The number one thing that might be standing in the way of your ability to create vibrant and healthy meals with ease could be your kitchen… Less truly is more and often too many things, too much clutter in the kitchen can overcomplicate things. To cook delicious meals you need very little.
This year I will be focusing on narrowing down what is in my kitchen and I’m inviting you along for the ride! Let’s tackle one little thing each week, something manageable even if you have very little time. At the end of this process only those things will remain that you love (or spark joy for you as Marie Kondo would say) or that are truly useful.
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How many good knives do you own?
Every kitchen should have a good set of knives, well sharpened. They are pretty much key to creating stressfree meals and if you’ve ever tried to chop vegetables with a blunt knife you know what I mean.
The thing is though, you don’t need very many. You certainly don’t need expensive ones (unless that’s where you want to invest your money, then go right ahead).
Here are the knives I use the most:
- a small serrated paring knife, for fruit (non-essential, but I like it)
- a paring knife, for all general peeling and chopping needs
- a serrated tomato knife, great for tomatoes and avocado
- a chef’s knife, cutting meat, fish and vegetables
- a serrated bread knife, obviously for bread 🙂
Back when I was at uni, I only ever used this chef’s knife and the serrated bread knife! And those same two I still use today :). Which goes to show that you don’t need to invest a crazy amount. I can’t even remember which brand they are or where I got them from but they certainly weren’t expensive. The other three you see in the picture are from Victorinox. I find them inexpensive but very good quality.
How many knives do you own that you don’t use…
I’m not gonna lie, decluttering in the kitchen is much harder for me than decluttering my wardrobe, haha. I’m rather attached to my kitchen things.
I’ve bought the knife block you see on the cover photo mainly because it looked pretty. But I don’t use it. And truth be told, when I do, I do it reluctantly because I can’t put them in the dishwasher. This just doesn’t fit my lifestyle at the moment, running after two little kids. There’s nothing wrong with having good things that you can’t put in the dishwasher! But in order to create more joy in your life (and kitchen) you have to be honest with yourself about what works and what doesn’t at this point in your life. (Plus letting go of this knife block creates more bench space which is an added bonus.)
I also have two cheese knives, which were gifts. My husband is dairy intolerant so the likelihood of me serving cheese boards in our house is very slim.
What to do with knives you don’t use
Whether you decide to keep or give away the knives you don’t use is totally up to you. I’m a minimalist by nature and we have very few things stashed in boxes in the garage so I have decided to start a kitchen box with those things that I do love but don’t use at the moment. It’s always an option to re-visit that box after six months or a year to decide whether I have missed anything. The first things in this box will be the knife block and the cheese knives. But ONLY because I love them.
If you don’t love any of the knives you don’t use, this is the time to let go!
What to do with the knives you love and use
One of the wonderful side effect of decluttering (apart from clarity) is that you can take better care of the things you own.
Sharpening your knives is a very simple thing to do to achieve a better experience when cooking. They will last longer (because you don’t chuck them out in frustration, haha) and will do a much much better job for you!
You can either get an at-home sharpener/ honing steel or take them somewhere. Taking them somewhere will cost around AUD$8.- a knife. Do whichever you fancy! I’m taking them to the hardware shop at the market next time I go because at-home sharpeners give me tingles :).
It will be a good investment in more cooking fun (and less frustration) in the kitchen!
Much love,
Katrine x