Chinese Cleaver 101: How to Chop, Slice, and Dice | Hunger Pangs
Hunger Pangs is a series about cooking great Chinese food at home, starring ATK’s Kevin Pang and his father Jeffrey. In this episode, they give you tips for working with cleavers.
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does anyone notice that if using cleaver and chefs knife, the way of cutting is different? the cleaver looks like it cuts from top to bottom and chefs knife is like dancing?
thank you for the ginger trick!
You’re using the wrong cleaver. Thumbs down 👎🏼
How can you cube pieces on tomato then?
I especially liked the technique for mincing ginger. Very clever!
Thank you for this video. I love the techniques as well as the cultural and family connection. My mom just bought a nice stainless Chinese cleaver and a stout wooden chopping block for me, and I am excited to continue my journey of delicious Asian cooking!
I don't understand why anybody would pick this cleaver for anything …. it's to thick to cut vegetable (not usuable as a cai dao) and too light / hard to go through bones … hell it's not even chinese.
Awesome father & son team great job.
Wow. Never thought of shredding ginger with the back of the clever. Brilliant!
Love your videos! Question: It seems that the cleaver you recommend is no longer available (I checked multiple sites). Any other recommendations?
The Pangs give very good advice so if you follow the instructions you’ll never slice your fingers!!!
💜
Thank you for the tips.
How about Stinky Tofu recipe
Now I need to get a cleaver.
Slightly off topic, but, back in Vegas, my neighbor (who was coincidentally Chinese) used a kitchen cleaver to prune a large acacia tree on his property. I shamelessly GladysKravitz’d the guy from four different windows in my house to be sure I was seeing correctly: Uh-huh. It was that (coincidentally Chinese) neighbor dude, all shirtless and muscley, full-on Tarzan grappling the Dr Seuss Tree (I nicknamed it the Dr Seuss Tree cause all the other trees around looked like inverted lightning while that one looked all swoopy like some’m outta Dr Seuss, plus it had rose colored roots, but I digress..), pruning the entire thing from the inside out, with a (is that a.. yup.. hole in the blade.. well I’ll be.. that’s one helluva sharp..) KITCHEN CLEAVER. For the record, his elderly parents helped clean up the cuttings, the tree sprang back beautifully and didn’t need pruning again for two years. So.. I guess.. Ancient Chinese Secret (or Modern Not Necessarily Chinese Coincidence): Tell me you learned cleaver skills by way of China and I’ll surrender my kitchen to your will. Oh and.. um.. just a random thought but your instructor didn’t happen to integrate any horticultural or landscaping methodologies into his or her tutelage, did they? Just wondering is all.. you noticed the acacia out front?
Thank you Jeffrey and Kevin for another great video! I will have to buy that clever!!😊
The co-winning cleaver handle appears to many little holes around it. It serms to me that would be a poor design as far as cleaning it thoroughly especially when working with raw meat.
Excellent video!! Since knife skills are so required for making great Chinese foods, this is really a perfect video. No one need fear the cleaver after watching this!
Years ago, I purchased a Martin Yan Chinese Vegetable Knife (that was the title of the knife). I was promptly informed by the cutlery salesman that it was NOT a cleaver. He then produced a heavy cleaver and told me that it was for "chopping" through bones with one chop. I still have my vegetable knife and love it, but I have added a boning knife, a chef's knife, and a karambit (just for fun)
Ever since I saw the movie Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte cleavers scare me.
Its also the ultimate pizza slicer 🙂
The wisdom of your dad is priceless! I have always used a chef’s knife, although we also have a santoku (Rachel Ray brand) but I just may add a Chinese clever to my knife set.
I like the traditional carbon steel cleavers I've been using for years – Chinese manufactured.
Is this the same way one would hold a Beaver Cleaver?
Hmm….Thank goodness for kitchen gadgets. Cleaver to me, is like trying to cut with machete. Interesting to watch but I value my fingers too much LOL
Thank you for the demonstration 🙂
On chef knife forums, the guys that use Cai Dao generally prefer a knives with a thinner blade like the CCK1303, over the thick kind of cleaver that is recommended in this video. Thicker blades like the one in this vid can chop through small bones, but will require more effort when prepping vegetables. It will wedge in things like carrots and squash. Instead of getting the Shun that's recommended in this video, I suggest checking out youtube channels like "cooking with cleavers" or chef knife forums. They generally recommend knives like the CCK1303, Shibazi F208, Dexter 5198, etc… You'll rarely see this Shun recommended.
I always heard these were called Chinese Chef's Knives. What's the differences between a western cleaver and a chinese one?
Only things I don't like about cleavers is when you're cutting something like spring onions or capsicum. The cleaver is great for chopping up and down but these kinds of things need a rocking motion that a german style chef's knife can do better.
Great ginger tip!
Your website crashed. Please fix it ASAP
I've been waiting for this channel to recommend a great cleaver. Thanks so much! Now I only can anticipate an updated winning knives set recommendation in the future. 🙂
this is a damn western cleaver guys, there's so many good cai dao on the market that this feels almost disrespectful and borderline racist to bring out Chinese people and make them use this crap and not even call it by the name that they would call it. chopping vegetables with a meat cleaver. we use the terms santoku and gyuto just fine. You're not even calling it a cai dao. This thing is making a mess of those vegetables. what a bad video. The production people should feel bad.
Great info Thanks !!!
Despite the economic market crash,I'm so happy. I have been earning $40,800 returns from my $8,000 investment.👍👍
In ATK fashion, where can we learn what products are a good buy?
That's not a Chinese cleaver. At least not the ones used in most families. This is more like a meat cleaver to me, too thick for precise work.
You have better precision and more speed with a good quality chef's knife..
This reminds me I need to sharpen my cleaver. I found a vintage Foster 2190 and love it. However it does need a fresh edge.
Where is the link to the cleaver?
Wouldn't it be easier to slice the meat if it had been in the freezer for 30 minutes? That's a common AmTK trick. Note the meat is sticking to the cleaver blade. That's why they make knives with a "hallow ground" surface so that won't happen.
You guys are the best cooking show on YouTube!
ATK,,, PANGS, I own 2 CHINESE SLICERS, & a western CLEAVER, which needs BRUTE FORCE, lots of people confuse a CHINESE KNIFE,,WITH A CLEAVER, SIMPLY PUT CLEAVERS HAVE A HOLE FOR HANGING, KNIVES DO NOT ,, THANKS 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Yeah used a cleaver to cut fruits all the time and preferred it over a kitchen knife
I really enjoy watching segments of father and son. Good rapport and information. Thanks
Thank you for this tutorial! I notice that some non-Chinese nowadays once they get hang of Chinese cleavers, are using them enthusiastically almost exclusively.
I've been interested in the cleaver for some time and am glad to find this video. Excellent!