Preparing food is easier, faster, and safer when you have the right tools. But with so many different types of knives on the market, finding the one that suits your needs can be tricky.

Without the right knowledge, it’s all too easy to buy a selection of specialist knives you hardly ever use — meaning you end up with a selection of unused knives languishing at the back of your utensil drawer.

Here are some of the kitchen must-haves:

• Chef’s Knife: By far the most versatile and popular of kitchen knives, used for chopping, dicing, slicing and mincing. The perfect all-rounder.

• Utility Knife: A versatile knife for everyday tasks, though not quite as versatile as the chef’s knife given its shorter length. Can be used for slicing meats or chopping smaller vegetables.

• Peeling/Paring Knife: The small-but-mighty paring knife can be used for precision tasks such as peeling, trimming and coring vegetables and fruits.

Leading specialty retailer of kitchenware, Simply Kitchen, provides an array of essential kitchen tools that perfectly compliment the modern day kitchen.