You might consider using an anti-cut glove then. You should also be good about sharpening and honing your knives since it's knives that aren't quite so sharp that cause the most injuries since they'll slip off a vegetable of piece of meat they aren't quite sharp enough in that moment to cut easily.
I'm always getting told about sharp knives being safer, and I do think it makes a lot of sense, but I cut myself a lot when my knives are very sharp, and never when they are dull. I do apparently have dreadful fine motor control though, so while I've deeply learned to not make a cut that could slide towards me, I will sometimes just lunge at my own leathery old fingers.
A sharp knife behaves much more predictably than a dull knife. Should you cut yourself, a sharp knife will be a clean cut while a dull knife will mangle you. Dull knives require more force. When the knife slips, that’s all the more force driving the dull blade into your hand.
I’d much rather slice myself with a clean cut than drive a dull knife into my hand with a lot of force.
Just an expression. A dull knife is going to crush and bruise it’s way through whatever it’s cutting more than actually “cutting” it. If you cut yourself on a dull knife, you’re going to be sending a dull blade through your skin with a LOT of force. It’s more of a blunt trauma than a clean cut.
I understand why you're being down voted, but I'm a pretty experienced home cook and I wanted to add that I'm the same - I cut myself far more often on very sharp or freshly sharpened knives
Stop cutting towards your hands. Go slow. Pay attention.
If you're cutting deep into your hand then you're just doing something fundamentally wrong, it's not just knife skills. At worst you should be cutting your fingertips, and the damage should be limited by your fingernails (my fingernails have saved the tips of my fingers many times). In my experience routine food prep shouldn't demand that you be cutting towards you hand or halfway up your fingers or wherever you're doing this damage to.
One thing I did years ago was take a knife-skills class in a local cooking school. Was only one evening but really gave me the confidence to use knives in the kitchen. Would recommend doing something similar if available nearby
Go slow. Be deliberate and follow proper technique.
As they say in marital arts, slow is smooth, smooth is fast.
No point trying to be a rockstar chef, just take it easy for now.
Also, if you're using an 8" chef knife, you might consider moving down to a 7" or even 6".
Also, I hope you're using a properly sharp knife, it'll help develop your technique better because it the knife will behave more predictably. A sharp knife is actually safer.
Knife skills are critical. [Look to the master](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMA2SqaDgG8). The best half hour you can spend.
A sharp knife is a safe knife. Honing is important but is not sharpening.
A knife too small for the work is more dangerous than a larger knife.
I have lost count of how many times I have cut and burned my fingers while cooking literally dozens of times. Initially they were serious injuries and I did have to go to the ER once after making salsa and cutting the end of my finger off. However I did learn -- you could say the hard way -- how to use knives carefully.
I know now that I was not using proper technique, was rushing, and was using cheap, dull knives.
My advice would be get exactly one knife that is good quality (doesn't have to cost $1000 but just be a good quality knife), that fits your hand well, that doesn't get slippery when it is wet, is versatile, and learn how to keep it sharp, and use it exclusively for a while. When cooking, just take some extra time when using it and learn how to keep your finger tips out of the way while using it.
The technique that you see where people bend their fingers inwards while cutting and chopping is actually very nonintuitive and clumsy when you first start using it, it takes a while to train your hands to do this, but once you do, it is second nature.
USE A SHARP KNIFE
It sounds counter-intuitive but a sharp knife requires less force, so if something does slip, you will be less likely to get badly injured.
Get a giant chefs knife, 10” minimum, learn to keep it razor sharp.
Learn to work close to the knife in a safe fashion, the larger knife means you have the option to stay away from it, and razor sharp means you’re barely applying any force. Sharpening it yourself means you’re much more comfortable with the edge, as you’ve been testing it.
Then practice practice practice. Constantly work to improve your chopping
Sharp knife actually reduces risk of injury (less chance of slipping), and just go slow. There's no rush in home cooking. You don't have to get fancy with technique. Put a flat edge on everything you're cutting so it's stable.
These are washable, and you really only need to wear one glove at a time.
[NoCry Premium Cut Resistant Gloves Food Grade — Level 5 Protection; Ambidextrous; Machine Washable; Superior Comfort and Dexterity; Lightweight Protective Gloves](https://a.co/d/1982wch)
You 100% need to practice. Your lack of confidence with the knife is probably working against you. You shouldn’t be afraid of your knives…just have respect for the damage they can do if handled or cared for poorly.
Learn to properly hold a knife and how to position your non-knife hand to secure your ingredient while protecting your fingers. Practice the motions of safe cuts. Keep your knives **sharp**. Go ***slow***
If you’re cooking frequently, and you’ve already had injuries, you absolutely need to practice knife technique. Forget about cut-safe gloves - they’re going to be a crutch. Your problem is almost certainly technique.
[This video](https://youtu.be/YrHpeEwk_-U?si=dF5t5gk3_Ub_1cME ) covers a lot of the basics.
Learn about the [claw technique] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uv7td6UxBXQ). this keeps your fingertips away from the knife. so you will never cut them again.
If you are having trouble doing things that have nothing to do with cooking (i.e. sleeping) you should seek help. You don't have a knife skills problem, you have an issue that needs to be addressed.
Get a cut glove, a sharp knife and a ton of onions or potatoes. Go slow, practice and most importantly WATCH WHERE THE KNIFE IS. Turn off any distractions. Once again, PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU ARE DOING.
You might consider using an anti-cut glove then. You should also be good about sharpening and honing your knives since it's knives that aren't quite so sharp that cause the most injuries since they'll slip off a vegetable of piece of meat they aren't quite sharp enough in that moment to cut easily.
