Has anyone tried the Cuisinart Arista set?

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kitchengoddess8

Sous Chef
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I want to get a decent set of knives but don't want to spend a lot of money on one at this time. I'm a newbie at cooking so I don't need a professional set of knives, just basic functionality.

I saw this Cuisinart 11-piece set on Amazon and was intrigued because it got great reviews. It looks like it would be attractive in my kitchen as well :)

http://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-11-Piece-Collection-Cutlery-Stainless/dp/B00MUZSFSW#Ask

Would love to hear if anyone has used this set or has any thoughts about whether it would be a good choice.
 
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I would not get it because the handle looks too large to fit my hand. I think you should find this in the store and try the fit before you buy.
 
I would look very closely at the steel used in those knives. At that price point I doubt that it could be very good and will probably not hold an edge very well.
 
The way the knives sit on edge in the block will dull them pretty quickly.

The general advice from experienced cooks on this forum is to go to a store that sells quality knives and handle them. It's important that it feels comfortable in your hand. And knife sets are generally not a good buy. You usually end up using two, maybe three, out of the set. Just buy what you need.
 
Thanks everyone! Sounds like I need to make a trip to the store and see what they have. Bed Bath and Beyond has an okay selection. Sur La Table might be better. I don't know what types of knives I would need to have the basics. Does anyone have recommendations?
 
Most of us recommend against buying a set.

The basic requirements are generally considered to be:

A chef's knife or santoku for slicing, chopping, etc.
A paring knife for small hand work.
A serrated bread knife.

I'd focus on these three in a good quality knife brand and model and add them as you can afford them.
 
Most of us recommend against buying a set.

The basic requirements are generally considered to be:

A chef's knife or santoku for slicing, chopping, etc.
A paring knife for small hand work.
A serrated bread knife.

I'd focus on these three in a good quality knife brand and model and add them as you can afford them.

Agreed.
 
Most of us recommend against buying a set.

The basic requirements are generally considered to be:

A chef's knife or santoku for slicing, chopping, etc.
A paring knife for small hand work.
A serrated bread knife.

I'd focus on these three in a good quality knife brand and model and add them as you can afford them.


I agree 1000%.

Even if you are a beginning cook, good quality knives make a difference.

And definitely hold them before you buy.

I live Sur La Table but they are spendy. They do have loads of knives so you might try a few out and see if you can find them cheaper elsewhere or on the net.
 
I agree 1000%.

Even if you are a beginning cook, good quality knives make a difference.

And definitely hold them before you buy.

I live Sur La Table but they are spendy. They do have loads of knives so you might try a few out and see if you can find them cheaper elsewhere or on the net.

Excellent advice. Once you find what feels right for you, you can get great bargains on the internet. Be sure to check out ebay for example.
 
See if you can locate a Heckels outlet store (or other brand) in an outlet mall. They are set up for you to try their knives including a cutting board and vegetables to cut up.
 
Andy, I wish there were some good outlets stores here in NYC. I'm pretty sure that they let you try knives at Sur La Table so I may start there.
 
The way the knives sit on edge in the block will dull them pretty quickly. ...
That was one of the first things that I thought of when I saw that block too. Actually, that would be a warning flag to me.

Here's a picture of the type of block that I have. I noticed that the cheap Henckel sets had blocks similar to the one in your link. The more expensive sets had blocks where the knives lie on their sides.

henckels_4_star_250.jpg
 
That was one of the first things that I thought of when I saw that block too. Actually, that would be a warning flag to me.

Here's a picture of the type of block that I have. I noticed that the cheap Henckel sets had blocks similar to the one in your link. The more expensive sets had blocks where the knives lie on their sides.

henckels_4_star_250.jpg

Mine is similar to that but it has eight knife slots and one for kitchen shears. I have my Santoku, DH's chef's knife, a boning knife, paring knife, cheese knife, bird's beak knife, bread knife and honing steel in it.
 
Mine is similar to that but it has eight knife slots and one for kitchen shears. I have my Santoku, DH's chef's knife, a boning knife, paring knife, cheese knife, bird's beak knife, bread knife and honing steel in it.
Yeah, I just looked. Mine has eight spaces and the one for the shears too. And like mine, the top left hole is for a honing steel. This one does have a slot for shears. It's the bottom one in the middle.
 
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...I noticed that the cheap Henckel sets had blocks similar to the one in your link. The more expensive sets had blocks where the knives lie on their sides.
I use my Mom's old knife block from her basic set. It does have the vertical slits, but the angle of the block is steeper. Rather than put my blades in sharp-side-down, I insert them with the blade facing up. The only knife I can't do that with is the highly-curved boning knife my Dad sweet-talked his butcher out of.
 

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