks" clip, it seems like Martha's knife hack might be the better route than buying a special pair of scissors.