Kitchen knives

I get it, but those Solignen made Wusthofs can be passed down for decades, just like my Oregon made Pendleton wool shirts and coats. Pricey...sure....but worth it in the long run...

 

The kids can buy their own knives.

 

I got this pair of Shun (8” chef, 3.5” paring) a couple of years ago. They hold an edge well and have a good hand feel/weight.

To me, knives are a really personal thing. Try them all out and get what feels right for you.

 

Surprised No one mentioned Cutco. Made in the USA. Lifetime guarantee. We have several.

 

Not surprised. New York has a great legacy of quality knife making. Utica, Ithaca. I have several Schrade Walden vintage New York made knives.

 

Never tried those. The only time I ever hear about them is in reference to signing up college kids to sell them.

 

ZWILLING Henckels are great. Still made in Solingen. Non Zwilling Henckel branded knives pretty much made in Spain and China. A full set of Chinese made Henckels can be had at Wally World for $70. Not bad actually for the price point.

 

You have the real McCoy Henckels!

 

Food for thought....whatever kitchen knives you have....get a good whetstone and learn how to sharpen your knives. If not into that.....any decent butcher will usually sharpen your knives for free. Butcher's take pride in having a sharp knife for obvious reasons.

 

Thank you all for your input. I do know how to sharpen blades. I have oil, wet and diamond stones. I even have a round stone about 3' in diameter set up for sharpening axes.

 

Nice set!

 

I checked out Cutco's site. Quite impressive. I saw a cool Ka Bar style knife...damn it...heh...heh..

 

had these for awhile but...

shun all the way now. hard to beat a japanese blade. balance is great and they hold their edge really well.

 

We have a few Cutco knives in our drawer. Cutco products are fairly expensive but we're happy with their performance.
Pay for shipping and Cutco will sharpen them for life.

 

We also went with Cutco, and so far so good. You can always send in the knives for sharpening for free! The only con is that they are a little pricey.

 

For the paring knife I really like the Wusthof I've got. It's small and nimble enough to do exactly what a paring knife should do.

$76 Wusthof Classic Paring Knife, One Size, Black, Stainless Steel

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00005MEGH/

For the chef's knife I really, really like the Victorinox. I've owned a bunch of chef's knives ranging from the crappy ones that come in a butcher block to the expensive Japanese ones and the Victorinox is an absolute workhorse. It keeps an edge incredibly well (in fact I've owned mine for a few years now and have never sharpened it. I only run it across a honing steel to keep the blade true before each use), the Fibrox handle makes it easy to hold onto when your hands are wet, the shape of the handle makes manipulating the blade very easy and the size fits well in my hand.

$50 Victorinox 5.2003.25 10" Fibrox Pro Chef's Knife, Black, 10"

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000CF8YO/

 

I have a set of Shun that I love. Way better than the Wusthof set it replaced.

Shun is owned by the same company who does Kershaw and Zero Tolerance.

 

What's important to know is that most decent Japanese knives are made of forged steel. I own several various types of Japanese knives. Both Wusthof and Henckels have several product lines consisting forged and stamped steel. The more expensive forged steel offings for both brands are quite good. The stamped steel versions aren't near as good and are usually what you see in Walmart for example. Another thing I like about Japanese knives is that they are usually sharpened at 14 degree angle from the factory. For years German knives were sharpened at a 20 to 22 degree angle, now the newer forged steel Wusthof and Henckel are produced with a 14 degree angle. Also top end knives will be full tanged which is important for balance.

 

I got a small set of Wusthofs about 20 years ago. I swear by them. It’s the original Grand Prix series. I chose them because the handle was the most comfy for me. I’ve been adding little by little since then. I’ve had good luck getting good deals on eBay from time to time. The Grand Prix 2 series has the same blades but the handles are a bit different.

 

I stick with Wusthofs and Henkel's. Have several Henkel's that are over 2 years old and have stood the test of time.

 

I am a J.A.Henckel fan. Not necessarily better than Wusthof and others mentioned above, but I find them to be great knives. But, note that they are made all over the world. The made in China ones are cheap and won't hold an edge. I have some of those though for cutting where I don't care too much about the edge - hitting bones etc. If it gets dull I just give it a quick sharpening or honing again. Then I have Henckels made in Spain; better than the China but not top quality. The real deal made in Germany is razor sharp and hold an edge, but of course it comes at a higher price; totally worth the extra $$.
Victorinox also makes some decently priced good quality knives if you don't want to move into the high dollar top of the line knives.

 

Been using Shun Kaji, I wouldn’t recommend getting a set since most of them will sit in a block. Speaking of blocks, with a quality knife, I use a John Boos cutting block otherwise you will ruin the edge of your knife.

One more thing, if the manufacturer recommends that you wash the knives by hand, do so!

 

Not my kitchen knife but it’s the one I use when I bbq.

 

Nice...

 

I like my wusthofs. My dad is professional chef and he has always used Wusthofs and Henckels.

 

I personally love the feel of the Henckel 5-star. They have a nice Ergo-Grip that you can use for hours without any discomfort.



I also have a few Shun knives and they are also great to work with. You have to sharpen them differently though bc they have a different angle grind.