Safe to say, the Christmas season tends to get a little manic – whether you’re preparing your own festive meal at home, or whether you’re a commercial butcher trying to stay on top of the seasonal influx of customers. Whatever your own circumstances, you can often find that the festive season goes a lot more smoothly and less stressfully when you’re properly equipped with everything you need – and if you could use some ideas on where to start, here are our top suggestions for some of the essential butchers equipment for over Christmas!  

Use the right knives for the food you’re preparing

You may well already have your own go-to knife you use as a general all-rounder (especially if you’re preparing food in your own kitchen). And while that’s never a bad idea, if you want truly exceptional results, then it’s always best to expand your cooking arsenal with specific knives for the type of food you’re cooking.

If you’re breaking down large cuts of meat for example, you’ll need a robust butchers knife, whereas for more delicate cuts, you can find a lot of success with smaller, more precise blades – like a deboning knife or a fishmonger’s knife. Match the blade to the meat (or veg) you’re cutting, and you’ll find that the entire thing goes a lot more easily!

Personally, we’d recommend taking a look at our Giesser range of knives. Designed and produced by a renowned German manufacturer, these award-winning knives are hardwearing, highly versatile, and very affordable. Best of all, you can count on them for a long operational lifespan, so you can get many years of usage out of them. 

The right kind of knife sharpener

Just like the right kind of knife, you also need the right kind of knife sharpener, according to the type of work you’re undertaking. We supply a wide range of knife sharpeners to choose from, ranging from accessible and easy-to-use variants, all the way up to more specialised options for professional use. 

Our Chantry knife sharpener is a great example of the more accessible options we supply at Butchers Equipment. It’s ideally suited to keeping kitchen knives at their sharpest, helping to take the stress out of Christmas cooking by allowing you to chop up meat, bread and veg quickly and easily. 

For our professional customers, we also provide an extensive range of butchers steels to choose from – perfect for helping you to maximise efficiency, productivity and output in a fast-paced commercial environment, where time is money. 

A wooden chopping board

The humble chopping board or butchers block is an indispensable tool for both professional butchers and home cooks, particularly during the bustling Christmas season. Its function isn’t exactly hard to grasp – mainly, it’s valued for providing a sturdy and sanitary surface for cutting, chopping, and preparing a variety of festive meats and ingredients. 

It also can be easy to underestimate how useful a good chopping board is for protecting your knives – crucially, it as a protective barrier, preserving the sharpness and integrity of knives by preventing the wear or tear that would normally be incurred by repeatedly striking the blade against a hard or brittle surface, like plastic or marble.  

This is crucial during the holiday rush, ensuring efficient and precise cuts, enhancing the overall cooking and presentation experience. Plus, the segregation of boards for different types of meats helps to minimise the risk of cross-contamination, upholding food safety standards and protecting the final diner. 

The right Personal Protective Equipment 

This is particularly important if you’re working in a fast-paced commercial environment, especially if you’re an employer, as it may form part of your due diligence and duty of care obligations. 

PPE like chainmail, scabbards, and chain link gloves offers indispensable benefits, especially when handling sharp knives during the holiday rush. Chainmail aprons and gloves act as a robust barrier, providing effective protection against accidental cuts and abrasions, ensuring the safety of the wearer. 

On the other hand, scabbards are designed to securely house knives, preventing injuries and maintain blade sharpness by averting contact with other utensils. In the festive kitchen whirlwind, where precision is key, the right PPE not only safeguards against potential hazards but also allows you to prepare your food with confidence and efficiency. It’s immensely good for your productivity and peace of mind – and most importantly at all, your safety!

And if you need new (or replacement) versions of any of the equipment we’ve outlined above, you’re in exactly the right place. We only supply the very best carving knives, butchers knives and chef knife sets here at Butchers Equipment Warehouse, as well as a wide variety of supplementary equipment and accessories, so you can always be confident that we have exactly what you need — and all at the very best prices to boot. 

Feel free to explore our extensive range of knives, sets and accessories right here on our site, and if you’ve got any questions, get in touch with our experts on 01254 427721 and we’ll be happy to help!