Chef Knives?

[benito]

i picked up some 1k and 4k shapton glass, mainly because they fit in my knife bag... but have come to love their rather business-like attributes: fast cutting, HARD, long lasting, splash-and-go so no soak needed.

wusthofs are a great knife btw. touch up on a 1k brick and steel as needed.

in pro kitchens the hard and thin Japanese knives are all the rage, and for good reason; but i guess like anything expensive and precise they can be temperamental if mishandled.

i have a 240 richmond ultimatum in swedish stainless that does lots of things well, and some wa handled kohetsu's in HAP40 powdered steel.

i guess it's like riding tubulars. re-glueing is a total PITA, but life is short so why the hell not.

[caleb]

Has anyone here used a Chambriard chef's knife? Chambriard Grand Gourmet French Kitchen Knives at The Best Things

The shape has me interested.

[caleb]

For anyone interested in giving carbon steel a go, this just came through my inbox: Essential Carbon Steel Parer & Chef's Knife Set on Food52



The guy at my knife shop is big on Messermeister, and the ones I've handled have been nice. They seem like a German profile with a significantly lighter blade. For $79/pair, it seems tough to go too far wrong if you're interested in trying carbon out.

[Alain Levesque]

Have tried a handful of knives over the past 5 years and keep going back to my 10" K-Sabatier chef's knife. Big knife that feels small in your hand!

[Too Tall]

Have tried a handful of knives over the past 5 years and keep going back to my 10" K-Sabatier chef's knife. Big knife that feels small in your hand!

Amen. I'm ready to let a few "experiments" go to new homes. My ancient 10" Sabatier is the best.

[j44ke]

My current favorite. Single bevel blade pushes slices away from the knife. Has heft to it that helps with chopping but feels light in the hand so nicely balanced.

[Too Tall]

Here is my last "experiment". This is a Sabatier-K "Canadian" / Rockwell of 55 to 57 / Made in approx. 1970
The issue is that this beast is stiff as a board. Other than that it is a pretty neat knife. If I can figure out how to get the edge just right it will be outstanding for breaking down poultry. For now it mocks me.

sabatcanad1.jpg

[mnoble485]

Damn, watches, knives, cookware, shoes etc. ...this place is indeed the road to perdition. I thought bikes were an expensive hobby but you guys have shown me the light.

Mike

[skouri1]

Reviving this one. So you guys helped me sort out my paring knife situation. I am totally psyched on the little victorinox. So much so that I am considering now the Fibrox 8" chef's knife (recommended here).

The Victorinox Chef's knife looks great to me, but would like some of your input on my specific situation.

I currently have a Henckels "Twin Signature" Stamped 8" Chef's knife and I have never really liked the way it cut. I think it may be from the 20 degree angle era. I have a sharpener. I have sharpened it and still... It's not cutting through paper. It tears as I am cutting oignons, needs to be forced through carrots and requires more pressure than I like.

Is the Victorinox really as good as they say? I feel like being thinner and sharpened to 15 degrees, its just going to be sharper / slide through veggies more easily.

What do you guys think--would this be a stupid lateral move? Should I spring for a MAC or something of the like? I like the Victorinox reputation for being professional equipment/taking abuse/cheap and sharp...

[spopepro]

"modern" (I don't have a date at the ready...) henckels* are tempered so soft that even if you put a good bevel on them, they won't be able to hold the edge for more than a moment. They seem like they are now designed for people who put knives in dishwashers, cut plastic, and then run the blade through an electric torture device and expect an undamaged tool.

The vicotrinox will very likely be much more to your satisfaction. I have found them to be easy to use and to sharpen, which isn't trivial for common stainless blades (for example, I find shun knives to be brilliantly sharp when new, and an absolute pain to sharpen. It takes me less time to sharpen my single bevel blades).

It's a tough call to say whether you "should" or "shouldn't" spring for something more expensive. There are definitely options in the "very, very nice" category in the 100-150 dollar range. Some of the trouble is that you might not know *exactly* what you want. Do you have a handle shape preference? (all my knives have octagonal wood handles). Do you have a blade shape preference? (I prefer a long flat with a moderate rise to the tip. I would not like the very excellent knife Caleb posted because it appears to curve gently for almost the entire length). Do you care about how stain resistant the metal is, how easy it is to sharpen, or how long it will hold an edge? Are you OK with a $150 "experiment" as the big boss calls them?

