ChefTalk.com › ChefTalk Cooking Forums › Food & Equipment Reviews › Cooking Knife Reviews › what kind of knife do you have?
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

what kind of knife do you have?

post #1 of 200
7/1/07 at 2:38am
Thread Starter 
hey guys,

i just signed up today and i'm very excited to be here. i'm sure a thread to this effect has been done at one point or another, but i was wondering what kind of knife you guys use in your everyday cooking. whatever knife you use the most often.

for me, right now, i have an 8" shun classic chef's
Reply
post #2 of 200
7/1/07 at 2:41pm
I have had Wusthof forever, with a few pieces of Chicago Cutlery. Lost my knives this winter and just replaced them all. Purchased several Wusthofs and a 10" Shun chef's knife.
As soon as picked it up, knew I was a convert, used it a bit and had to have it.
Will pick up an inexpersive bread knife and couple of fillet knives. The fillet knives get "borrowed" a lot, by crew mwmbers, so just figure on replacing them.
Welcome!
Nan
Reply
post #3 of 200
7/1/07 at 2:54pm
Many of us have several brands, depending on the knife and the task. I have a Global 5" cook's knife; a set of Henckel's with a couple of knives I don't use much, a Kyocera paring knife, a Victorinox paring knife and some junky little $1 paring knives I use to open meat packages, etc. I supplemented the Henckel's set with a 7" santoku. After trying many brands, that one fit my hand best.

I recommend NOT buying sets unless every knife fits your hand, you will probably use all of them, or that you have money to waste. Buying knives as open-stock purchases means you'll buy what fits your hand, your budget and your purposes.
Moderator Emerita, Welcome Forum
***It is better to ask forgiveness than beg permission.***
Reply
post #4 of 200
7/1/07 at 3:33pm
I recommend a Japanese knife like the Tojiro DP F-809 240mm Gyuto knife, Japanese knives are very shard and hard, but are also thinner and lighter than Western style knives, this could be a con for you, for me though it wasn't it's a great knife for the price.
Reply
post #5 of 200
7/2/07 at 5:39am
I'm using a Mundial 10" chefs knife, Mundial flexi boning knife, Victorinox paring knife, and a Forchner Slicer. I also have an offset serreted knife also by Mundial. All my mundials have the white plastic sani handles. They're a PITA because they stain.


I'm considering moving up to a forged chefs knive. I think the extra weight will make things easier on the wrist. The bolster will take some getting used to though.
Reply
post #6 of 200
7/2/07 at 9:40am
I am still using 3 Sabatier knives that were part of a set I was given as a wedding present - many years ago!
Reply
post #7 of 200
7/2/07 at 11:04am
I use some Forschner and a 10" Henkels chef's knife. I have a Santoku from a maker whose name escapes me now but whose product are in a many restaurant supplie stores. Not a great knife but a good one.
more than taste fine
me eat it all the time
Reply
post #8 of 200
7/3/07 at 2:10am
Thread Starter 
tincook: i think that every cook should have a knife worthy of taking care of. it's like a car. it's used everyday. if you like the heft of a german knife, then a forged henckel or wusthof might be up your alley. the down side of a forged chef's knife is the fact that the bolster gets in the way if you ever want to sharpen your knife with a stone. the quality of stamped blades are getting better and better. they are also getting more expensive. look into japanese knives if you are looking for a thinner spine on the blade. they make cutting a bit easier. globals and shuns are probably the best selling japanese knives on the US market right now.

what i really want is a Hattori knife. i just can't get over the damascus look. but at the same time, i have to say, the handle shape on a shun is probably the best thing to happen to a knife since scalloped blades.
Reply
post #9 of 200
7/3/07 at 7:31am
All my mundials have the white plastic sani handles. They're a PITA because they stain.

Tincook, We have some of those knives for anyone to use at work as well. When they stain (I dont like it either) I use "BLOCK WHITE" (the stuff to clean cutting boards and table tops) and that makes the handles look like new.

