Comments on: Kitchen Tools I: The Chef’s Knife

By: foodwithlegs

foodwithlegs — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 23:21:55 +0000

A great knife. Comes super sharp, is easy to maintain, and by far the best value, imo. I highly recommend.

By: Tonya @ What's On My Plate

Tonya @ What's On My Plate — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 22:55:22 +0000

I was thinking about buying that Victorinox knife today but got lazy. Nice to see another endorsement.

By: Cuts Like a Knife | Food With Legs

Cuts Like a Knife | Food With Legs — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 22:44:21 +0000

[...] my post about my favourite chef’s knife way back in March I posted this link to a youtube clip of [...]

By: sock

sock — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 11:39:16 +0000

Seems kind of pointless to spend that kind of money for a knife that needs to be babied. For that price, I would expect a sword that can cut through body armour, not shatter if dropped off the counter.

By: foodwithlegs

foodwithlegs — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 22:10:28 +0000

Thanks for mentioning super-pricey Japanese knives, sock. You reminded me that I have read on Chowhound that Nella is not at all the best place to take a Japanese knife for sharpening. I believe that Japanese knives have a different one-sided edge and, apparently, Nella has been known to grind these into two-sided European edges much to the chagrin of their customers.

I remember an episode of the Food Network show about the Rubino brothers (and their restaurant, Rain) where the chef-brother fired a cook for using his ultra-expensive sushi knife to chop vegetables on a board. Apparently, it was so delicate that it can only be used on a specially-designed cutting board and then only rarely.

By: sock

sock — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 20:58:31 +0000

Agreed, Nikolau is great.

Once, I used my instructor’s utility knife to peel potatoes. It was a high-carbon japanese-blade that he got in New York for about $200. I had no idea what to do with a knife like that. I keep my knives well honed, using a steel every 2 or 3 uses, but this japanese blade was so ridiculously sharp that I could barely use it.

By: foodwithlegs

foodwithlegs — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:24:49 +0000

Thanks for the comment, Kat.

Kat’s Henkels chef knife is very good (when mine is dirty I sometimes use it….) but it’s interesting to note how different it is from mine. It is shorter than the Victorinox but because it is forged instead of stamped it is a bit heavier; the handle design is different; and the “snub-nose” Japanese style profile calls for a different cutting motion. All of this variaition is why I would strongly recommend trying a knife out as much as possible before buying so that you can be sure of a comfortable fit.

Also, Kat’s comment reminds me of an interesting custom when it comes to giving knives as gifts. Apparently, in parts of Europe, it is considered unlucky to receive a knife as a gift so some people, upon receiving a knife will insist on paying the giver a penny (or some small token) to fend off the jinx.

By: Kat

Kat — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:52:58 +0000

My knives are 1, 5 and 6 (going left to right). 1 is a newly acquired Cutco “bagel” knife- great because it has a really sharp serrated edge to cut bagels and and a flexible paddle-like surface to spread cream cheese.

#5 is a scalloped Henckel knife that my step dad gave me. I love it because it is much smaller than David’s chef knife which to me is scary. I also prefer the weight of this knife to David’s grand-daddy blade.

#6 is a gift from David and serves the wonderful purpose of cutting fresh bread. Mmmm.

I really think the trick to loving a knife is keeping it sharp OR moving in with someone who is happy to hone for you