Knives

Unknown · May 2007

Someone earlier posted about knife cases. [p]I'd like to purchase some nice cutlery. Not something that will completely break the bank. But some pieces that will be a couple of steps above what the department store knives that are in the house now. [p]Does anyone have any suggestions on brands and also on what knives you'd want for a complete kitchen. [p]Thanks,
Bubba T

Basscat · May 2007

Bubba_T,
As reccomended to me years ago by a friend who was a butcher, I'd suggest Forschner knives. Great quality, reasonable price, wide variety of blades. I've got a few paring knives, a 10" chef's, 12" Granton edge slicer that is the best for brisket and meat loaves, 12" roast beef slicer and an 8" boning/filet and I think I've about got it covered. Just Google Forschner and you'll find a lot of sources.

Bructer · May 2007

Bubba_T,[p]I believe you get what you pay for. Over the years I keep adding to my collection and little by little, knife by knife. I now have a working set(47)that I can do just about anything including brain surgery. lol [p]

[ul][li]Check them out here.....[/ul]

BlueSmoke · May 2007

Bubba_T,
We have three Global knives - the others are knife-like objects...[p]Ken

BobS · May 2007

Basscat,
I agree! They are a good value for the money.

stike · May 2007

Bubba_T,
rather than buy a set, you'll probably find the most cost effective way to get the best you can afford is to buy one or two. not saying to pick one and use it and save for another, but rather, if you get a nice 8" cheh's knife, it'll do 90% of what you need.[p]i have a decent amount of knives, nothing great, but the chef's knife sees all the action.
wusthof, global, henckels are all really solid "introductory" knives. there are better knives, but i wouldn't recommend getting top-of-the-line stuff right away.
the typical 'higher end' knives you see around are pretty forgiving, hold a decent edge, and can be easily enough sharpened and maintained at home. [p]i'd recommend a straightforward high-carbon, full-bolstered, forged knife. the wusthof classic is a straightforward knife.[p]later, when you get it to be a little more practiced and can appreciate the difference, you might step up to a bunmei crazy hard/sharp kinda knife. more difficult to sharpen, but probably the best knife in the long run. ...says me, the guy without one.[p]don't go all hollywood and spend 400 bucks on a block with a bunch of knives. get an 8" chef's knife, and a smaller version of the same, a utility knife (beefier than a paring knife).[p]slicers, santokus... they have a purpose, but if the house is one fire and you can only save one, it's always the chef's knife. my santoku loooked cool when i bought it, and veggies don't stick, but the chef's knife rolls and feels better.[p]learn to take care ofthem. the steel isn't a sharpener. just use it to straighten the edge before of after (or both) use. i actually use it after, and the knife is good to go when i grab it. i also store them in a block, edge up resting on their backs.[p]you can sharpen the softer german wusthof stuff yourself, but the best edge will come once a year (18 months if you use them a lot) if you send them out to be sharpened. since they are 'cheap' enough, you can take a crack at sharpening them yourselves without fear of ruining them. using the steel will keep your knifes pretty sharp for maybe a year.[p]clean after use, dry them, and put them away.[p]do not bother with stamped stainless 'affordable' knives. some like ceramic (stoooopidly sharp death on a handle), but they can be brittle and lose a tip if you hit bone or drop it.[p]cleavers look great, but i use mine to open coconuts. i hit the coconut with the BACK of the blade. other than that, maybe used it once to cut up somethin-i-doan-even-amemba whaddit-was....[p]

fishlessman · May 2007

<p />Bubba_T,
i like knives, but not complete sets, they have too many knives i wouldnt use, and a few that i need arent included. the first elcheapo is for cutting cans for things like beer can chicken, 2 paring knives 1 is flexible and the other is not, clamming knife which ive never seen in a set, globals are great knives, bunmei sushi knife is the one i use for everything, and 2 50-60 year old timers that get used regularly (my great uncle was a butcher and those were his, i think they are lamson but im not positive). the only knife im missing is the bread knife, someday but im in no rush, i will buy one when i see the one that looks right to me. there isnt too many knives that are needed to cook with. the other thing you need with good knives is a good "end" grain butcher block as they are very forgiving to the knives edge

Spaceman Spiff · May 2007

Forschner/Victorinox for general use.[p]German heavy soft steel knives for cutting bones/smashing things.[p]Japanese high end when you want crazy sharp.
Do NOT use a steel on these. (and be damn careful what you cut.)[p]Spacey[p]

Spaceman Spiff · May 2007

Agree on the need for just a few knives. 98 percent of my use is a 7 1/2" chef's knive and a 4" parer.[p]But I have a drawer full of fancy/expensive knives that I look at/use once in a great while.[p]Spacey