My knives are Henckles as well, I like the "hefty" feel plus I have big hands it was a toss up between Henckle and Wustoff. The Globals I used were a bit light for me. But to each his own on the knife purchase. I purchased mine on an online auction individually and I thought the price was VERY reasonable. A NEW 10" Pro "S" knife for $48.00 plus shipping :smoking: I have a 2 Chef, Boning, Santuko, 2 Utility, paring, bread and a 3" Mundial birds beak. I kinda keep an "eye" on my knives after seeing a cook open a jar of Jalapenos with a 10" chef knife. Hmmm maybe that is why the point is broken off of most of the "kitchen's" knives. :eek:
Scott B
MISC

As far as the Kitchen goes, it is a long, long day that is never really over, you just go home at some point
Reply
post #10 of 200
7/3/07 at 10:11am
I dont think I will ever go back to a non japanese knife. the steel in japanese made knives are far superior compared to german knives, which means thinner edge so it will get sharperand stay sharper longer! Also I like the shape of japanese knives not counting them dam shuns! I hat the bely shuns have as well as the other german knives out there!
Reply
post #11 of 200
7/3/07 at 10:49am
Thread Starter 
really? i really like it. i mean, it facilitates the "rocking" and "gliding" motion when you cut stuff like scallions. the traditional gyutou has a tip that looks similar to a santoku where the spine of the blade and the edge of the blade meet mid point. this concerns me because it looks like it's going to crush what ever i cut rather than "glide" through it.

but i could be wrong. many people who swore by french shaped knives ended up going traditional japanese or with the santoku.
Reply
post #12 of 200
7/3/07 at 11:09am
the gyuto shape is much more like a french knife just with out the dam bolster! the santoku is a different shape than the gyuto but I keep them thin and sharp so there is no crushing i like the shuns they just missed on a few points so I wont own one besides there are better knives out there at a better price than the shuns and globals ! check out www.jck.com !
Reply
post #13 of 200
7/4/07 at 7:59am
I don't want my knives to feel neglected. I rotate between several Japanese knives, Chinese clevers, and Wustoff's depending on the mood I'm in and what I'm preparing.
Reply
post #14 of 200
7/5/07 at 3:32am
I like my victorinox 10" chef's for nearly everything. Good grip, decent weight, and feels good in my hand.

I've yet to find a condition that will make that thing slip in my hand either, that alone would be enough for me to stick with it for awhile.
Reply
post #15 of 200
7/5/07 at 7:52pm
Thread Starter 
i hear a lot of good things about the vitrinox fibrox from forchner. mainly that it feels good in the hand, it's cheap, and dishwasher safe.

but people also tell me that it's a pain to resharpen with a stone.

cook's illustrated swears by the knife though.
Reply
post #16 of 200
7/6/07 at 9:51am
I can tell you that it does well in all those places, but I've never put it in the dishwasher, so I couldn't tell you for that.

As for the stone, I haven't perfected my technique on that, so I couldn't tell you with any certainty if it is or is not a pain.
Reply
post #17 of 200
7/9/07 at 4:33pm
< Participant is not yet authorized to post links. >
Reply
post #18 of 200
7/9/07 at 7:48pm
The forschners respond well to stones for sharpening. Or crocksticks, even diamond stones, though those are too aggressive for most cases.

