Kitchen knives

Michael_Aos

Michael_Aos

Joined
Jan 25, 2001
Messages
1,639
I picked up a 14pc set (assorted larger knives, steak knives & block) at Wal-Mart for $9.95. It's not so terrible, but it's nothing special either.

When I actually want to DO something I tend to pull out my D2 TTKK. I hate having to pull it out of my little display case every time I want to use it, and I can't bear to just toss it in my "utensils" drawer.

I don't think I need a $350 dollar Henkels set. Probably not even a $200 A.G. Russel set. I've been eyeing a Camillus 8pc for $135, or Kershaw 7pc for $150.

Anything I should especially be looking for? Are sets the way to go, or do you wind up with 5 knives out of seven that you never actually use?

Mike
 
Take a look at the Forcshner (sp?) line from Victorinox. They can be had in sets,or bought as individual pieces. Great knives at a great price.

Paul
 
Most sets that I have seen don't have a particularly optimal assortment of knives. The primary knives that I use are:
8-10" Chef's knife with thin blade
6-8" Secondary Chef's knife with thin blade
5" boning knife with straight blade
4" Japanese vegetable knife
3" Paring knife.
I own hundreds of kitchen knives, but I could work very efficiently with the above types.
 
I'm 31 and just now really getting into / learning to cook (recently divorced and my wife never let me "mess up her kitchen").

It might be a little premature for me to spend a lot on knives. I'm leaning toward something along the lines of a 6" chefs knife from George Tichbourne.

Mike
 
I use only 1 knife in the kitchen 95% of the time and it is this one by Ryusen Knives http://www.bladegallery.com/knives/knife.asp?knifeid=333&pics=small&alt=one
knife339.jpg

a just as good but not so $$$ is this one from Kansui Ink Pattern Kitchen Knives
knife333.jpg

Sweet
 
As a Chef, I'm asked this question daily.

Most Standard sets contain knives you will never use.

Make a list of your most common tasks; this will define which knives you will need.

The most commonly used knives are the Chef, Paring & bread knives. This does vary.

I often suggest an 8"-10" Chef knife And 3"-3.5" Paring Knife to start.

To complete your set I like an 8"-9" Bread knife, 5" Semi-Stiff Boning knife, 12" Granton Slicer, and A 6" Chef knife, as a Utility knife.

The brands I recommend are Messermeister, Trident and Forschner.

Between the brands there are minor differences. Your major choice comes down to either forged or stamped. At this point it becomes totally subjective.


Wolf.
 
Originally posted by The Wolf
As a Chef, I'm asked this question daily.

Most Standard sets contain knives you will never use.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I was starting to suspect that. I've had this $10.00 set for probably a couple months. I've used the steak knives a couple times and the large (8"?) Chefs knife a few times. That's it! Otherwise I always pull out my TTKK when I'm about to "go to town" preparing a meal.

Haven't seen a website for Murray Carter, so I guess it's probably down to George Tichbourne, Wusthoff, and Kansui.

Mike
 
Michael,

One thing that no one has mentioned is comfort and feel. Have you handled any of these blades yet? Will you want to hold a particular knife in your hand for an hour or longer to prep your food or is it uncomfortable fairly soon after use?

Most cooks have a large callus built up at the base of their index finger from using their knives constantly. Part of that is because most of the knives available have sharp, straight corners at the top of the blade, where the handle and blade meet. This cuts into your hand and is irriatating until you get used to it and build up your callous. I don't believe that this is too bad with the cheaper stamped type knives, just because of the way they are manufactured. But the more expensive forged knives are most all this way.

Are your hands Large, small, or average sized? That willalso make a small difference in your handling of the knife.

Wolf mentioned Messermeister knives. I feel that they are highly underrated and overlooked by many people. They round the backs of their knives slightly, so they are more comfortable, and they are slightly deeper in blade height so you have more knuckle clearance from the cutting board. They are of the same basic quality and price points as henckels and wustof-trident.

Take a look at the foolwing sights, if you haven't already, they both specialize in kitchen cutlery and have a large selection of different brands of good quality knives.

http://www.knifemerchant.com/
http://www.pcd.com/

Personally, I prefer Kifemerchant, but to each his own, they are both good, reputable companies. Good luck.

Take care.

Andy
 
Any comments on Chicago Cutlery as a brand? I believe they're higher carbon steel than those mentioned. I've had a set for 20 years or so, and am pretty happy with them, though you do have to keep up on them to keep them sharp. It may be time to start replacing some pieces, though.

TiA,

-- PG
 
Michael, I know the feeling about the TTKK. I have a D2 one also and can hardly resist the impulse to use it on everything in the kitchen. The blade is a bit thick for delicate work, but whacking up carcasses for stock is about as much fun as you can have with a knife in your hand :D.

I am not a professional chef, but I am a dedicated amateur. And I love my kitchen knives. But if I had to pick one -- and only one -- for general use I'd go with my Santuko.

Yes, yes, the general advise is to start with an 8" chef's knife and a small parer. And that's true. Those two knives will see you through 85-90% of your kitchen work. And if you're good with a knife you can skip the parer.

But the Santuko will do everything that those two will do and then some. Long blade like the chef's knife, wide enough to be used as a cleaver (and really good for crushing garlic cloves with the flat of the blade) and thin enough for delicate vegetable work.

But if you're not going to constrain yourself to just one, go nuts and get the Tichbournes. I know I want a set just to have them ;).

Oh, and get Jacques Pepin's "Complete Techniques" for a good overview of classic kitchen knifework (and a method for dicing onions that is so cool you'll want to do it in front of an audience).

Chad
 
Michael,

One interesting option that you have is to go up to the Spyderco outlet store in Golden. Your primary knives will indeed be a chef's knife (or Japanese equivalent) and a paring knife. For a thin blade with a top-of-the-line steel you can't beat Spyderco. In their outlet store you may also find some varieties that they got from Japanese manufacturers and decided wouldn't fit their marketing plan. When I was there last they had some knives with AUS-10 alloy blades as well as MBS-26 alloy. Be sure to get non-serrated blades for your chef's knife and paring knife.
 
Henckels has an International line of forged knives that IMO are excellent values when they are on sale, which is about half the time. They look similar to the Four Star line but are made in Spain not Germany. Kohl's and Macy's are always running open stock sales on these knives at 40% off. Since the list price is about a third lower than the German equivalents this is quite a bargain.

phantom4
 
If you want a good set of kitchen knives that don't cost an arm and a leg
look at the Ontario made "Old Hickory" line of carbon steel knives,

They take a good edge easily and are very user friendly. Just wash and
dry them after use and they will last for years. My wife has a paring
knife that is the first one she grabs that is an Old Hickory we bought
36 years ago. I can't tell you how many times I've put a new handle
on it but it keep on truckin'
 
I agree with Tightwad. My grandmother has several of the four inch Old Hickory paring knives that she inhereted from her mother about 25 years ago that she uses daily. The blades have been worn to down to half the thickness and width of a new one and they still work just fine and thats after 25 years of her using them daily and an unknown amount of use from her mother.
 
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