How many knives do you own? How many do you use? Chances are you've got a drawerful and not one is ever sharp enough for what you're trying to do. And every time a housewares catalog arrives in the mail, you look at all those pictures of knife sets ($300 and up) and dream of the kind of cooking you could do with those expensive, shiny beauties.

Stop right there. A good cook doesn't need a set of 7, 9, or 11 knives, and she certainly doesn't need to spend a fortune on them. Three good, well-cared-for knives will handle almost all kitchen tasks: A chef's knife will do the slicing, chopping, and mincing, a paring knife will handle peeling and detailed cutting, and a serrated knife will slice through tomatoes and bread. That's all. Keep them in good shape (see sidebars on care and storage) and they'll serve you well for a long time.

Here's another surprise: It's smarter to mix brands and price ranges. "There's an incredible range of knives to choose from, and the most expensive is not always the best," says Jacques Pepin, one of the great masters of French cooking technique and theory.

The knife that should be of highest quality is the chef's knife. This all-purpose utensil will be used the most, so it's worth the investment. Also called a French knife, the chef's knife has a heavy, wide blade that is anywhere from 8 to 14 inches long. Besides being the best at chopping, it can be used to slice through tough rinds and tendons. The flat side of the blade can be used to crush garlic and transfer ingredients from the cutting board to the pan.

Shop around to see which knife feels most comfortable in your hand. The weight of the blade should do most of the work, but it shouldn't be so heavy that it will tire your hand over an extended period of time. The most commonly used chef's knives are the 8- and 10-inch models, but choose what feels like the most natural extension of your hand.

A paring knife doesn't have to be expensive— just easy to handle. Look for a blade between two and four inches long, a sharp point for cutting into things, and a flat edge, not a curved blade. Fancy parers with curved blades are designed for carving decorative markings and grooves into vegetables and fruits, not a task most home cooks do.

A serrated knife has a thin, narrow blade with a sawtooth edge. Its teeth can "bite" into food, making it useful for slicing bread and soft foods such as tomatoes and pastries. Serrated knives are available in varying lengths, but a longer, 8- or 10-inch blade is most versatile. It's not necessary to spend a lot of money on a serrated knife, especially since it can't be resharpened. Once it finally dulls, you'll need to get a new one.

Even though these three basics will handle everything, you may want to add two more to your collection eventually— a utility knife and a carving knife (handy for Thanksgiving, of course). A utility knife is smaller than a chef's knife but larger than a paring knife; it has a thin five- to seven-inch blade. Some cooks find this size more comfortable in the hand, and it's capable of chopping and slicing smaller foods.

Blades should be made of high-carbon stainless steel. "It sharpens well and holds its edge longer than the original carbon-steel knives," says Pepin. "You want the knife to be hard enough to perform but soft enough to be sharpened."

The strength of a chef's knife mainly depends on whether the metal blade extends through the entire length of the handle. If it does, the knife is one continuous piece, which also means that it will be well balanced, since the metal in the handle offsets the weight of the metal blade. If the blade ends halfway through the handle, the knife is susceptible to breaking in two over time.

Wood has a good feel and you'll find it on many higher-quality knives. Smooth plastic handles can become slippery when in contact with grease or water, creating a greater chance of injury. Most manufacturers make several lines to provide a range of handle materials and sizes.

Finally, the safest knife is a sharp one. A sharp knife does the work for you and makes chopping and slicing satisfying, even therapeutic. A dull knife makes you work harder, and kitchen tasks seem messy, difficult, and frustrating. And because you're exerting more force and energy, there's a greater chance the knife will slip out of control. On the following pages, you'll find information on sharpening and storing knives.

The Three Basics: Victorinox 3 1/4-inch paring knife, $5.75; www.swissarmy.comfor store locations. Wusthof-Trident Classic eight-inch chef's knife, $70; www.wusthof.com for store locations. Victorinox eight-inch serrated bread knife, $29; www.swissarmy.com.

The extras: In addition to the three basics, a carving knife and a utility knife might be a useful part of your collection. Forschner 10-inch slicer, $25; www.swissarmy.com. Global five-inch utility knife, $43.50; available at Broadway Panhandler, www.broadwaypanhandler.com.