Unknown · May 2007

Bubba_T,
I would reccomend starting with the Forshner knifes there rated the best inexpensive knife by americas test kitchen. Start with those and learn how to maintain them. I think its less intimidating to learn to sharpen something that is not a boutique type knife. If you mess the edge up its not the end of the world. Alot of it really comes down to how it feels in your hand anyway. I bought my wife a MAC santoku, which is also reasonably priced and I really like it. The santoku is a smaller angle 10 degrees opposed to the german style which is around 25 degrees. I bought a shun paring knife with wedding money and it is really looks nice. Also if you start with inexpensive stuff and upgrade later you can hide your nice knifes when company comes over. Nothing worse than having company scrape veggies off a cutting board with the edge of the blade at 90 degrees to the cutting board(a lot like company closing you egg and letting it slam shut).

Unknown · May 2007

Bubba_T,
i recommend just buying the best ten inch chef's knife that you can afford/ feels good in you hand.... then work your way up from there.... a good paring knife next ...the rest are nice to have but if you buy a whole set... you'll probbly find that you don't use most of 'em...i have MANY knives but use only three 90 percent of the time...hope this helps...

Unknown · May 2007

Bubba_T,
how you store your knives is critical!!! don't just throw 'em in the drawer and let them bang/touch against other metal objects..(a draw back of the magnet holders unless you're care on how you place/remove them from the rack). either put them in a block... leave it proudly on the cutting board or just put some where on a shelf etc...never do the restaurant thing and put 'em betwen the stove and the counter... don't just toss it in the sink untill you do the dishes and let it make contact with other things...treat it like a samuri sword.... if not the edge will quickly get nicked no matter what the quality and you'll be sorely disappointed...i NEVER cut on a plate.... wood is the only thing my blades make contact with other than the food ....if you have a female in the house.... it's imperative that she understand the rules too .... or your just wasting you time and money....

BYC · May 2007

Bubba_T,[p]Try the instaware folks for restaurant supplies including knives and roll-up bags. Come to think of it I bought my roll up bag at a restaurant supply house. But the kitchen stores sell them as well.[p]www.instawares.com/cutlery.2.2.213.0.0.8.htm [p]My advice is to overtime buy one of everything and learn how and when to use them. As for my knives I posted these (link below) 2 years back and all are still strong. I have had some for over 10 years.

[ul][li]http://www.biggreenegg.com/archives/2005/messages/207713.htm[/ul]

guava greg · May 2007

fishlessman, nice colletion! Hey do all the stainless steel knives stick to the magnet?[p]
Aloha,[p]greg

PigsEye · May 2007

But it's the best knife I have for slicing tomatoes.

fishlessman · May 2007

guava greg,
they call those stainless, but they are more of a high alloy. what we normally call stainless would hold a poor edge. they stick as well as the carbon steel ones, stainless knives have come along ways in the last decade, i wouldnt spend money on the carbon steel ones like i used too, the stainless in the new japanese blades especially are just better.

UnConundrum · May 2007

Bubba_T,
There are so many options, but the real answer is what works for you and what feels comfortable. I went to the extreme. Below is a picture of my Murray Carter knives, made to my spec. Each one serves a purpose in my kitchen [p]
http://www.unconundrum.com/pub_pics/WarrenPrinceKnives.jpg[p]
As someone else posted, the idea is to get the knives you'll use and not just a set. If you're prepared to step up as you say, I'd make two suggestions to you. First, check out http://www.japanesechefsknife.com/products.html where you'll find some very reasonable priced Japanese style knives. The Tojiro line will give you an excellent value. Start out with a gyuto which is the Japanese version of a chef's knife, and go from there. Bear in mind, the care and mainetnance of Japanese knives is different from the German or French style knives. They're harder and sharper, but take less abuse. They'll hold their edge loger, but you don't want to use sharpening machines to maintain them. BTW, there's a fellow, Dave who will do excellent mail order sharpening on water stones or belts, depending on the quality of your knife. People send knives to him to sharpen from all over the world. His web site is at http://www.drsharpening.com/ . A Tojiro is an excellent knife to use to learn how to sharpen your own knives. [p]
Second issue is spend some time on the "in the kitchen" forum at knife forums, http://www.knifeforums.com/forums/showforum.php?fid/26/ . A great bunch of people hang out there, almost as great as the eggheads You'll find that there's some regular posters there who are more than willing to help you pick out some knives to meet your needs, provided you post pictures once you make a purchase

Knives

Comments

Categories