10 Simple Cooking Tips You Should Always Follow, According to a Top Celebrity Chef

Don’t murder the fish! (AKA sharpen your knife)

There are many things celebrity chefs won’t tell you. But with a cheerful glint in his eye that matched the glistening knife in his hand, chef Daniel Boulud imparted this secret: “Don’t murder the fish!”

I wasn’t attacking a swimming sea creature in the wild, however, just trying to slice a piece of translucent hamachi with a stainless chef’s knife in the dining room of his posh New York restaurant where I was living out my foodie dreams as part of a Marriott Rewards Moment experience.

Boulud used his charm to teach our Master Class kitchen tips, as well as guide us in preparing a delicious dinner. Case in point: To not “murder your fish” (as I was starting to do), use the sharpest knife in the kitchen with a soft, slanted stroke. Using a sharp knife means you can slice fish (or other delicate ingredients, like tomatoes) without having to apply pressure and smash them in the process of cutting them.