Cooking Class: Easy Way to Teach Kids to use Knives from Kids Cook Real Food

Summary

In this educational video, children learn essential knife safety skills for cooking. Key rules include carrying knives point down, setting them flat and away from edges, and ensuring hands are on top of the knife for control. The video teaches different food holding techniques like 'hey hey out of the way' and 'up and over soldier' to keep fingers safe. It also covers four knife movements: rocking like 'Rockabye Baby', driving like a vacuum, sawing for soft foods, and the tug of war pull for slicing. The emphasis is on safety, control, and practicing these skills under adult supervision.

Takeaways

• 🔪 Always carry knives with the point down to ensure safety.
• ✋ When setting down knives, place them flat and away from the edge to prevent accidents.
• 🤚 Hold the knife correctly with your hand on top for control and power while cutting.
• 👀 Maintain 'knife moves, eyes down' to focus on the cutting task and avoid distractions.
• 🍽️ Use 'food moves, knife down' rule when transferring food to prevent knife injuries.
• 🙅 Avoid 'pick me' finger positioning to keep fingers safe from the knife's edge.
• 🖖 Use 'up and over soldier' technique for cutting long pieces of food safely.
• 🚂 Employ 'chop-chop' method when your hand is on top of the knife for controlled chopping.
• 🎶 Learn various knife movements like 'Rockabye Baby' for rocking the knife, 'driving like a vacuum' for back and forth cuts, 'saw blade' for soft foods, and 'tug of war' for slicing.
• ⚠️ Remember the importance of setting the knife down in a safe place after use.

Q & A

What is the first rule for knife safety mentioned in the video?

The first rule for knife safety is to always carry the knife with the point down.

How should knives be set down according to the video?

Knives should be set down flat and away from the edge, ensuring the blade is safe and not hanging over.

What does it mean to be the 'boss of your knife'?

Being the 'boss of your knife' means having your hand on top of the knife with the knife on the bottom, ensuring control while cutting.

What is the term used for moving your hand up closer to the knife for more power?

The term used for moving your hand up closer to the knife for more power is 'choking up'.

What is the 'knife moves eyes down, food moves knife down' rule?

This rule states that when you are cutting, your eyes should be on the knife, and when moving food, the knife should be down to ensure safety.

How should fingers be positioned when holding food for cutting?

Fingers should be positioned away from the knife, standing up straight like a soldier at attention, to avoid accidental cuts.

What is the 'up and over soldier' method for holding food?

The 'up and over soldier' method involves holding the food in a tunnel-like position with fingers standing up, allowing the knife to move through safely.

What does the 'chop-chop-chop-chop' method involve?

The 'chop-chop-chop-chop' method involves placing your hand on top of the knife, away from the sharp part, to help push the knife through the food.

What are the four ways to move the knife to chop food mentioned in the video?

The four ways to move the knife are: 1) Rockabye baby, 2) Driving like a vacuum, 3) Saw blade, and 4) Tug of war pull.

How should you hold the knife when cutting soft foods like strawberries?

For soft foods, use the 'saw blade' method, sawing back and forth while keeping your fingertips safely away from the knife.

What is the final reminder about knife safety given at the end of the video?

The final reminder is to always set the knife down in a safe place, following the key safety rules: carry the knife with the point down, knife moves eyes down, and food moves knife down.

Outlines

00:00

🔪 Knife Safety Basics

This paragraph introduces the fundamental rules of knife safety for children. It emphasizes the importance of always carrying knives point down and setting them flat away from the edge when not in use. The instructor demonstrates how to properly hold a knife, ensuring the hand is on top for control and strength. The concept of 'choking up' on the knife for more power is introduced without putting fingers down the blade. A key rule, 'knife moves, eyes down; food moves, knife down' is taught to keep eyes on the cutting task and to safely move food onto a plate with the knife down. Different ways to hold food while cutting are also discussed to prevent accidental cuts, including 'hey hey out of the way' and 'up and over soldier' techniques.

05:00

🥕 Various Knife Handling Techniques

The second paragraph delves into different methods of using a knife for cutting food safely and effectively. It starts with the 'Rockabye knife' technique, which involves rocking the knife up and down while keeping the tip on the cutting board. The 'driving like a vacuum' method is then explained, which is useful for cutting through tougher vegetables like carrots. For soft foods, the 'saw blade' technique is introduced, simulating the back-and-forth motion of a saw. Lastly, the 'tug of war pull' technique is described for slicing smaller items, ensuring fingers are kept away from the blade at all times. Throughout the explanation, the instructor stresses the importance of safety rules, such as carrying the knife point down and setting it down safely after use.

