Chef Bbq

Posted on Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 at 8:55 am

Chef Bbq

Keep a Towel in Your Pocket! by Chef Brian

Many times around the house while I am making the
family meal I find it handy to keep a towel tucked into
my back pocket so I can always have access to it
easily.

Tuck the corner in the pocket with the majority of the
towel hanging out to give you a quick hand wipe,
especially when prepping veggies. The dryer your hands,
the less likely you will be to have a knife slip.

The #1 reason Chefs go to the hospital is not burns,
it's cuts.

Why do we get cut more than getting burned? One would
think that in a numbers game, the numbers being we
handle hot many times more than we handle knives, we
would get burned more than getting cut.

Simple really, we always use a dry towel (hot pads) to
handle hot. Sure, sometimes we get the occasional oven
burn on the arm or grease splatter from the friers but
it's the cuts that bring us to a screeching halt.

There are 2 basic reasons for getting cut, lack of
concentration and slipping. There is no solution to
lack of concentration other than PAY ATTENTION!

There is however a solution to slippage. Keep your
hands and direct contact surfaces DRY. A wet handle on
a knife or wet cutting board is a recipe for
disaster. Wet
hands are the start for a slippery situation.

Keeping a towel on the counter or just nearby is not
good enough, you need to keep the towel on you so you
can access it at all times, not just when convenient.
If you don't have pockets, tuck it in the front of your
pants top so it resembles a short apron. Tuck the short
edge in the top of your pants and let it hang down.
Easy to get to and long enough so you can lift it up
high enough to dry the knife or veggies without being a
bother. Second advantage to this method is it will keep
your pants free from splash stains!

However you want to display your towel is up to you,
just as long as you use one faithfully. A dry surface
and dry hands will prevent the majority of all cuts.

10 years in the commercial kitchens and zero stitches
because I always practice dry handling procedures. I
didn't say no cuts, the occasional nick happens. Like
the saying goes, those that play with fire will get
burned, so to will the knife handler get a few little
cuts or nicks, it's inevitable.

I said no stitches, which in my field is an
accomplishment! I have personally seen some major cuts
that took many stitches and many months to heal. The
worst cuts were those from lack of concentration. The
majority were from "the slip".

So keep a towel in your pocket or tucked into the top
of your pants and it can prevent an accident, not only
that but during the backyard BBQ it will make you look
like you know what you are doing! Hey, everything
helps, right?

Go check out Chef Brian's Ultimate Recipe collection at
http://www.chefbrianscookingtips.com/Ultimate_Recipe_Collection.htm
10,000 of his favorite recipes compiled into one
downloadable resource.

Article Source: http://www.earticlesonline.com/Article/Keep-a-Towel-in-Your-Pocket-/235158