The fixation with kitchen knives in this country has reached an all-time high. Given their seemingly magical status, it's believed that having the right knife can significantly enhance one's cooking abilities. This has resulted in countless advice on great knives and how to maintain them floating around, especially online.

However, in all the excitement surrounding knives, we often neglect a true maven of the kitchen: the humble kitchen shears. Considering the broad spectrum of tasks they can perform, these tools don't receive nearly as much respect as they deserve.

As a child, I often found the pair of shears in our kitchen missing after being used for other random tasks such as opening mail or packages. Admittedly, my family did not treat even our kitchen knives with enough respect, but no one was using them as letter openers. Unfortunately, even in homes where care is taken with other kitchen tools, shears are typically abandoned at the back of the utensil drawer or haphazardly attached to the knife strip. This lack of appreciation for kitchen shears is what I aim to rectify.

Personally, I find myself reaching for my kitchen shears just as frequently as my chef’s knife. They prove to be incredibly versatile while dealing with far less mess. When chopping herbs or slicing cherry tomatoes becomes a chore, I turn to my trusted shears. They handle the job most efficiently with no need for an additional cutting board. For jobs such as sectioning chicken or breaking up canned tomatoes, shears trump knives every time.

More delicate tasks like crisping bacon for carbonara or slicing an uneven pizza can also be easily completed with shears. These tasks would usually pose some difficulty with traditional knives. Not to mention, for those apprehensive about handling sharp knives, kitchen shears, with their secure locking mechanism, offer a safer alternative.

In addition to these benefits, the design of kitchen shears allows them to be taken apart, making them easy to sharpen and clean. This very feature has found them a regular spot in my nephew’s kitchen playtime (under supervision, of course).

I have a collection of trusted shears, including a pair of Material’s ‘The Best Shears’ and OXO's meat-cutting shears. A surgeon friend even suggested using trauma shears, which have a design suited for varied uses in the kitchen. They're affordable and can even be safely cleaned in the dishwasher.

However, I don’t mean for you to stick to my preferred shears. I encourage you to find your own pair that suits your needs and makes you appreciate the wide range of tasks kitchen shears can handle. They might be simple, but kitchen shears have a way of silently carrying out their duty day in and day out. So, take another look at your kitchen setup and reconsider the worth of those kitchen shears. I guarantee you won’t regret it.