Keywords

💡knife safety

Knife safety refers to the set of practices and precautions taken to prevent accidents and injuries while using knives. In the video, it is the central theme, emphasizing the importance of safety for children when handling knives of any kind. The script provides several examples, such as carrying the knife with the point down and ensuring the blade is away from the body.

💡point down

Point down is a safety technique where the knife is carried or moved with the sharp end pointing downwards. This practice is highlighted in the script as a rule for safe knife handling, reducing the risk of accidental stabbing or cutting when the knife is in motion.

💡cutting board

A cutting board is a flat surface on which food is placed to be cut. The script mentions the cutting board as a key element in knife safety, where the knife should always make contact with the board to ensure control and prevent accidents.

💡choking up

Choking up refers to moving one's hand closer to the blade when more force is needed for cutting. The script explains that instead of putting fingers down the knife, which is unsafe, one should choke up on the handle to apply more pressure safely.

💡eyes down

Eyes down is a directive to keep one's eyes focused on the task at hand, which in this case is cutting food. The script uses this term to emphasize the importance of concentration and awareness to prevent accidents while cutting.

💡food moves

Food moves is a part of the safety mantra in the script, indicating that when the food needs to be moved, the knife should be set down first. This ensures that the knife is not in motion when the food is handled, reducing the risk of injury.

💡pick me

Pick me is a term used in the script to describe the unsafe practice of holding food in a way that points fingers towards the knife. The script advises against this method, suggesting instead to hold food in a way that keeps fingers safe and out of the way.

💡soldier fingers

Soldier fingers is a technique mentioned in the script where fingers are held straight and away from the knife, similar to a soldier standing at attention. This posture is used to keep fingers safe while cutting and is part of the 'up and over' method.

💡chopchop

Chop-chop is a term used to describe a method of cutting where the hand is placed on top of the knife, away from the sharp edge, to help push the knife through food. This method is demonstrated in the script as a safe way to apply force when chopping.

💡rockabye knife

Rockabye knife is a playful term used in the script to describe a rocking motion used to cut food. The knife tip remains in contact with the cutting board while the hand moves up and down, similar to the motion of a摇篮. This method is used for more control and precision in cutting.

💡saw blade

Saw blade refers to the action of sawing back and forth, which is used for cutting soft foods or through larger items. The script mentions using a smaller knife and a sawing motion for foods like strawberries, ensuring fingers are kept out of the way for safety.

Highlights

Emphasizing the importance of knife safety for children, whether using a butter knife or a chef's knife.

Rule one for knives: always carry them point down.

Setting knives down flat and away from the edge to ensure safety.

Correct hand positioning over the knife for control and safety.

Technique to increase cutting power by 'choking up' on the knife without risking fingers.

Safety mantra: 'Knife moves, eyes down. Food moves, knife down.'

Proper finger positioning to avoid accidents, 'standing like a soldier'.

Alternative finger position for cutting, 'up and over soldier'.

Using the hand on top of the knife for a 'chop-chop' technique.

Four different ways to move the knife for chopping food.

Rockabyebaby technique for rocking the knife up and down.

Driving the knife like a vacuum for controlled back and forth motion.

Saw blade technique for soft foods, sawing back and forth.

Tug of war pull technique for slicing, especially with smaller knives.

Reinforcing the most important safety rules for using knives.

Encouraging children to learn and practice these skills for safe cooking.

