What is a kitchen shear?
A Kitchen shear can cut through meat and other tough foods from two directions simultaneously, eliminating the need for a large chopping knife and a cutting board.
A Kitchen shear can also quickly sever through bundles of kale, collards, turnip greens, bundles of asparagus spears, green onions, chives, cilantro, parsley and are especially great for severing chicken or duck breastbones and cutting through the backbone of fish.
This is a type of kitchen cutlery that you shouldn’t scrimp on when it comes to price. Get the very best as their blades will hold up better.
Look for a solid kitchen shear that feels heavy and well balanced in your hand and avoid those that feel flimsy or shoddy.
You should also stay away from the type that has lots of nooks and crannies around where the handles join the blades as those areas can easily harbor bacteria from food particles and are difficult to completely remove.
Depending on the design of a kitchen shear may be solid molded or they may have handles made from a plastic material.
Those that are solid molded are considered to be of higher quality and more durable. Less expensive brands will feature metal blades that are embedded into each end of the handles.
The principal design of kitchen shears is the fulcrum (the pivot about which a lever turns) on the blades which are positioned further from the handles.
This placement helps to enhance the ability to angle the shear’s blades in just the right direction for a cutting task.
At the same time the design also makes it possible to increase the rate of pressure that is exerted as the handles are used to move the blades toward one another.
In addition, the tips of blades are often rounded or blunted rather than coming to a point, although this is not always the case.
Look for kitchen shears whose blades are made of carbon or stainless-steel, both of which holds their edge well. There are a few different designs of kitchen shear blades.
Some will have one serrated blade, which can better grip the bone or meat while it is being severed, while others will have blunt or softened tips so that their ends will not rip or tear food.
Most kitchen shears have offset blades which allow you to cut at an angle to maintain leverage.
Be sure that the kitchen shear you choose can be sharpened like any cutlery as they will dull over time.
Because the blades can become seriously damaged or bent, rather than purchase new a kitchen shear it is a good idea to pick up replacement blades.
For added protection, purchase and use a sheath to protect the blades and to keep your hands from getting injured when reaching into the kitchen drawer.
Care for a cutlery shear in the same way you would care for any kitchen knife. After use hand wash them with very hot water and soap; a few drops of bleach may be used periodically to keep bacteria off the shears.
The general rule of thumb is to never run a kitchen shear of any kind through the dishwasher as that can dull the blade and damage the handles.
If you want a pair that will withstand the rigors of a dishwasher, try the Wusthof Come Apart Kitchen Shear (See description below.).
Best brands of kitchen shears:
- J.A. Henckels Twinshear Kitchen Shear - Forged from Henckels’ Solingen stainless-steel and features short high leverage blades and composite polymer handles. Lightweight but strong and the handles are unbreakable. Steel inserts between the handles allow them to be used for loosening jar lids.
- Messermeister Take Apart Utility Shear – Come-apart design for easy cleaning and they provide a jar-opening clench tool, a finger-protecting plastic nub between the grips, and Solingen German made stainless-steel. Has an offset design, bone and twig cutter, screwdriver and nut cracker. Handles are made of santoprene for a non-slip grip. Blades are pre-sharpened and measure 8.5 inches.
Not bad for $20. - Oxo Good Grips Kitchen Shear – The blades are micro-serrated allowing for a more precise cut and hardened stainless-steel for aggressive cutting jobs. They also have a herb stripper between the grip to remove fresh herbs from difficult stems. Comfortable Good Grips handles that are designed to minimize pressure and to cushion your grip.
- Kyocera Ceramic Kitchen Shear - Ceramic will never rust or corrode, is lightweight and they come sharp right out of the box and will will never need to be re-sharpened. Their only caveat is that ceramic can chip or break if dropped.
- Wusthof Come Apart Kitchen Shear – Blades come apart for easy cleaning and storage. The grips are sturdy and non-slip and feature a built-in sawtooth bottle and jar opener. At $12.99 just throw them in the dishwasher and don’t worry if they dull over time.
