Does anyone have any good tips for interesting asian knives to try?
I've got a couple of cleavers, but I was at a fancy Chinese restaurant the other week and and the chef shredded a duck with some crazy spring steel knife.
Also, sushi knives - I don't really eat a lot of fish at home, are they any good for other kitchen tasks?
I would hearily recommend the ceramic knives from Kyocera (website here). I bought the 6inch white bladed one when I was in Japan last year and have used it every day since. It is still practically as sharp as when I first started chopping. It is light and the handle is comfortable to use.
Ceramic blades hold their edges very well (better than carbon steel). However they are brittle and unless you use them carefully, they can break easily. The point is usually the simplest part to snap off although any contact with a very hard surface can chip the blade. Use this type of knife on a wooden or polymer chopping board and never on a glass or stone. This will prevent the knife from becoming blunt. This knife should be used only for slicing fruit and vegetables. Using it with frozen food or with that with bones (implying that excessive force is needed to make the cut) will put undue pressure on the knife and will damage the blade (and probably you).
Having an ongoing knife fetish, I can happily say that this knife is only bettered by the Japanese carbon steel ones I bought from Aritsugu (website here). Article here.
I bought a 5.5 inch deba and a 12 inch sashimi. They are a joy to use. I filleted several sea bass for a dinner a little while ago and the precision gained by using a tool of this standard was wonderful. These are knives that will last a lifetime. The deba is basically a general purpose cooking knife that is fine for everyday usage - it is a cross between a cleaver and a general cooks knife. As for the sashimi, you can use it in the same way you might use a carving knife. The important part is to keep them keen - sharpen little and often.Unquestionably the most prestigious knife maker in Japan is Aritsugu. Aritsugu is over 400 years old and the company descends from what was the premier sword smith in Japan. Surprisingly one can purchase most Aritsugu blades for under $500, however they are known for making custom knives for Japan’s top chefs at prices unmentioned.
I have a Chan Chi Kee Cleaver (a KF1103). It is carbon steel, but it is not as prone to rust as my other carbons knives. It is hard to find good chinese cleavers, and the UK importer of CCK knives is rubbish (overpriced and not able to get the model i wanted, just a any old cleaver approach). I got a guy in Hong kong to pick one up for me. I love it.
As for japanese knives, they are harder and thinner than european knives. this means that they will cut better than european knives, but can be a little more fragile. Some people will 'baby' them, but others don't feel they need to. At the bottom end of the price range there is Tojiro or in Carbon steel you can get a Hiromoto (both available from www.japanesechefsknife.com worldwide shipping only $7!).
If you look at their other knife ranges you can get into serious money, like $300-$1000.
There is no knife you can buy that doesn't need sharpened. A ceramic edge will last a long time, but eventually you will need to send it back to Kyocera as it is not possible to home sharpen them (due to microfracture of the ceramic).
Toomanycooks has a deba, a thicker knife for boning chickens etc. They are tough. The closest equivalent to the standard french chef style euro knife is a Gyuto.
Also one can consider a usuba or nakiri for vegetable slicing. The japanese call a chinese cleaver a chukabocho, and they do some good versions of those.
There is lots of info on japanese knives at www.knifeforums.com or at the cutlery section of www.foodieforums.com
When i have some spare cash i will be picking myself up one of the hiromoto HC knives, but do not buy a carbon knife unless you are prepared to wash it very soon after use, and know that you will never be able to dishwash it.
I use japanese waterstoens to sharpen. A good starter stone is a 1000/6000 combination stone. You can buy these from www.shokunin.co.uk or www.axminster.co.uk. I have just progressed from one of these to a set of individual water stones a 240 for repairing damage, a 1000 for general sharpening and a 4000 for edge polishing, followed by lapping film if you must know.
So in summary, try a gyuto for general work, a deba for tougher jobs and a sashimi for slicing.
I'll have to look into these, some very interesting stuff there!
Have you ended up paying import duties on knives bought from japanesechefsknife.com?
yea i gota katana ninja sword, made from carbon steel. 1 mettre blade ...
nice combo...not sure its chinese though
For the most part, orders from them seem to avoid extra tax, but it can't be guaranteed. I haven't ordered from them yet.
Another thing to note is that because the japanese knives are thinner and lighter, you could probably use a larger one than the equivalent european knife.
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Originally Posted by Blitzen
Not a single one of those companies can beat the prices of www.japanesechefsknife.com, especially as they have a further 10% off, and shipping is only $7 worldwide.
Eg. Take the tojiro dp petty (f-801) at nipponkitchen £24 exc shipping, at japanesechefsknife.com it is £19.32 inc shipping! The last one are total ripoff merchants, scandalous prices. I was shocked when i looked there. We get the piss taking out of us as consumers in the Uk so much.
Agreed about that last link, those prices are so inflated.
wow !
You guys are dangerous !!!!!!!
I just have a 12" carbon GP kitchen knife, a 8" filleting knife, small veg knife and a cleaver. No idea of brands, didnt realise they made such a difference !
Favourite knife : the Chinese cleaver, I think it was £18 from a Birmingham Chinatown supermarket. ONLY used by me, on a very large lump of solid woodblock. No-one else is allowed
Cheers, David
Well i just used £170 of my John Lewis vouchers on four Global knifes.
11cm Utility Knife
11cm Kitchen Knife
13cm Cook's Knife
14cm Vegetable Knife
Yes Globals are probably not very good value for money normally, and you can definitely get better knifes, but these were effectively free with the horendouse amount i spend on my JL mastercard
Looking forward to using them now
Flog em on ebay and get a proper knife
Global are good mid level knives that have been marketed well and are sold at a premium. Icertainly wouldn't turn one down if offered.
The problem is when people buy into the marketing hype and start to believe they are better then they are. Same applies to wusthof, henckels etc. They are better than the knives most of us are used and are easyish to get in the UK, but they are mid level mass market knives, not premium quality knives. Add in the ripoff britain effect and there are savings to be found on foreign sites.
When Allders closed down, I had the chance to buy a set of Good Grips knives, but I couldn't afford them.
Wish I'd been able to scrape the money together, they were fantastic. Flat handles, and perfect balance just past the index finger. Who knows where I might be now
But I think I will be treating myself to something special from japanesechefskife, now the only question is ceramic or not? I've cut myself with normal knives, if I get an even sharper knife, will I be in for trouble, or super-cautious all the time? Hmmm.
Or you could try the local TK-Max store. Had a look around last Sunday and come back with 2 Japanese Knives ( one for chopping bones and one for veg). The deba ( meat knife ) was £10.00 , while the veg one was £6.00. I am very happy with them. They are just about the right weight in hand and very very sharp.
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Definitely going to get a sashimi knife, cooked a thick rare steak last night and it was just begging to be sliced finely and fanned across the plate...
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