OT: What to look when buying a Chef's Knife?

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pedro.m.reis

Newbie but eager to learn
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Ok, i know this is a bit OT...
I'm buying 2 or 3 "good" knives this christmas, like a self gift...
But, i dont know nothing about this theme. Now, what i realy wanted is a place to start looking, like a "RFF" for knives.
Where
do you look when you want to buy a good knife?
Offcourse, personal advices on brands or anything are very welcome.
 
Basically if you want a good knife that'd last you a long time you'd want to get a nice forged knive instead of a cheapo stamped one. It should feel good on your hand and chef's knife comes in different length of 8 to 14 inches so you should find a length that is comfortable to you. The most popular brands are Wustof and Henckels, both of them has many different series with different prices and quality. Kyocera makes freakishly sharp ceramic knives but I find them too short and it is a hassel you have to send them back to be sharpened. Me myself I use a 10 inch Kershaw chef's knive. If you take good care of your knife it should last you a long while. Just remember to never sharpen it yourself (but you can hone it).
 
Thanks for the advices Flow. Do you cook professionaly?
Why cant i sharppen it and whats the difference between sharppening and honing? Sorry :)
 
agree with above poster. Heavy duty full-tang forged knives are the best. Lots of choices in blade materials and handle designs/materials. Test-driving a knife is important so that you can choose one that fits your hand well and feels comfortable to use. (similar to cameras in that regard, eh?).

I have a set of Wusthof Classics that I bought 20 years ago that still perform fine, with occasional touch-ups on a diamond stone.
 
I highly recommend the Global line of knives.. they have excellent reviews and are extremely well balanced
 
Hey since we're talking about knives, what's a Santoku knife? I too have been slowly adding to the kitchen knife collection and after concluding that cooking is much more enjoyable with a good knife was also in the midst of educating myself on this topic. I have a good paring knife and Chef's knife (both Henkels) and a utility knife made in Portugal - I'd like to get a good carving knife for the turkeys an roast chickens, and wondered what else should I have and why?
 
If you're looking for a top quality American-made line of knives, Lamsonsharp (Shelburne Falls, MA) is fully competitive with the others.
 
Global are great knives. I do not like them much becuase their handle feels a bit weird to me. But everyone's different when it comes to knives and every cook will have their own opinion. Restaurants do not use the same type of knives we use for the home. The one in restaurants are often forged but with bright coloured plastic or resin handles for safety and sanitation.

Honing if when you but a honing steel (there are steel and diamond ones), that look kinda like a sword except it is a round stick. It is for straightening the little tiny dents and offsets when you cut with your knife. Sharpening is you need to use a wetstone (I'm not a fan of electric sharpeners) and you need to dull your knive first then sharpen then with progressively finer sharpening medium (stones, etc). I usually send my knife out to sharpen since it is cheap to do so and pros sharpeners really know their stuff and I do not want to ruin my sort of expensive knife.
 
Santoku is a Japanese style chef's knife.

I did not mention Lamsonsharp since I see pedro.m.reis' location is in Portugal and I am ot sure if it is easy to find there...
 
Santoku knives are a Japanese design -- the sides of the knife are ground out at even intervals running perpendicular to the blade. I think the idea is that the hollows help with making thin cuts.
 
Ah, sorry, I didn't notice he was in Portugal. Better to go for European like Wusthof or Henckels. Sabatier knives are great too.
 
Ohhh since we're at it now, about 90% of the time profesional kitchen use only chef's knife and paring knife.
 
a santuko is a knife of Japanese origin designed for slicing. The blade is usually 2 to 3 inches tall, but very thin (1/8 inch), and has shallow flutes cut out of the sides of the blade to minimize the chance of wet food sticking to it. Also, the santuko design has very little "rocker" or curve on the bottom, unlike most chef's knives, which have a fair amount of rocker. Great for slicing vegetables, raw fish and meats. Not especially suitable for chopping due to lighter construction and small amount of rocker on the bottom.
 
I would recommend Wustof or Henkels. I have been using Wustof for the past 5 years and my parents have a Henkel set for over 15 years. I feel that both are about equal in quality. Try the handle to see which is more comfortable in your hands (this is very important). I use a 8" chef knife (I find the 6" too small and 10" too large personally). The Wustof Santoku (with flutes) version of the chef knife is used by Rachel Ray. I think this design allows the food to stick less but I have the regular version. I have a set of Wustof knives but I generally only need the chef knife, a paring knife and the bread knife.
 
Thanks for the advice on knives. Here's the link to a line of knives available in Canada by President's Choice

The utility knife that I got to try seems as good as any of my Henkel's knife, and since it's made in Portugal, it must be available there by the manufacturer under some other brand. They're a really good buy. The Bessa of the knife world perhaps :)
 
A few years ago I bought my (now) wife the 10" Grohman forged chef's knife. The next day I got a phone call from here, all she said was "I'm in love!" ... and she didn't mean with me, even though she was. ;)

These are not cheap knives, but it feels good in my hands, and the weight helps to make chopping and slicing easier. If I had it to do over again I would buy the resin handles (Xtra product line); the wood is beautiful but the upkeep of the wood for something that is a kitchen tool is a bit of a bother.
 
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