EDC's that work well in the kitchen?

[cbach8tw]

Ag russell used to make a folding kithcen knife, Japanese style.

 

[mooshisho]

Opinel! Plenty of sizes to choose from and the blade is nice and slicey.

 

[Insipid Moniker]

I carry a small fixed blade with a clip on the sheath. I haven't found a folder that could hold up to the side to side twisting when shucking clams n oysters on the fly, granted they were cheap folders lol.

Try a Benchmade Adamas. Won't do much other food prep well, though.

 

[ScottyE]

Spyderco resilience
Spyderco military

I love cooking with folders and those two are my favorites

 

[ScottyE]

Higo shun personal folding steak knife

 

[cEdge]

Kershaw Junkyard Dog. Nice sized FFG with a blade shape reminiscent of a santuko knife.

 

[Barman1]

Ag russell used to make a folding kitchen knife, Japanese style.

Yes they do. It's called the Santoku folder.
I compared its performance (in the kitchen) with hundreds of folders and found the only one that surpassed it was my large Lum Chinese.
It's all about ergonomics and relation of the knife to the work and prep surface. Any sharp folding knife can cut vegetables... but very few can do it as efficiently as a purpose made kitchen knife.

 

[Miao]

A knife guard, magnetic or plastic, will run you about $5. That means you can bring something that's not just a handicapped paring knife, too. And if you're a chef you know that just about any chef's knife will outperform a pocket knife by orders of magnitude. Otherwise I guess an Opinel is the best of the worst.

I'm always amazed how a forum full of knife enthusiasts finds reasons to bring the wrong tool for the job into the kitchen.

 

[Brew-Jitsu]

Hard to beat the Spyderco Endura - It's slicey enough for vegetables and has a longer length than most, making it better suited for larger food items. And it's in VG-10, which is great for the kitchen.

 

[Insipid Moniker]

A knife guard, magnetic or plastic, will run you about $5. That means you can bring something that's not just a handicapped paring knife, too. And if you're a chef you know that just about any chef's knife will outperform a pocket knife by orders of magnitude. Otherwise I guess an Opinel is the best of the worst.

I'm always amazed how a forum full of knife enthusiasts finds reasons to bring the wrong tool for the job into the kitchen.

Because the right tool for the job is expensive, fragile, legally and practically difficult to transport and almost impossible to have on you all the time? I love nice kitchen cutlery, and most of the stuff in my kitchen will blow every camp knife or folder out of the water for it's intended use, but I also have a number of folders and camp knives that will cut circles around the stuff I encounter in the average kitchen.

 

[ScottyE]

A knife guard, magnetic or plastic, will run you about $5. That means you can bring something that's not just a handicapped paring knife, too. And if you're a chef you know that just about any chef's knife will outperform a pocket knife by orders of magnitude. Otherwise I guess an Opinel is the best of the worst.

I'm always amazed how a forum full of knife enthusiasts finds reasons to bring the wrong tool for the job into the kitchen.

For me it's just fun to cook with folders.

 

[Miao]

Because the right tool for the job is expensive, fragile, legally and practically difficult to transport and almost impossible to have on you all the time? I love nice kitchen cutlery, and most of the stuff in my kitchen will blow every camp knife or folder out of the water for it's intended use, but I also have a number of folders and camp knives that will cut circles around the stuff I encounter in the average kitchen.

The 'difficult to transport' is the only argument that makes a tiny bit of sense, and that's not even an issue in any realistic scenario. A simple Victorinox 8 or 10 inch chef knife plus guard is less than $40, and perfectly durable for any task in the kitchen. When, unless you're going to fly or to court, would you not be able to slip that into a bag? And how likely are you to end up in a kitchen in those cases? I understand you might not want to bring it camping, but if you're going somewhere where you might end up cooking it's no trouble to bring that kind of setup at all.

I certainly do, for example when visiting friends or relatives for a weekend. This Thursday there's a likelihood I'll be dicing 5 pounds of root vegetables, and you'd better believe I'll bring a 10 inch chef's knife instead of hamstringing myself with a 3 inch folder. Some folders, like Opinels, can make decent paring knives, but at least 80% of cutting in the kitchen is chef knife work. And the characteristics that define a chef's knife - 8-10 inch length, flat grind, thin stock, balance around the bolster - don't exist in folders or camp knives.

 

[Insipid Moniker]

The 'difficult to transport' is the only argument that makes a tiny bit of sense, and that's not even an issue in any realistic scenario. A simple Victorinox 8 or 10 inch chef knife plus guard is less than $40, and perfectly durable for any task in the kitchen. When, unless you're going to fly or to court, would you not be able to slip that into a bag? And how likely are you to end up in a kitchen in those cases? I understand you might not want to bring it camping, but if you're going somewhere where you might end up cooking it's no trouble to bring that kind of setup at all.

