Previous | Next

A Mezzaluna is a half-moon shaped blade designed to be rocked from side to side.

Some models have one blade, some are double-bladed. The blades, counting the curve, tend to be about 5 to 6 inches (12 1/2 to 15 cm) long. Most have very, very sharp blades so that the rocking motion is all that's needed, with very gentle downward pressure, to cut.

Some models have one complete handle, some have a two-part handle, which is a wooden knob at the top of each end, to encourage your arms to "get" the rocking motion. In both cases, the handle will be above the blade.

Some come with special cutting boards that have a concave (bowl-shaped) indent in them, to help keep everything you are chopping in one place and to fit better the rolling motion that the blades make.

Mezzaluna are used for mincing, particularly herbs and nuts. It is good for those not trained on, or comfortable with, a chef's knife.

If herbs are too wet, they'll just stick.

Food can get caught between the blades in the double-bladed model. However much you're tempted to just quickly run your finger through the two blades to clean it out, if you stop to think for a micro-second you'll realize that it's not the best idea you've had all day.

Very hard things won't benefit from the rolling motion this knife is designed for.

Language Notes
"Mezzaluna" is Italian for "half-moon."

Other entries for:

Knives
Baker's Blade, Bread Knife, Ceramic Knives, Chef's Knives, Chinese Cleaver, Cleaver, Japanese Knives, Mezzaluna, Palette Knives, Paring Knife, Ulu Knife, Utility Knife

Other entries for: Cooking Tools

Alambic Stills, Apple Corer, Avocado Slicers, Baking Mats, Baking Stones, Batterie de Cuisine, Biscuit Brake, Blowtorches, Branding Iron, Bread Bins, Bread Machines, Bulb Baster, Butter Bell, Butter Muslin, Caja China, Can Openers, Canning Funnels, Cans, Chopsticks, Contact Paper, Cookware, Cooling Racks, Corkscrews, CorningWare, Cuppitiello, Dishwashers, Doughnut Cutters, Egg Cups, Esky, Fat Separators, Firkins, Flour Dredgers, Flour Duster, Food Pushers, Funnels, Girdle, Graters, Griddles, Heat Diffuser, Ice Pick, Icing Syringe, Kitchen String, Kitchen Tongs, Kneading Gloves, Measuring Cups, Melon Baller, Mesquite, Milk Cellar, Non-Electrical Rotisseries, Olive Pitter, Oshibori, Oxo Good Grips, Paraffin, Pastry Brush, Pastry Frame, Pea Sheller, Petites Marmites, Pie Plates, Pie Racks, Pizzelle Iron, Proof Box, Ramekins, Rolling Cookie Cutters, Rolling Pins, Salad Spinner, Salamanders, Scales, Spatulas, Steamers, Sugar Cutters, Sushi-oke, Tassie Cups, Tea Trappings, Thermometers, Tortilla Warmers, Treen, Tupperware, Uchiwa, Waffle Iron, Whisks