Kitchen Knives needed

M

mr_dove

Joined
Apr 12, 2004
Messages
90
I need to replace my crappy set of faberware knives with plastic handles.

I've looked around alot but there are so many choices that its gotten a little mind-boggling.

My current (cheap) set has lots of different knives that I never use. My wife and I have decided that we want a set with only knives that we'll actually use. Probably 3 knives (small, medium, large). The large knife needs to be a Santoku style, at least 7". The large knife will do about 90% of the work so it can probably cost a bit more. I have no preferences for the other two knives.

I'd probably put my price range here at about $80-120

I'd also like a small steak knife set to go along with the kitchen set. Not sure how important it is that steak knives be serrated. Most steak knives are but not all.

Please offer me some advice to narrow the field a bit.
 
Check out the Forschner (Victorinox) kitchen knives. Very good prices and very good reviews. Seem to be the best economy knife out there for kitchen
 
I love my Global chef's knife. I have three Globals but this gets the most use.

I also have a Henckels chef's knife and it is good but the Global is better.

Globals are made of incredible steel. We chop chicken bones with ours all the time. Constantly as we feed the dog chopped raw chicken backs every day. The knives hold a great edge. They are very thin, a good attribute in a foodprep knife, but incredibly strong. No broken tips even, ever. They are as sharp as any knife I've ever used and they stay that way.

They are also very neat looking as if they are made from one big piece of steel including the handle (they are not, the handle is made separately but it looks like handle and blade is all a piece).
 
Shann said:
Check out the Forschner (Victorinox) kitchen knives. Very good prices and very good reviews. Seem to be the best economy knife out there for kitchen
Click to expand...

DITTO! Great knives at a great price.

Paul
 
Check out Kershaw Shun (100.00+), Henkles(100.00+), etc for the santoku.
Spyderco has a santoku with MBS26 steel for about 40.00 (I have heard it quoted by the maker as 59-60Rc).

Do not buy a cheap <30.00 Santoku. I had one. I have the Spyderco on order and will let you know when I get it if I remember.

What you really need in the kitchen is a large (santoku or chef), a medium (4" utility) and a smaller paring knife. That's all I ever use.

Spyderco makes a 4" serrated utility for <20, and an inexpensive paring knife also, both from the same MBS26 so it will be interesting to see how it performs.

Spend the big bucks on the big knife since you will use abuse it much more than the others.

P.S. I never use a bread knife. (Any sharp serrated blade would do, even a cheapie).
 
I have a set of JA Henckels Fine Edge Pro. Great knives for price, I have a set of 6 that included the wood block - all for $100. It includes an 8" chef's knife, serrated bread knife, 5" (utility) knife, boning knife (which I rarely use), a small pearing knife and a steel. Since you don't want the whole set, look into maybe getting some of them seperatly (maybe not end up being cheaper though).

Will
 
The handmade kitchen knives available from Watanabe Blade surpass any mass-manufactured product that I am aware of.

If you don't mind non-stainless steel, they are definately the way to go.

I picked up a 4" chef's knife from them about 4 months ago and it is great. Light and comfortable to use, reasonably priced, and perfect for the smaller meals that I usually prepare. I'm usually cooking for 2 or 3 at most, so a larger knife isn't neccessary.

If it matters, the knives are very attractive. The have a wrought iron matrix with a laminated steel cutting portion and a raw forged surface. The steel is run very hard, and cuts breathtakingly well.

I can honestly say that I have never (in 5 or so years of being into knives) encountered a knife that was as sharp or cut as well as this one does. Not even close.