Transcripts

welcome to class two of kids cook real

food we're talking knife safety today so

this is a really really important video

and that's why I have all the kids

around me because whether you're using a

butter knife or a chef's knife I still

want you to be safe every time so the

first rule for knives is point down when

you carry them everybody pick up your

knife and show me point down and that's

whether it's over the cutting board or

if you're carrying it from the you know

drawer to the table you're gonna I'm at

point down when we set our knives down

they should be flat and away from the

edge never like that we want to make

sure that our blades are safe and far

away now when we're going to cut the fun

part we pick up our knives you guys can

all pick it up we're going to be the

boss of our knife so our hand is on top

and the knife is on the bottom we're

going to take that finger right around

you're gonna grab it like just you're

fisting it John can you turn your hand a

little bit so that your hand is on top

let me show you turn it just a little

like that mm-hmm very good yep there we

go Quinn turn your thumb around a little

bit so that your hand yeah your hand

needs to be on top because that's where

you get all your muscle pressure pushing

down okay to do things if you need more

power if you're trying to cut something

and it's tricky don't put your finger

down the knife because that's not

actually going to give you very much

more strength what I want you to do is

move your hand up closer to the knife

it's called choking up you can move it

up you can even put two fingers on the

sides of the knife like that and then

you'll get enough strength so Quinn can

you show me how you might choke up move

your hand up closer and get that thumb

wrapped around yup there you go all

right

here's a super important rule that I

want everybody to remember and I'm

trying to make it really easy to

remember knife moves eyes down food

moves knife down what that means is if

you are cutting away your eyes need to

be looking down if you look up your

knife stop

smoothing and then when you need to move

your food to the plate the knife goes

down because the food is moving okay

guys can you say that with me say knife

moves eyes down many let's try it again

ready say knife moves eyes down

alright now I'll say food moves knife

down let's do it all together ready food

moves knife down now we're gonna talk

about the different ways to hold the

food because we want to cut the carrot

right not the not the finger sometimes

kids hold food like this oh oh right we

say that finger sand pit me pick me I'm

gonna get cut right please take your egg

no way we don't want to do pick me pick

me so your adult guide is gonna remind

you if they see fingers pointing toward

a sharp knife they're gonna say pick me

pick me and that means uh you need to

get down to the other end we're gonna

stand our fingers up like this can

everybody stand your fingers up really

straight on your board right like a

soldier stands at attention like that oh

that's very good girls like a soldier

standing at attention so that's what

your fingers do because you know what

then they're not standing out going

they're gonna stand at attention and I

say hey hey out of the way get all the

way to the end right now sometimes we're

gonna cut different ways so we got

another way to get soldiers and it's

like this kind of like a tunnel we call

it up and over soldier fingers are still

standing up but the knife

chugga-chugga-chugga-chugga - - is gonna

go through that tunnel just like a train

and it's still gonna be super safe my

fingers are still far away from the

knife they're standing up it's called up

and over soldier the last way to hold

the food is not really holding the food

it's helping on the knife so sometimes

we put our hand on top of the knife we

know that it's not anywhere near the

sharp part

and we can give a little bit of push to

help it along we're gonna call that

chop-chop-chop-chop yep because your

hands on top while you're chopping so we

got three ways to hold the food right

long piece of food here we're gonna go

hey hey out of the way

we're gonna go sometimes up and over

soldier like that or we might go chop

chop we're gonna talk about four

different ways to move the knife to chop

food and they're all pretty fun the

first ones like rockabyebaby

guys know that song goodbye babe but

we're gonna rack it by our knife all

right so let's sing Rockabye knife and

that means I'm just gonna kind of rock

the knife up and down the knife tip is

always always always touching the board

it is not going to move just my hand

will move up and down ready Rock a-bye

knife in the celery and oh I kind of

move those hands down and get them up

like a soldier now set the knife down

and I can move the food the second way

we're gonna talk about cutting with our

knife is driving it like a vacuum so

when you vacuum you push back and forth

back and forth and this is good also for

kind of like when I did with the celery

and with a carrot so let me turn this

carrot around here we're gonna cut

little wheels of our carrot but instead

of just going up and down I'm gonna

drive like a vacuum the knife tip stays

on the board like that and I cut on my

way forward back going back and forth

back and forth so we're kind of driving

like a vacuum and sliding it back and

forth but notice my knife never comes up

because then I start to lose control

it's really really controlled when I can

slide it back and forth back and forth

everybody pick up your knife let's try

that one put your chip on the board and

just drive it forward back forward

forward back Aleeah you're gonna turn

your hand a little bit so your thumb

isn't right on top yeah your hand Jimmy

on top good forward back forward back

now that doesn't really work with a

little knives like this it's better with

this knife nice

curved chef's knife but it's still fun

to kind of practice knife strategy

number three is for soft foods like

strawberries or big things like melons

and we're gonna call this one saw blade

and in fact I may even grab a smaller

knife for my berry saw blade is just how

it sounds you saw back and forth and

it's great I mean this strawberry is

really really soft notice my tippy

fingers are hey hey out of the way I set

the knife down and I move my food so I

blade is also great for these big huge

things I'm gonna poke it just a little

so that I get in the right spot hands

are out of the way I'm gonna

sugar right we're just gonna saw right

through that and I'm making sure always

my hands are out of the way oh my

goodness Oh smell that

oh I just want to eat it knife slice

number four it's called the tug of war

pull and this is for slicing mostly for

little things kind of with a smaller

knife so I've got here an apple that

I've taken the core out and it's called

quartering and I'm gonna do the up and

over soldier hold and then I'm gonna

pull my knife through the Apple pull it

through pull it through my fingers are

completely far away from the blade and

I'm just pulling it through I can do the

same thing with something soft and small

like a mushroom up and over soldier hold

tug O'War apple slice slice right and

then I can take that mushroom and lay

the flat sides down and I can cut it

even smaller I kind of go over top pull

it through

[Music]

all right so now you know three safe

ways to hold food for ways to move your

knife and remember the most important

safety rules carry the knife with the

point down knife moves eyes down food

moves knife down and always set your

knife down in a safe place we get to go

learn some skills and practice today

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