Mezzaluna Knife

[Tina1981]

I'm ashamed to admit I never heard of these knives until yesterday! Can anyone tell me their experience with them? Pros? Cons?

I use herbs often in cooking and think this would make an excellent addition to my kitchen!

[Manassas64]

I use it when I am doing a big day of cooking and doing a lot of chopping of fresh herbs. So maybe 10 times a year? More in the winter I find.

I really need the board that goes with it. Doing it on a regular board makes a mess.

[Novelli]

I use one, but usually only to make pasta, meat, and pastry/bread fillings. It doesn't puree stuff at all like pulsing in a food processor does, and keeps a nice consistency so you can actually taste the individual ingredients...i.e. shrimp, pork, lamb, etc.

To me, it has it's uses.

[jujuthomas]

somehow we have two of these and they never.get.used.

[Miss Priss]

I have a two-handled mezzaluna that's about 8" or 9" across and a mini-mezzaluna, maybe 5" across, that's designed for one-handed use. Once in a long while, I use the smaller one, together with a shallow bowl, to chop canned whole tomatoes; but when it comes to herbs, I can do a better job with a chef's knife. I used the large one for herbs maybe twice before concluding that--again--I can do a better job with a chef's knife. In fact, as I write this, I'm making a mental note to get rid of the large one.

[Chemicalkinetics]

There are a few posts about the Messaluna. Some like it, but many do not. If you have just a small amount of herb to cut, then it is not any faster or better. It is actually slower than a knife, and less precise than a knife. However, if you have tons of herb, the messaluna is easier on your hand.

Keep in mind that there is a difference between using herb often in small quantity and using herb in large quantity.

[KSlink]

I have a mincing knife that is mezzaluna in shape, fits in one hand for ease of use, and also does a killer job on slicing pizza. Whustoff-Trident.....

[goodhealthgourmet]

i have one, and i've pulled out of the drawer exactly once in about 8 years (i really should get rid of it). i'm so accustomed to using a chef's knife to chop herbs that i feel the same way as ipse does - it's cumbersome & awkward.

[eperdu]

I have a Ulu knife (Alaskan) and it's a single blade. I like the curved bowl that it came with to chop. I find, overall, that it works well but it needs to be really sharp to not mangle the herbs. I don't necessarily find it faster than a knife but the rocking motion in the bowl is nice. I like it for rough chopped nuts especially.

My boyfriend uses it more than I do as it's easy for him to handle and chop vegetables. He's one-armed so it is much more comfortable for him.

[ipsedixit]

Nigella Lawson is a big fan of them.

I find them too cumbersome to use lithely, probably because I did not grow up using them.

[Tina1981]

same here...I watched a video of someone using it and it looked so foreign to me LOL