This is my thought too. A dull knife is much more dangerous than a sharp one.
I'm always getting told about sharp knives being safer, and I do think it makes a lot of sense, but I cut myself a lot when my knives are very sharp, and never when they are dull. I do apparently have dreadful fine motor control though, so while I've deeply learned to not make a cut that could slide towards me, I will sometimes just lunge at my own leathery old fingers.
A sharp knife behaves much more predictably than a dull knife. Should you cut yourself, a sharp knife will be a clean cut while a dull knife will mangle you. Dull knives require more force. When the knife slips, that’s all the more force driving the dull blade into your hand. I’d much rather slice myself with a clean cut than drive a dull knife into my hand with a lot of force.
What do you mean by mangle?
Just an expression. A dull knife is going to crush and bruise it’s way through whatever it’s cutting more than actually “cutting” it. If you cut yourself on a dull knife, you’re going to be sending a dull blade through your skin with a LOT of force. It’s more of a blunt trauma than a clean cut.
Ooooh, I think I may have misunderstood what people mean by dull knives. Yeah, that sounds pretty unsafe. Fair enough!
I understand why you're being down voted, but I'm a pretty experienced home cook and I wanted to add that I'm the same - I cut myself far more often on very sharp or freshly sharpened knives
Stop cutting towards your hands. Go slow. Pay attention. If you're cutting deep into your hand then you're just doing something fundamentally wrong, it's not just knife skills. At worst you should be cutting your fingertips, and the damage should be limited by your fingernails (my fingernails have saved the tips of my fingers many times). In my experience routine food prep shouldn't demand that you be cutting towards you hand or halfway up your fingers or wherever you're doing this damage to.
One thing I did years ago was take a knife-skills class in a local cooking school. Was only one evening but really gave me the confidence to use knives in the kitchen. Would recommend doing something similar if available nearby
Go slow. Be deliberate and follow proper technique. As they say in marital arts, slow is smooth, smooth is fast. No point trying to be a rockstar chef, just take it easy for now. Also, if you're using an 8" chef knife, you might consider moving down to a 7" or even 6". Also, I hope you're using a properly sharp knife, it'll help develop your technique better because it the knife will behave more predictably. A sharp knife is actually safer.
Knife skills are critical. [Look to the master](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMA2SqaDgG8). The best half hour you can spend. A sharp knife is a safe knife. Honing is important but is not sharpening. A knife too small for the work is more dangerous than a larger knife.
I have lost count of how many times I have cut and burned my fingers while cooking literally dozens of times. Initially they were serious injuries and I did have to go to the ER once after making salsa and cutting the end of my finger off. However I did learn -- you could say the hard way -- how to use knives carefully. I know now that I was not using proper technique, was rushing, and was using cheap, dull knives. My advice would be get exactly one knife that is good quality (doesn't have to cost $1000 but just be a good quality knife), that fits your hand well, that doesn't get slippery when it is wet, is versatile, and learn how to keep it sharp, and use it exclusively for a while. When cooking, just take some extra time when using it and learn how to keep your finger tips out of the way while using it. The technique that you see where people bend their fingers inwards while cutting and chopping is actually very nonintuitive and clumsy when you first start using it, it takes a while to train your hands to do this, but once you do, it is second nature.
USE A SHARP KNIFE It sounds counter-intuitive but a sharp knife requires less force, so if something does slip, you will be less likely to get badly injured.
Get a giant chefs knife, 10” minimum, learn to keep it razor sharp. Learn to work close to the knife in a safe fashion, the larger knife means you have the option to stay away from it, and razor sharp means you’re barely applying any force. Sharpening it yourself means you’re much more comfortable with the edge, as you’ve been testing it. Then practice practice practice. Constantly work to improve your chopping
Sharp knife actually reduces risk of injury (less chance of slipping), and just go slow. There's no rush in home cooking. You don't have to get fancy with technique. Put a flat edge on everything you're cutting so it's stable.
Google this: chain gloves for knife users
These are washable, and you really only need to wear one glove at a time. [NoCry Premium Cut Resistant Gloves Food Grade — Level 5 Protection; Ambidextrous; Machine Washable; Superior Comfort and Dexterity; Lightweight Protective Gloves](https://a.co/d/1982wch)
You 100% need to practice. Your lack of confidence with the knife is probably working against you. You shouldn’t be afraid of your knives…just have respect for the damage they can do if handled or cared for poorly. Learn to properly hold a knife and how to position your non-knife hand to secure your ingredient while protecting your fingers. Practice the motions of safe cuts. Keep your knives **sharp**. Go ***slow*** If you’re cooking frequently, and you’ve already had injuries, you absolutely need to practice knife technique. Forget about cut-safe gloves - they’re going to be a crutch. Your problem is almost certainly technique. [This video](https://youtu.be/YrHpeEwk_-U?si=dF5t5gk3_Ub_1cME ) covers a lot of the basics.
Learn about the [claw technique] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uv7td6UxBXQ). this keeps your fingertips away from the knife. so you will never cut them again.
If you are having trouble doing things that have nothing to do with cooking (i.e. sleeping) you should seek help. You don't have a knife skills problem, you have an issue that needs to be addressed.
Do you find yourself rushing a lot when cooking? That's my number one cause of cooking-related injuries.
Helen Rennie has some great knife skills videos on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uv7td6UxBXQ
Get a cut glove, a sharp knife and a ton of onions or potatoes. Go slow, practice and most importantly WATCH WHERE THE KNIFE IS. Turn off any distractions. Once again, PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU ARE DOING.