favor- “ette”: 10 ways to use kitchen shears

Okay, so we all know what my #1, most-used kitchen tool is (after my chef’s knife, of course).

Wanna know what comes in second?

These.

photo credit: Amazon

I don’t remember when shears became a must-have utensil in my kitchen. But now that I have them there, I reach for them constantly – often instead of my knife. If you find yourself using your shears regularly (which you will), you’ll appreciate the extra dollars spent on a really good pair. The cheap ones are fine for occasional use, but will invariably snap or break before long. This Henckels pair is reasonably priced, yet made of exceptional quality.

Here are my favorite uses for kitchen shears:

1. Cutting up bone-in chicken – Kitchen shears, hands down, are my go-to tool when handling chicken. I trim extra bone off the breasts – and then cut the breasts in half to create smaller pieces. I also use them to cut off the wing “tips”. So much easier than a knife.

2. Dicing dried fruits and vegetables – I always use shears when a recipe calls for strips of sun-dried tomatoes or diced apricots.

3. Chopping canned tomatoes – Hate the mess when chopping canned tomatoes? “Chop” them with your shears right in the can just prior to using.

4. Snipping herbs in the garden, and again when using in a recipe.

5. Cutting boneless chicken into strips – I find it so much easier to use shears for cutting raw chicken into “tenders”.

6. Opening food bags and packages.

7. Cutting pie (thanks mom!) – This is clearly intended for pies that are in disposable tin plates. My mom read this tip and we tried it on some quiches a while back. It worked great and created neat, clean slices (with no crust stuck to the tins).

8. Cutting scallions – I love using shears to cut scallions – and they work equally well on celery too.

9. Making a “chiffonade” – Remember my post? You can use shears or a knife for this technique- both work.

10. Cutting pizza – Parents of toddlers, take note – the first time you cut up your child’s pizza (or grilled cheese. or quesadilla) with kitchen shears, you will NEVER turn back. Try it.

So what did I miss? There must be more! Please share here!

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