Shipping is quick, and Mr. Watanabe is a very good guy to deal with. I strongly recommend that you take a look at their knives.

http://watanabeblade.com/english/index.htm
 
The Spyderco Kitchen knives are probably the best bang for the buck. I would avoid Henkels and Wuesthof. They are not bad but tend to be overpriced. The Japanese make probably the best kitchen knives period, both in absolute terms as well as value for money. Masahiro has some good, resonably priced knives. Global is nice but already much more expensive than Spyderco or the cheaper lines from Masahiro. For that price I would rather go with a VG-10 blade from Shun or Al Mar.
 
ok I dabble in dealing in kitchen knives. Over in the Uk there are better knives for the price of vitorinox but it seems in the US they are best bang for buck

I really don't like global knives but it seems I'm in the minority
 
Might want to check out this article/survey of surveys on

Kitchen Knives
http://www.consumersearch.com/www/kitchen/kitchen_knives/fullstory.html

The short answer is if you want the "best" as judged by these reviews - then it's -

Wusthof-Trident Grand Prix or Classic
(*est. $170 for three)

Running second in some very vaulted company (read high priced)
Forschner Victorinox Fibrox
(*est. $80 for three)

It is interesting that despite being some of the most inexpensive kitchen and butchering knives on the market Victorinox/Forschner are very highly regarded - and not just because they are cheap and easily available -

Although it's a common thing to say that "you get what you pay for" -
sometimes price may not be an indication
as there are those rare bargains/great value for money that we all hunt for, and hopefully cherish -

QUOTE:
we found more prolific enthusiasm for the Forschner/Victorinox Fibrox series of stamped knives (*est. $80 for a set of three). In an interview with Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine, chef Wayne Nish says the “Victorinox knives appear to be designed by chefs for chefs.” Other reviewers agree. Victorinox makes the best stamped knives, and you can get a set of three Victorinox knives for the price of one Cutco blade. We’ve included Victorinox knives in ConsumerSearch Fast Answers.
UNQUOTE

and

QUOTE:
It's commonly accepted that the best knives are forged—hammered into shape from a single piece of metal. An alternative method is to stamp them out of a sheet of metal; this process produces a lighter, thinner blade without a lip between the handle and blade (called a bolster on forged knives). Many cheaper knives are made this way, and reviewers say they can feel flimsy and hard to control. Forschner/Victorinox (*est. $80 for three) stamped knives are the exception. In side-by-side tests, experts are amazed at how well these perform next to forged knives that are three times as expensive. In a Cook's Illustrated review, Forschner/Victorinox tops three categories; chef's knives under $50, paring knives and bread knives.
UNQUOTE


The Victorinox/Forschner 3 1/4" paring knife is one of the very best kitchen knives regardless of price:
Vic_paring.jpg

very, very sharp due to its thin blade and great geometry -
the fact they can be found easily for under $4 - doesn't hurt either :)

--
Vincent

http://UnknownVT2005.cjb.net
http://UnknownVT.cjb.net
http://UnknownVincent.cjb.net
 
We have kitchen knives by Falkkniven, A.G. Russell and Spyderco....they are all excellent...the Falk's are not cheap but they're worth every dollar.

We also have tried ceramics...they are ok, but the tips WILL break off of ALL of them...no matter what you try to do to prevent it.
 
My spyderco santoku is stellar. I can make sheets of paper out of a tomato consistently. The serrated utility kitchen knives are real handy for steak, crusty bread, and hard to cut things like pineapple. The paring knife is great too.
I love all of my spyderco kitchen knives and you can't beat the price.

N2
 
another vote for the Victorinox/Forschners. i bought my wife the 8" Chef's knife and the 3 piece paring knife set. she loves all of them, and i can't get enough of hearing my wife blab about knives!

they cut like crazy, hold an edge well, come razor sharp and best of all.... they're dishwasher safe! some of those fancy-pants brands tell you specifically to hand wash only. that's fine for a lot of folks, but i can't trust my wife or myself to scrub up that kitchen knife right away. we tend to leave them lying in the sink for a day or so before it gets put in the dishwasher.

abe m.
 
Now take this with a lump of salt, since I'm a guy who for years used those $20 sets that never need sharpening. Not too long ago I bought my wife a 6" Chef - AG Russell's VG-10 Core Damascus Kitchen Knife - because I thought she'd like it because it looked nice ("pretty"). Well..that thing cuts like a hot knife through butter. After all those years hacking away (it's funny what you get used to) I went all out and the Santoku and paring knife, along with the 6" Chef (a solid three-knife combo)...makes it so much fun to cut in the kitchen that food prep has increased! Those three can be had for a total of about $225. I really don't know enough about kitchen knives to say much BUT I'm pleased as can be with those (and they DO look nice).
 