I certainly do, for example when visiting friends or relatives for a weekend. This Thursday there's a likelihood I'll be dicing 5 pounds of root vegetables, and you'd better believe I'll bring a 10 inch chef's knife instead of hamstringing myself with a 3 inch folder. Some folders, like Opinels, can make decent paring knives, but at least 80% of cutting in the kitchen is chef knife work. And the characteristics that define a chef's knife - 8-10 inch length, flat grind, thin stock, balance around the bolster - don't exist in folders or camp knives.

Why would I carry a bag with me wherever I go? And, personally, I don't fancy getting arrested on the off chance the bag gets searched. I often end up in kitchens when I don't plan to be, otherwise I can bring a knife roll, and as for durability, try dropping your chef knife onto concrete. Most of my folders and camp knives can handle a drop just fine, my kitchen knives are made to perform and most of them stay far away from things like frozen foods and chicken bones, much less cement.

You're making a ridiculous strawman argument. No one here is talking about chopping 5 pounds of root vegetables with a folder, we're discussing tools that will do an adequate job in unexpected circumstances. Really, unless you actually carry a chef's knife with you all the time your entire argument is just silly.

There's also the minor point that there are, indeed, folders and camp knives that have thin stock, flat grinds (though I prefer convex on a kitchen knife), and balance around the bolster. The length is the only thing they lack from your list and that's the main characteristic that makes a chef's knife difficult to transport.

 

[stickymeat]

I would probly use a spyderco chokwe

 

[roosterscrow]

Sorry but pocket knives can't do this

[video=youtube;iN0CuN7jCk4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iN0CuN7jCk4&index=11&list=UUkE72g0z7rtIEX1YJwB1B4w[/video]


Perhaps you could wrap a nice value priced gyuto up and store it in your trunk for those times when you need to help out in someone kitchen.

 

[pinnah]

I'm always amazed how a forum full of knife enthusiasts finds reasons to bring the wrong tool for the job into the kitchen.

And I'm always amazed that on a forum full of knife enthusiasts, no matter what the question is, no matter what possible knife or cutting task is discussed, you can always count on a few people who insist that the only right choice is a hyper specialized knife.

The OP is specifically asking about an EDC knife. Maybe I'm alone on this, but for me, an EDC knife needs to work acceptably well at any knife related task I need to face on a daily basis. The range of task that I use my EDC knife for is so broad, that I personally accept that any EDC knife is going to be a compromise. I'm certainly not going to be carrying or caching kitchen knives or even folding kitchen knives.

For me, I find a blade around 3" in length and flat or convex ground is the most versatile. The Opinel #9 Inox is my most commonly carried knife and I really like it's blade shape for general kitchen, eating use. No, it's not a chef's knife and yes, it's not as efficient when chopping vegetables but again, I'm not carrying a large fixed blade around with me.

 

[jackknife]

I recently made a salad for dinner using just a Higonokami. It went though the veggies like they weren't there.

My Sardinian resolza is ted as a cheese and fruit knife on a very regular basis.

 

[roosterscrow]

And I'm always amazed that on a forum full of knife enthusiasts, no matter what the question is, no matter what possible knife or cutting task is discussed, you can always count on a few people who insist that the only right choice is a hyper specialized knife.

The OP is specifically asking about an EDC knife. Maybe I'm alone on this, but for me, an EDC knife needs to work acceptably well at any knife related task I need to face on a daily basis. The range of task that I use my EDC knife for is so broad, that I personally accept that any EDC knife is going to be a compromise. I'm certainly not going to be carrying or caching kitchen knives or even folding kitchen knives.

For me, I find a blade around 3" in length and flat or convex ground is the most versatile. The Opinel #9 Inox is my most commonly carried knife and I really like it's blade shape for general kitchen, eating use. No, it's not a chef's knife and yes, it's not as efficient when chopping vegetables but again, I'm not carrying a large fixed blade around with me.

I love my opinels and agree that they make nice pocket, lunch box, or even kitchen utility knives, but quantity food prep requires a specialized blade if it is expected to be accomplished in a efficient and timely manner.


Do you remember Primitive Pete from back in your school days

[video=youtube;sd2PNHysj7A]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sd2PNHysj7A[/video]

 

[tchapman414]

Higo shun personal folding steak knife

This is a great idea; I've considered one myself for the same reason. Another good option that can double as a great general use EDC is a Spyderco Police3 G10. The blade is similar to an Endura, but longer like the Military; though, I prefer the narrow blade of the Police3 over the Military for this purpose.

 

[trevitrace]

While I like the Endura for kitcheny use I prefer to use the Stretch(in Super Blue) due to the handle shape as well as that particular steel...gets back to stupid sharp with minimal effort in my experience.