January 18, 2010 - 8:04am
Lame VS Tomato Knife
Was wanting some information from anyone whom has used both. I currently use the Pure Komachi 2 Tomato knife but was wondering if there was an advantage to using an actual Lame.
Was wanting some information from anyone whom has used both. I currently use the Pure Komachi 2 Tomato knife but was wondering if there was an advantage to using an actual Lame.
I use a lame because that was what I was trained with. I find that a good sharp knife works in a pinch. I like the lame because you can do a lot more different cuts and if you get good at it I think it can make a deeper cleaner cut. Hope this helps
Tom Georgalas
I really like the lame because it's like an ice skate--it has a certain sharpness flexibility and once you learn to control it you can move gracefully at any angle.
But on certain very wet doughs, nothing beats a cheap serrated paring knife I got at the dollar store because the serrations give the knife a "tooth" to really catch the dough.
I was very frustrated with my Matfer lame, I got some single edge razor blades and didn't like those either. I then tried a double edge razor blade fitted to a popsicle stick; this is now working wonderfully for me.
I have much more consistent results with a tomato knife. Perhaps it is because I am commonly baking higher hydration doughs, or just lack of experience but it is very rare for me to have a clean score with a lame. I do have both and still use the lame but my preference is the tomato knife.