Many people use lemon slices rather than twists in their cocktails out of convenience, but adding a proper lemon twist is easy if you have a channel knife.

Channel knives are hand-held tools that have a flat head with a V-shaped notch in the center for digging into the peel of citrus fruit and separating pith-free strips of zest.

To use one, all you have to do is press the notch of the knife into the peel and pull it across the surface horizontally, causing the zest to come out of the top of the knife.

Start toward the top of your fruit (or vegetable) and pull your knife in a spiral, turning the produce in your hand around at the same time.

Channel knives are most often used for peeling strips of lemon twists, but they also work on any kind of citrus and soft fruit or vegetable, like cucumbers, celery, and carrots.