Tojiro ITK Shirogami Wa-Gyuto 210mm - Public Service Announcement

I got one of the first batch a month or so ago, but since they have the petty in stock I went ahead and ordered one, plus another 210 mm for a coworker.  I love my 210, even though I don't normally use gyutos that small.  It takes a spectacular edge off Japanese natural stones and is  a great value!

I'm also anxious for the 240mm but the 210 is great.  A little bird told me there will be a 240mm Kiritsuke version by the end of the year...

If the Kiritsuke-patterned one comes off as planned, be advised that it will be double beveled, like a Moritaka or Takeda, not a true Kiritsuke.

I have one of the petty's on the way, too.  Plus a 210 for a co-worker.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phaedrus 

If the Kiritsuke-patterned one comes off as planned, be advised that it will be double beveled, like a Moritaka or Takeda, not a true Kiritsuke.

I have some blue steel "kiritsukes" that I picked up from Hida Tools.  They are inexpensive carbon knives and I bought them as beaters but they take a fine edge and hold it well.  They are double beveled and certainly are not a kiritsuke.  More like a santoku with an angular pointy tip. I am assuming the Tojiros will be similar except in white steel.

I did order a 210mm Shirogami from Mark the other day after reading this post.  A little smaller than I normally use but thought I would give this knife a try and take it down to 10* per side.  The price was hard to beat.  My Tojiro DP microchips too much at this acute angle.

How's everyone liking their Tojiro Shirogami's?

How reactive is the edge?  Does it get red rust spots if you leave it wet for an hour?

Is the kurouchi finish holding up?

Still loving mine.  I dunno what would happen if I left it wet for an hour, and short of having a heart attack at work and being rushed to the ER or funeral home I can't imagine ever leaving it wet for an hour.  Takes a great edge and holds it well, though.

Fair enough :)

I'm eyeballing a few knives that have the shirogami/aogami core, with some form of protection on the sides (stainless cladding or kurouchi) but I'm still a little concerned about my poor knife housekeeping habits.  It seems like when I'm finishing up a meal at home I'm kind of plating in a frenzy (usually because I'm worried about something getting cold, like a protein that I just sliced up) and I'm not wiping down my knife until after I'm done eating.  It probably doesn't help that I don't keep a towel handy to get dirty... if the knife needs a wipe then it's done in the sink.  Usually.

BTW I'm looking at Tojiro Shirogami, Moritaka #2 and Kanehiro (a wa handle version of the hiromoto as).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phaedrus 

Still loving mine.  I dunno what would happen if I left it wet for an hour, and short of having a heart attack at work and being rushed to the ER or funeral home I can't imagine ever leaving it wet for an hour.  Takes a great edge and holds it well, though.

Racine,

The real solution to your housekeeping problem is "better" organization throughout the cooking process, and the good habit of a rinse and wipe for the plating knife before going into the kitchen. 

Not to jump too far afield from knives, but the more of your prep winds up in mise en place and the more you cook from mise instead of doing a lot of knife work as you prep, the more flexibility and control you'll have over timing and the less pressure you'll be under.  It also keeps the kitchen neater, which not only makes everything easier to find which also makes timing easier, and in turn, that releases some of the pressure and helps keep you focused and allows for more tasting during the process.

Try pretending you're doing a TV cooking show, with everything you need already to go in little bowls, before pre-heating the first pan and see if that doesn't give you a little more freedom with your knives along with everything else.  A few minutes before plating, put your plates in a warm oven if you have the oven space, or put them in the empty dishwasher and run the drying cycle.  Warm plates makes it easier to spend a little extra time getting the plating right, and frees you for that all important 20 second rinse and wipe. 

However, that's not everyone's cooking style and it's not inherently superior -- which is why I put "better" in quotes.

BDL

PS.  You should always have a "kitchen rag" at hand.  There aren't many things which will make your kitchen life easier.  Not just the kitchen, either.  A towel, [The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy] says, is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have. Partly it has great practical value. You can wrap it around you for warmth as you bound across the cold moons of Jaglan Beta; you can lie on it on the brilliant marble-sanded beaches of Santraginus V, inhaling the heady sea vapors; you can sleep under it beneath the stars which shine so redly on the desert world of Kakrafoon; use it to sail a miniraft down the slow heavy River Moth; wet it for use in hand-to-hand-combat; wrap it round your head to ward off noxious fumes or avoid the gaze of the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal (such a mind-boggingly stupid animal, it assumes that if you can't see it, it can't see you); you can wave your towel in emergencies as a distress signal, and of course dry yourself off with it if it still seems to be clean enough.  Doug Adams, Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe.

Thanks for the post BDL.  There is no doubt that my home cooking could improve with better organization.  The plate warming idea is something I need to do because keeping the food warm is something I always panic about at the end of the process.  I do tend to do as much prep work as possible before most of the cooking starts and do use the little prep bowls.

I need to work a little better gameplan with my kitchen towels too.  For example, the Ms's has gotten on me a bit lately that she doesn't like it when I use the kitchen towels to wipe off counters or knives because she thinks they're supposed to essentially be clean at all times (like only used for drying freshly washed hands, dishes, utensils, etc...).  Now she does keep a rag in the sink that she'll use to wipe of counters after she sprays them with fantastic or whatever cleaning product she likes that day, but to me, that rag isn't hygienic enough for my knife.  Maybe it's fine, I dunno.  So I always end up washing my knife 3-4-5 times during a meal with a couple swipes on a soapy sponge (then I set it on a towel on the opposite side of the sink that is specifically there for drying dishes).

Anyways, what's your towel habits?  Does your knife towel only get used for knives?  After one night of cooking is that towel set to the dirty clothes bin?

Hi Guys,

240s are in....

I was really looking forward to the 240's finally coming in, but while I was waiting Mark has so many other things in the works that now I'll probably pass and save my money for an Ultimatum in M390.

I'm glad you got them so fast. Hope you enjoy them.

Mark

Quote:

Originally Posted by pohaku 

Received them today (240mm gyuto and 150mm petty).  VERY nice.  I'll shoot a family portrait and post it when I get home.

I got the 150mm Petty a couple weeks ago - very nice knife for the price.  Takes a keen edge and holds it well.  I removed the Kuoruchi, rounded the spine and choil and touched up the edge.  I'd get a 240 Wa-Gyuto, but my 240 Tanaka is my go to knife of choice these days.  I might give Shirogami 210 to a friend for her birthday.

Well - couldn't pass up the opportunity so I ordered a 240 from Mark.  Should be here Wednesday  and will give it the work over I gave my Petty.  I might re-handle this one too for a project.  Hey - for $80 it's a no brainer for me and I have some nice woods in stock.
 

My 240mm Tojiro ITK gyuto arrived yesterday and all I can say is it's a wonderful knife for the money.  The fit and finish is better than the petty was - the spine is softer, but he choil was sharp.  The grind is better than the one on the petty - smoother with no over grind that I saw.  The kurouchi smoothed out with a good washing and makes a nice contrast above the grind - a very nice aesthetic.  The edge was quite keen out of the box and a few strokes across a smooth steel made it shaving sharp.  You know for $80 it's a no-brainer.  Performance wise it's on a par with my Tanaka gyuto which is kasumi in #2 blue damascus even though the Tanaka has a slightly thinner spine.  If you want to try a Japanese style knife without taking a money plunge try one of these.  A definite 'best bang for the buck" kitchen tool.