Can someone please finally explain why people tap their knives? Superstition?

best analogy

After every stroke tho?

I don't tap my spoon after every bite of Cheerios.

I'm going to start doing this now

Basketball players dribble between every free throw. Sometimes it's a 'reset' mechanism, other times, a necessary habit to reestablish familiarity between instances of [action].

when does it not dribble you weirdo?

Sure, some people just do it more often than others. I don't tap my knife after every stroke but I have found myself doing it when I first get set up to use it. I'll get my cutting board out, get my knife & the ingredients, then I find myself tapping the knife on the board a couple times while I go through the procedure in my mind.

I've found that I often will "pulse" power tools for a moment before I use them too. Sometimes it's to check that the the speed setting, direction, etc, are where I want them, other times it's jut a matter of habit. Likewise if I'm using power equipment like a chainsaw or a trimmer I'll rev the engine briefly in between cuts to make sure it's running good and not bogging down.

>a necessary habit to reestablish familiarity between instances of [action].
Yep, this.
In the case of sports I've heard several coaches talk about players maintaining a consistent ritual before they serve/shoot/throw/etc.

What I want to know is why this guy seasoned his meat with forearm salt

>>forearm salt
What?
The salt didn't touch his arm, notice the wind while he's sprinking the salt.

As for why you sprinkle it from that kind of height? 2 reasons:
1-when it falls from a greater height it's moving faster, and thus it sticks to the food better.
2-seasoning from a height gives time for the seasoning to spread out into a larger area. That makes it faster to season, and it covers more evenly.

Obviously he's being a bit flamboyant with his actions but seasoning from a height is standard for pro cooks.

This sounds about right. I always spin my tools before I use them. Knives, Spatulas and Frying Pans get spun several times a day at work.

>The salt didn't touch his arm

Martin Yan taps. I'm not good enough of a cook to tell him he's wrong to do so and neither are you.

Sorry, buddy. We're not making this a steady thing.

fuck you ruined it

Because they have not found a kitchen use for a fidget spinner.

idk initially but on subsequent cuts of different sections of the steak, he might want to knock off anything collected on the knife?

I'm just guessing.

>reset mechanism
Yeah, pretty much, sounds about right. It's a sign for the brain of starting a new task. I've see many students do that while doing exams - you can see when they're moving to a next question because they have certain ticks they do.

>mechanics spin or tap wrenches in their hand

I'm not a mechanic, but I've been using wrenches every day for almost 10 years and never did this. No one else at work does it either.

My mate said small dicks don't dribble. My mate has a small dick.

in the case of a knife you do that to flick grease and debris off to make the next cut smoother

Work in a kitchen and tap my knife from time to time. Usually two reasons I do it: 1. I'm trying to get water/crumbs/seeds off it before the next cut or 2. I'm bored and entertaining myself between pieces or while thinking.

Whenever I do tap my knife, it's always on the spine of the blade and not the cutting edge.

Pretty sure this is it. I noticed the other day at work, I tap the pliers on the cutting table before I grab the pizza out of the oven.

Yeah man I flip frying pans and shit in my hand all the time. Shit's just fun to do. Keeps me thinking about what I'm doing while not losing my internal momentum of movement

For performance chefs like teppanyaki or (presumably) this guy, I always figured it was just to add some extra noise, rhythm, and movement to the performance to make it more entertaining. Purely guessing, though.

Kill yourself.

The same reason you'll see blacksmiths bounce their hammers off anvils. I do it if my grip on my knife isn't right and it helps me set the mood for what I'm doing

lmao

>seasons the steak after cutting it

This. It has became a habit for me.

I mean I tap my knife when I pull it out of sanitizer.

>it helps me set the mood
Dumbest post of the day.

The few shitposters aside, every legit response is true. We are all human. There is a habitual side to anything that you do repeatedly. Whether it is knocking the tool to remove any possible impediments or just a tick to get you into your normal rhythm, it works.

Surprisingly good thread. I'm no chef, but I love to cook. But I've used tools and have been a fisherman and camping my entire life. Unless I'm cleaning a fish, I wife the blade of my knife on my sleeve every time it seems like. Same thing. If I'm whittling or just fucking around, I constantly wipe the blade of my camp knife on my sleeve. Same deal. Tick, practical, whatever it may be. Both most likely.

This guy should take a bullet. Can we PLEASE never see this again?
If you saved this shitty video, delete it now.

>mfw when he does it for the celebrities webm and he drops a bunch of salt into somebodys drink.

you had one job nigga

I actually only saved it for this thread specifically.

Can someone please finally explain why people qive the tongs a quick *snib-snib*? Superstition?