Me and my Furi: BFF

That means Best Friends Forever, for those unfamiliar with the term :-)

The first time I laid my eyes on a Furi knife was 5 years ago when we stayed with a lovely lady and her family in Brisbane, Australia. Jo, as I will refer to her in this story, widened my culinary horizons. She had never trained formally, and neither had I. But we spent many days experimenting in the kitchen and showing each other our favorite recipes. She had a vegetable and herb garden with a kaffir lime tree in her backyard. And because her husband worked off shore in South East Asia, she had a wide repertoir of Thai, Malaysian and Indonesian food. Because of Jo, curries, lemongrass, cilantro and mint became not just mere acquaintances but turned into trusted and oft used friends in the kitchen.

Jo had 2 Furi knives, a chef''s knife and a paring knife. And when I first held them in my hands, I knew that this was the knife I wanted. But I couldn't bear to part with AUD$100 for one knife, especially because my husband and I had barely begun to embark on our careers. So I went back home to Manila, all this time pining for those elusive Furi knives.

When we moved to our apartment in TO, I started shopping for a knife that wouldn't break the bank but would be a good investment and last me a long, long while. I was in Linens N Things, scanning the ceiling-high wall of knives...and lo and behold, up there, on the highest shelf was a lone box set of Furi knives, on sale, for the amazing price of CAD$79!!! I almost could not believe my eyes! I hurriedly bought the set and practically ran out of the store, fearing that the staff would realize how much a bargain I was getting. So for $79, I got a 10 inch chef's knife (my absolute favorite), a boning knife, a serrated utility knife, a carving fork and knife, a paring knife, a peeling knife, and a sharpener. Amazing deal.

I still wonder how much better a Global, a Shun, a Mac or a Wusthof would be. I've held them in my hands at my local Williams-Sonoma. But my Furi still feels the most comfortable. I love the fact that I can hold it with greasy or wet hands and it never slips. I love that fact that it has no seams, no nooks and crannies where bacteria can hide. I love the fact that with a few swipes on the sharpener and it as sharp as the day I bought it and I can cut paper thin slices of tomatoes again. And I love that it looks so good. So sleek and shiny. Just looking at it makes me happy :-)