Home Travel You’ve been using a fork all wrong! Etiquette expert William Hanson reveals the do’s and don’ts of handling cutlery (and why he’s unimpressed with the way Americans use it)

You’ve been using a fork all wrong! Etiquette expert William Hanson reveals the do’s and don’ts of handling cutlery (and why he’s unimpressed with the way Americans use it)

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You've been holding and using a fork wrong. But luckily, etiquette expert William Hanson (above) has made two now-viral videos on TikTok in which he gives a master class on fork handling.

You’ve been holding (and using) a fork wrong.

But luckily, etiquette expert. William Hanson He has made two videos now viral on TikTok in which he teaches master classes on handling the fork. These lessons are head and shoulders above the rest.

Guillermo reveals in a clip that the correct way to hold a fork is to grip it with your non-dominant hand, with your index finger extended downward on the fork, “stopping just short of the bridge.”

He adds: ‘Make sure you keep the handle tucked into the palm of your hand and not sticking out. And that’s how you hold a fork.

In a separate video, William emphasizes that one of the “most important don’ts in British gastronomic etiquette is turning your fork over to eat.” That is, pick up food with the tines facing up and use the fork as a spoon.

You’ve been holding (and using) a fork wrong. But luckily, etiquette expert William Hanson (above) has made two now-viral videos on TikTok in which he gives a master class on fork handling.

Above the rest: William reveals that the correct way to hold a fork is to grip it with your non-dominant hand, with your index finger extended down the fork.

William adds:

Above the rest: William reveals that the correct way to hold a fork is to grip it with your non-dominant hand, with your index finger extended down the fork. He adds, “Make sure you keep the handle tucked in the palm of your hand.”

William says, “Always have the tines of your fork pointing down when using a knife.”

Are there any foods that are acceptable to eat with the tines of the fork facing up? Peas, for example?

William told MailOnline Travel by email: ‘In British food, the fork is only turned upwards when held in the dominant hand, leaving the knife on the table. Foods such as pasta, risotto, curries and shepherd’s pie or cottage can be eaten like this. It is totally acceptable at casual dinners. Although often using a knife is also much easier for almost everything, as it gives extra grip to the food and prevents it from falling or splattering.

“Peas are eaten by sticking them into the tines of the fork, using the back of the knife to help push.”

Always have the tines of your fork pointing down when using a knife, says William

Always have the tines of your fork pointing downward when using a knife, says William

Aid! I Sexted My Boss by William Hanson and Jordan North is available now

Aid! I Sexted My Boss by William Hanson and Jordan North is available now

William said the British fork convention comes from a “habit over time,” adding that it has not yet caught on in the United States.

He said: “In America, they have a different style of eating, which they call ‘Zig Zag.’ This is where they start holding the knife and fork in the conventional way, cut a piece of food, then rest the knife on the top right of the plate, they turn the fork over and shift it to their right hand, then they stab the piece. They finish cutting and then eating. Then they put the fork back in their left hand, lower the tines, pick up again the knife and repeat. Exhausting.’

Reason for reflection for the United States.

And when the food is finished, how should you leave the knife and fork on the plate?

William said: “When you’re done, the key is for the cutlery to go together, signaling to the waiters that you’re done and ready to clear the plate once everyone else has finished too.”

‘In Britain, the correct angle is, imagining the cutlery as the hands of a clock, 6:30 pm. In the United States it is after 4:20 pm. Some European countries do it at 3.15. I don’t worry too much about the angle, as long as the cutlery is together, that’s all the staff look for.’

Aid! I sent a sexual message to my boss by William Hanson and Jordan North is available now (£20/CAN$42.95), published by Random Penguin House. For more information about Mr. Hanson, visit his Tik Tok and instagram profiles.

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