If you want to start dabbling in hard, thin, japanese steel, I think a good place to start is with this:


I have a Pro-J petty from the same company in my knife block. It is a good, neutral blade that doesn't require any special care or attention.

The tojiro DP blades are also a great starting point.


I personally find them to be "short", which makes using the blade to help move food less useful.

If you have a good knife shop near by, it's worth buying in person so you know it feels good.


*the miyabi "henckels" excluded.

[skouri1]

Great--thanks for the input. I'm going to just go ahead and try the Victorinox.
I am intrigued by shorter stuff, but dont think I can forego the staple 8" chef's knife. I think its prudent to start with the budget favorite and then go fancier if I find that inadequate.
Now that I have a nice cutting board, decent sharpener and honing steel, I dont have any excuses to NOT have nice cutting knives.

[spopepro]

Oh, I meant short as in blade-to-top. Both of those knives can be had in lengths up to 12". I probably should have said narrow, but that kind of sounds like thickness...

But for sure, cook a ton, get confident with sharpening and keeping a great edge and when the desire strikes and funds permit, you'll have a lot better idea of what kind of knife you want.

Don't get a honing steel. It's murder on nice edges. If you must, get a ceramic rod. Better is a strop prepared with chromium oxide. There are other threads with sharpening opinions, and others with cutting board thoughts (one of them changed my choice in boards).

[j44ke]

Pulled one of our Japanese knives out of the block and then as I was moving it in my hand to get a better grip, it slipped and as it fell onto the cutting board it nearly sliced the tip of my thumb off. I saw the blood before I realized what happened. Fortunately the cut is so clean, I know from experience I can put some neosporin on it, reposition the little skin flap, bandage and it will heal quickly.

Like sushi! without the fish!

[dgaddis]

I cut the crap out of my finger with a brand new Wustof bread knife a while back. About four of this big very sharp teeth got me, and I felt each one. Healed up fine though!

[SpeedyChix]

Reading about sharp knives and loss of flesh here's a public safety reminder.

D did a major removal last Saturday. We have a nice selection of sharp Japanese knives. However it was the mandolin slicer that removed a large portion of the end of his thumb. NASTY and ugly oblique L2 cut that was 12x14ish. Once we had things wrapped up and stuffed into a surgical glove to contain things I cleared the cutting board and started over...with a knife and a kevlar glove.

[skouri1]

Should I be looking at duller knives? :)

[skouri1]

Received the victorinox and immediatedly sliced up a bunch of onions and carrots.
First impression is great. thanks again for the advice!
I'll see how long it holds its edge before resharpening, but as far as sharpness and even ergonomics/shape, I can't really think of what else I could ask for. Should serve me for many years to come.

[dgaddis]

Bumping this back up.

Recently added one of these to our knife block. Granton edge Nakiri with a fairly decent modern steel at a really good price. I like the weight and balance, the G10 handle feels good. Wasn't the sharpest knife ever out of the box, but not terrible. If the edge holds up well I may pick up the matching chef knife as well. I like my Wusthof, it's really well made and ground nice and thin, but the steel isn't great.

This little Wusthof, a 4.5" "asian utility" knife, is probably our 2nd most used knife in the house. It's my wife's go-to knife, she likes it's small size and low weight, it's not as intimidating as the 8" chef knife. I like the super thin blade that cuts so well, it's great for making really thin slices. Last night I finally spent the 2mins to round off the edges on the spine to make it more comfortable to use in a pincher grip. Highly recommend doing this to all your knives if they don't come rounded off from the factory, makes a big difference!



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AFTER

[ericpmoss]

Has anyone here used a Chambriard chef's knife? Chambriard Grand Gourmet French Kitchen Knives at The Best Things

The shape has me interested.

I haven't tried one, but I see that The Best Things is closing for good, and has sales on everything, including these.

[slwrnu]

if you like your chopping, it is worth considering getting paring, vegetable and utility knives with indentations on the side of the blade. The, if eg you are chopping an onion, you put your fingers on top of the veg, push the knife gently against your fingers, and this way you can see and also feel where the blade is. You do not have to do it this well, but it is very satisfying. Make sure you keep your thumb well of the way.