My suggestion is that you take your budget for the "set" and apply it to one good knife. Then, at least, you will one first rate knife and you can continue to use others. Your budget would even allow the purchase of a 210mm or 240mm Japanese gyuto which will outperfrom any chef knife from any other country. I think it would be a wiser way to use the money.
 
Every kitchen knife is supposed to have a "specialized" purpose - most of us try to do everything with one or very few knives - not much wrong with that - I do that too.

If one prepares sashimi - then obviously a good purpose built Japanese knife is going to be superior in just about every way one can think of -
but use that same knife for more general purpose cutting like a Chef's knife - then it's a whole 'nother story, even if the Japanese knife is "sharper" by a long way.......

Many people have adopted the Santoku as a do-it-all kitchen knife - to good success - but remember the saying about "jack-of-all-trades".

Before the Santoku became fashionable the advice was to use a shortish chef's knife like a 6" for the "do-it-all".

Anyway we had a very informative discussion about Santokus previously - here's the link (yes, that's right - I couldn't even spell the word :o -
but the thread does feature Rachael Ray :D )

Santuko (kitchen) Knives

--
Vincent

http://UnknownVT2005.cjb.net
http://UnknownVT.cjb.net
http://UnknownVincent.cjb.net
 
Victronic for plain edge, but get at least one spyderco utility in serrated edge. For steak knives, you can pick these up cheaply in thrift and estate sales.
 
I tried out the Spyderco Santoku last night (Just got it yesterday!). Great slicer and chopper. Best quality knife I have had the pleasure of using! I had fun cutting tomatos by throwing them at the knife and splitting them ;) I also was able to push cut my steak into slices to prepare it for the salad!! It does not have a scalloped edge and sticky food will hang a bit, but that doesn't bother me, and that way I can use it until there's no blade left.

Now, I agree that a laser thin Santoku is not a do-all (I wouldn't hack at bones with it), but if you have a 4" utility (PE or SE), a paring knife, and a santoku, all you really need is a cheap serrated knife for bread/bagels (Utility again if it is SE), and a heavy- dirt cheap chef knife for hacking, bones, and dealing with frozen stuff in a hurry.

I heartily recommend the Spyderco knives, as they are extremely high quality for the price. (about 40 bucks for the Santoku, less than 20 for the others.).

I agree with Vincent that the vic/forsh kitchens are a good deal, but man this spyderco (for 10-15.00 more) is a blast to work with!!! Please consider it.

P.S. Sal has quoted (In the spyderco.com forum) that the spyderco MBS26 steel is hardened to Rc59-60, so after some time, I will tell you how it holds up.
 
klattman said:
I tried out the Spyderco Santoku last night (Just got it yesterday!). Great slicer and chopper. Best quality knife I have had the pleasure of using! I had fun cutting tomatos by throwing them at the knife and splitting them ;) I also was able to push cut my steak into slices to prepare it for the salad!! It does not have a scalloped edge and sticky food will hang a bit, but that doesn't bother me, and that way I can use it until there's no blade left.

Now, I agree that a laser thin Santoku is not a do-all (I wouldn't hack at bones with it), but if you have a 4" utility (PE or SE), a paring knife, and a santoku, all you really need is a cheap serrated knife for bread/bagels (Utility again if it is SE), and a heavy- dirt cheap chef knife for hacking, bones, and dealing with frozen stuff in a hurry.

I heartily recommend the Spyderco knives, as they are extremely high quality for the price. (about 40 bucks for the Santoku, less than 20 for the others.).

I agree with Vincent that the vic/forsh kitchens are a good deal, but man this spyderco (for 10-15.00 more) is a blast to work with!!! Please consider it.

P.S. Sal has quoted (In the spyderco.com forum) that the spyderco MBS26 steel is hardened to Rc59-60, so after some time, I will tell you how it holds up.
Click to expand...


You can get the Spyderco santoku for $25 if you watch on ebay. I also got the utility knives for $12 and the paring for $10.

N2
 
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