Thread: Question for chefs

Well I need new knives and was looking for some suggestions. I don't need anything top end, just good quality and affordable that will last. Thanks for any suggestions. I bought my brother some shun knives for his birthday a wile ago but can't afford a set like that.

-dan-

There are so many to choose from it's worse than vintage razors. Cutco-American Made from Olean, N.Y makes quality stuff but it's not the ground type like the German ones but it's not as pricey either. There are some reasonable Japanese ones like MAC and Lambston also from new England. Of course the standards like Wustoff and Henkels and Global and a slew of others are out there too.

Thanks, I like the globals, I have enough problems picking razors. Cursed sharp things

-dan-

I use kuhn rikon daily. You can go to t.j. maxx or Marshall's and find great deals on kitchen knives.
Shun, henkels, wustoff all at affordable prices. So if you want shun without the shun price check often, as the stock of what those stores carry is not always consistent, but they normally get one of those 4 brands in stock.

If you want quality blades look up Japanese knives, and I do not mean Global and Shun.
Mac or Tojiro are the cheapest to go, but this one
KAGAYAKI CarboNext Japanese Knife,Japanese Kitchen Knife,Japanese Cutlery,Japanese Chef's Knives.Com
It has great reviews and the price is really good, you can pick up 210 or 240 Gyuto and you will be set.

Don't buy a "Set". I'm not a chef but I don't (and I expect most people don't) use every knife in a "set"

I mostly use a fairly large chefs knife and sometimes a small pairing type knife. You'd be better off buying separate knives. Just the ones that you like. You'll end up spending less money and getting what you like exactly instead of a whole bunch of knives that you're not going to use.

Good old Victorinox makes knives that are functional instead of trendy or sexy. My chef blade and my boning knife are both Victos and there's nothing to complain about. If I were a better honer, my edge would be keener, but I'm learning. Both have tough plastic handles.

I would go to a professional kitchen store (the kind of place where they sell 60 gallons KitchenAids and gyro turners!) to get one. This kind of store would have a few other similar brands.

I have a set of Viking professionals. Wusthoff also makes some great knives. It all depends on how much you want to spend.

I prefer the Wustoff's. During my time in kitchens I used Mac's and Globals as well, but the comfort of the Wustoff 10" Chef knife kept me coming back to it as my standard. Since many of the knife companies are comparable, I suggest you hold the knife in your hand and mimmic a chopping motion. Move it around, wiggle it, etc. A good knife for you is the one that feels like an extension of your hand, albeit a metal one. The curve of the toe is also something that I used to look at. The Henckels knives had a shallow curve, and I could never get a nice rocking motion with them. The Wustoff's were perfect for me.

Also....check for bolsters. Knifes like Global's (which don't have any bolsters) look good, BUT....I don't know how many times I split my knife callous because of that. It not a nice experience to have to rebuild the callous on your hand.

Hope this helps a bit.

+1 to Wusthof.

Also, LX_Emergency's tip to not buy a 'set' is right on. I find that I can handle most tasks around the kitchen with a chef's, paring, and serrated knife. You'll figure out what else you need as you go, like boning and fillet knives possibly.

For storage, I keep them in a drawer in Lamson knife safes. They work great.

Oh, don't forget a sharpening steel too!