SHUN CUTLERY BLOG: KNIFE KNOWLEDGE

What You Didn’t Know You Could Do With Kitchen Shears

What can kitchen shears be used for? A lot more than most home cooks realize.

Kitchen shears are one of the most overlooked precision tools in the kitchen. Many cooks own a pair, keep them in a drawer, and reach for them only when plastic packaging refuses to cooperate. Meanwhile, knives become the default for nearly every task, even when another tool might handle the job more efficiently or with greater control.

Cooking with kitchen shears is about choosing the right tool for the work at hand. Their cutting action relies on leverage rather than slicing, which makes them especially effective for tasks that involve resistance, irregular shapes, or ingredients that don’t sit neatly on a cutting board. Used thoughtfully, kitchen shears reduce friction in everyday prep and help cooking feel more fluid and intuitive.

In this guide, we’ll explore what kitchen shears can be used for, how their cutting action complements knife work, and why they deserve a place alongside knives as an everyday precision companion in a well-equipped kitchen.

Poultry is one of the clearest examples of how kitchen shears simplify prep.

Working with whole or bone-in birds often means cutting through joints, small bones, and layers of skin. Kitchen shears are designed for this kind of work. Their closing action applies steady pressure while keeping the cut contained, which helps the process feel controlled from start to finish.

Removing the backbone for spatchcocking is a natural fit for shears. They move cleanly along each side of the bird, then transition easily to separating wings, portioning thighs and drumsticks, or trimming excess skin. The work stays close to the hand, and each cut feels deliberate and predictable.

What many cooks appreciate most is how composed the process feels. Poultry prep becomes a sequence of clear, manageable steps, supported by a tool that’s well matched to the task.

Beyond poultry, kitchen shears are especially useful for everyday meat prep.

Trimming fat, connective tissue, or uneven edges is often less about precision slicing and more about control. Kitchen shears allow you to work close to the ingredient, making small, intentional cuts without constant repositioning. The motion feels contained, which helps trimming stay neat and efficient.

Shears are also well suited for portioning proteins, particularly bone-in cuts or meats that don’t sit flat on a board. Instead of adjusting the ingredient to suit the tool, the tool adapts easily to the shape of the food. The result is a process that feels steady and predictable, even when the cut itself is not perfectly straight.

For many cooks, this is where kitchen shears quietly become part of the daily routine. They handle the practical work of prep cleanly, leaving knives to step in when longer or more refined cuts are needed.

Kitchen shears are especially useful for everyday vegetable and herb prep, where speed and control matter more than long, continuous cuts.

For herbs, shears allow you to work directly over a bowl, pan, or serving dish, keeping prep fluid and minimizing cleanup. Instead of moving back and forth between cutting board and pot, you can make small, precise cuts exactly where they’re needed.

They’re equally helpful for leafy greens. Trimming stems from kale or chard, cutting greens into manageable pieces, or making quick adjustments as you cook feels straightforward and contained. Because the cut happens between two blades, tender leaves are handled cleanly without excessive handling.

Shun Herb Shears are designed with these tasks in mind. In addition to sharp blades, they feature a built-in blade notch that makes it easy to strip herbs from their stems or cut through thicker herb bunches efficiently. It’s a small design detail that supports common prep moments and helps keep the process moving.

For everyday cooking, this kind of versatility is what makes shears easy to reach for again and again. They simplify familiar tasks without changing how you work in the kitchen.

Once kitchen shears become part of your regular prep, it’s easy to notice how often they solve small, practical problems as you cook. That same idea of usefulness is what shapes the design of Shun Multi-Purpose Shears, extending their role beyond cutting alone.

Shun Multipurpose Shears are built to handle a range of common kitchen tasks in one well-considered tool. Along with their primary role as cutting shears, they incorporate several integrated functions that support everyday cooking and prep.

In addition to sharp blades for food prep, they include a nutcracker, a jar opener, a bone notch for working through tougher joints, a lid lifter, and screwdriver tips for quick adjustments. Each feature is built into the structure of the shears, so it’s there when you need it and unobtrusive when you don’t.

What makes this approach effective is that it reflects how cooking actually happens. You’re already at the counter, already working with your hands, and small tasks tend to stack up. Having a single tool that can move easily from opening a jar to trimming poultry to making a quick adjustment keeps the process efficient and uninterrupted.

It’s this kind of thoughtful versatility that has earned Shun Multi-Purpose Shears broader recognition. They were described by the Today Show as the “Swiss Army knife of shears,” and were also named an Editor’s Choice in the Serious Eats 2025 Gear Awards. Not because they try to replace every tool in the kitchen, but because they handle a wide range of everyday tasks with clarity, purpose, and reliability.

Like any well-made kitchen tool, kitchen shears perform best when they’re cared for thoughtfully.

All Shun and Kai shears separate at the hinge, which makes thorough cleaning simple and effective. After working with proteins or seafood, taking them apart allows you to clean the blades and pivot area completely, helping maintain smooth operation and overall performance.

Hand washing is recommended. While it may be tempting to place shears in the dishwasher, repeated dishwasher cycles can dull the blades more quickly and affect the pivot over time. A quick wash by hand, followed by drying, helps preserve sharpness and keeps the shears working as intended.

With this kind of basic care, kitchen shears remain reliable, precise, and ready for daily use. It’s a small habit that supports long-term performance and ensures the tool continues to earn its place in the kitchen for years to come.

Kitchen shears often live at the edge of the kitchen, useful but overlooked. Yet when used with intention, they become one of the most versatile and confidence-building tools at the counter.

From poultry and seafood to herbs, greens, and everyday prep, shears handle tasks that benefit from control, leverage, and adaptability. They simplify work that doesn’t need long slices or careful presentation, and they support a more fluid rhythm in the kitchen.

When thoughtfully designed, as with Shun and Kai shears, they do even more. Integrated features extend their usefulness, and careful construction ensures they stand up to daily use. Over time, that reliability changes how often they’re reached for and how indispensable they feel.

Kitchen shears are not a replacement for knives. They’re a companion, designed to handle the moments where a different approach makes cooking easier, more efficient, and more enjoyable. Once they earn their place on the counter, they tend to stay there.