Phil
more than taste fine
me eat it all the time
Reply
post #19 of 200
7/10/07 at 6:13am
< Participant is not yet authorized to post links. >
Reply
post #20 of 200
7/10/07 at 8:15am
For 20 years, I was inseparable from my 11 1/2" Henckels chef knife. About 3 years ago, I decided to investigate Japanese knives as a possible addition to my collection. I went to MAC USA and talked with owner Harold Arimoto. For about an hour, we talked, held, and used knives from their different lines. We even cut and peeled fruit and veg. I now use my 8" MAC professional series dimpled chef knife almost exclusively.
Wisdom comes with age, but sometimes age comes alone.
Reply
post #21 of 200
7/10/07 at 7:36pm
Thread Starter 
i do enjoy using the japanese knives over european ones. the lack of bolster makes sharpening easier and the lightweight feel is really helpful in reducing fatigue when i have to slice 15 cups of scallions or something like that. however, i do recommend a 10 inch knife over an 8 in. if your workplace gives you a lot of room at your station. an 8 in. knife gets tricky when you have to bisect a whole taro root or melon. alas, my station gives me about 6-8 inches on each side of me and about a foot of space in front of my board... so 10 in blade is a liability to my co workers. i just got jabbed with someone's 11 in. global "sword" the other day.
Reply
post #22 of 200
7/12/07 at 5:42am
Have used Forschner for many years but broke tip [not me] of my favorite chefs knife, so looking for a replacement. Found Forschner but am thinking of Wusthof or Henckels, although there are some interesting ones mentioned on this forum! Have read that the Henckels has soft steel compared to Wusthof. Do many folks have the same impression? Some fine Japanese cutlery out there but want to stay with the German steels, particularly because I can see and feel them before buying. Do wish I could do a hardness test first, but expect that would be asking too much to put three little impressions in two of their knives! Am considering an 8-inch chefs knife, but the 10-inch felt so good I might buy a 12-incher.
Reply
post #23 of 200
7/12/07 at 8:15am
I have never used Wusthof, so I can't comment on them, but my Henckels chef knife experienced 20 years of constant professional use and is still a great knife. During that time I found it to keep an edge well and easy to keep that way with a stone and steel. I think they are great knives. As for a Rockwell comparison number between Henckels and Wusthof, I have no idea.
Wisdom comes with age, but sometimes age comes alone.
Reply
post #24 of 200
7/12/07 at 1:35pm
Wusthof and my parents also just got us a Ceramic for a wedding gift. I love that thing! Cuts everything like butter! I'm just scared to use it; I might break it.
Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read. - GM
Reply
post #25 of 200
7/13/07 at 9:23pm
the ceramics are really sharp but very brittle and a pain to reshapren with out spec tools!
Reply
post #26 of 200
7/14/07 at 11:31pm
I have an 8" Henckle that I use all the time and an 11-1/2" Henckle that I use only sparingly.

I got a set of Victorinox/Forschner knives for a Christmas present about 2 years ago and I'm so surprised at how much I love all of them. I have no idea of the price on them but the little 6" chef is one of my all time favorites for summer veggies and so lightweight. And the paring knife fits my hand so well that I don't know why I ever used other paring knives before.

They take a stone nicely and tend to hold their edge as well as my Henckles and my one Wusthof (which I almost never use - boy is it a beast).
Reply
post #27 of 200
7/16/07 at 6:06am
I have only within the last six months become a fan of the Japanese knives. You can get a Wustof or Henkels (German) extremely sharp but nothing like one of the Japanese knives I have...too sharp if you have kids in the house. On mine if you touch the blade, you've probably cut yourself.

The down side with the Japanese knives is that they are wonderfully thin, but that also means that many of them cannot be used on deboning a chicken or a very hard squash shell, the knives can be brittle and chip the edge or even break the blade but I've not heard that one happening very often. You just have to be careful.

I use a 9 1/2" guyto/chef's and 3" paring for 95% of the work in the kitchen. I would also recommend a bread/slicer.

The Wustof Classic and Henkels (German) knives are a good buy if you want a good knife without really getting "into knives". My gyuto (Japanese) was $255.00 and my paring $136.00 but you can get Tojiro DP knives for very little ($60-$80) and the steel is fantastic, the handles are blocky though but I filed/sanded mine down to where I wanted it.
Jannie
Reply
post #28 of 200
7/17/07 at 1:31am
Thread Starter 
i would also like to note that misono, masamoto, and hattori are all considered the creme de la creme of japanese chef's knives. misono being the brand that most professional chefs rave about. about 50% of my kitchen uses them. i just prefer the handle of a shun.
Reply
post #29 of 200
7/23/07 at 1:00am
I prefer Henckel's. I do have a Wusthof chefs knife but compared to the Henckel's it sounds somehow "tinny" when I use a steel on it.
Everyone will have different opinions but I guess it's just what feels right for each individual. As long as it feels good in your hand and does the job you want it to then, well, it's the right knife for you.:)
Reply
post #30 of 200
7/23/07 at 3:41pm
My home set is my first set ever purchased. They are Henkells 4 Star. I now use Victoriaknox in my work kit. Both sets are wonderful. I left the Henkells at home as they fit my wife's hand better than my new Victoriaknox. Never had an issue with holding an edge either.
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Cooking Knife Reviews
ChefTalk.com › ChefTalk Cooking Forums › Food & Equipment Reviews › Cooking Knife Reviews › what kind of knife do you have?