The Best Kitchen Knives
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Sushi masters in Tokyo, classically trained chefs in Paris, and pitmasters in Austin all feel strongly about their knives. They select them carefully and care for them dutifully. Amateur chefs may not be fileting a Bluefin, julienning a carrot, or trimming a whole hog, but they need to do the same. The good news for cooks aspiring to move beyond cereal a la milk is that there are more and better knives available than now than ever before. That’s also the bad news. Knives are increasingly labeled, marketed, and sold as quasi-mythological weapons (…refined in the fires of Mount Doom by a secret society of metallurgists led by a charismatic wolverine…), which is both ridiculous and distracting. It can leave anyone feeling dull.
The verbiage is meant to distract from the price tags. There are $10 knives, $100 knives, and $1,000 knives on the market, and there are good and bad options at each level. Finding the steals at $10 and avoiding the junk at $1,000 requires expertise.
What the Experts Say
“The most important thing when buying a new knife is to get the right knife for what and how you cook,” says Jeremy Watson, founder of Japanese knifemaker Chubo Knives.
He recommends knife buyers consider their recipes first and their potential blades second. The knife should make the execution more pleasurable. Cooks who want to get into the fish filet game need something capable of bending along the curve of a sea bass’s spine, whereas vegetarians need a knife that can get through a butternut squash, maybe the most difficult common piece of produce to carve up.
Watson notes that most Japanese knives tend to be thinner and lighter, but they’re ill-suited to heavy-duty work like slicing through bone. And if you’re not the most faithful kitchen cleaner, he adds that a stainless steel knife that’s more forgiving of being left dirty is a better fit for you than other materials.
When considering buying a knife, it’s also important to think about length. Midori Shaffer, co-founder and CEO of Hasu-Seizo, a Seattle-based knifemaker, says longer knives are more versatile but harder to control. Short knives better suit fine work like slicing small fruits but are ill-suited to larger cutting tasks. Rod Gray, the CEO of the Kansas City Barbeque Society, says that when he was on the BBQ competition circuit he used a six-inch knife for trimming chicken and a 12-incher for trimming other meats at home. He won the national championship with a six-inch curved boning knife and a 12-inch beef slicer, proof that a few good knives might be all you need to do great work.
BEST OVERALL
Wusthof Classic Chef's Knife
The perfect knife might vary from person to person, but this is a knife that most people will find suits their needs. The Wusthof Classic Chef’s Knife is a, well, classic. It’s available in four blade lengths and several colors, but the classic black model is probably what you imagine when you imagine a chef’s knife, a reputation that’s well-earned.
This knife is made from a single piece of high-carbon steel and has proprietary technology that promises a 20 percent sharper blade and double the edge retention. In other words, it starts out sharper and it stays sharper longer. The polymer handle is contoured for a comfortable grip, and because it’s a chef’s knife, it’s well-suited to the majority of tasks a home cook will likely tackle, from chopping cabbage to slicing chicken breast.
BEST UTILITY KNIFE
hedley & bennett Utility Knife
Somewhere between a chef’s knife and a paring knife, a utility knife is perfect for smaller but not super precise tasks. This model from hedley & bennett, a company best known for its flagship aprons, is lightweight at just 86 grams and has a 5.6-inch blade made of three-layer Japanese steel. It’s comfortable and versatile enough that you’ll use it all the time.
BEST PARING KNIFE
Victorinox 3.5-Inch Swiss Classic Paring Knife
For small, precise cuts, a paring knife is the way to go. The Victorinox take on this style has a three-and-a-half-inch blade and a plastic handle that’s easy to hold even when wet. It’s sharp enough to perform as well as more expensive knives whether you get it with a straight or serrated blade.
BEST CLEAVER
Lamson Meat Cleaver with Riveted Walnut Handle
This is undoubtedly the best knife for horror movie cosplay, but it’s also a great way to do some hardcore butchery: cutting through bone, cartilage, and the like. This model from Lamson is made in the US of laser-cut, hardened, and tempered high-carbon stainless steel with a riveted walnut handle. It’s meant for cutting meat, of course, but you also won’t find a better garlic smasher anywhere.
BEST SANTOKU KNIFE
MAC SK-65 Professional Hollow Edge Santoku Knife
Santoku knives are Japanese knives with a straight hollow edge blade and curved spine that rounds to the point. They’re thinner and more lightweight than the standard chef’s knife, and they can handle many of the same tasks with more finesse. Japanese knife-maker MAC knows that a lighter blade means more effort cutting unless that blade is crazy sharp, so its take on a santoku knife is just that: crazy sharp. The blade is also dimpled, which cuts down on food sticking to the side, speeding up your chopping and cutting.
BEST BREAD KNIFE
Tojiro F-737 Bread Slicer 235mm
Smushing a great loaf of bread under a too-dull and/or too-heavy knife is a tragic thing to do, which is why this Tojiro bread slicer is such a nice thing to have in your kitchen. It’s lightweight, at just 110 grams, with a comfortable and attractive wooden handle. And its sharp, serrated blade makes quick work of even the crustiest baguettes. That it’s also maybe the best way to slice a tomato with precision is a nice little bonus.
BEST BONING KNIFE
Victorinox Curved Fibrox Boning Knife
Once you’re done giggling at the name, you’ll find that this knife from Victorinox is really the best way to minimize waste while deboning meat and fish. That’s thanks to its satisfyingly bendy curved blade, which conforms to the shape of whatever you’re cutting, making the kind of contoured cuts that a rigid blade can’t.
BEST SHEARS
OXO Good Grips Multi-Purpose Kitchen and Herbs Scissors
Shears aren’t knives, sure, but they fall squarely in the “sharp things you keep in your kitchen” category. These shears from OXO are great for everything from spatchcocking turkeys to cutting open particularly thick food packaging, and the included herb strippers make it possible to cook with fresh herbs—a real difference-maker for home chefs—without covering yourself or your kitchen in tiny leaves.
BEST MANDOLINE
Benriner No. 64 Japanese Mandolin Ivory Vegetable Slicer
It’s not a knife, but a mandoline is a great way for those of us without professional-level knife skills to produce perfectly even slices of fruits and vegetables. And we’re not just saying that: it’s easy to find this model with a rubber base and three interchangeable blades in professional kitchens where efficiency is paramount.
BEST VALUE
Victorinox 10-Inch Chef's Knife
A chef’s knife makes sense as a value knife because it’s maybe the most versatile tool in any kitchen. And the Victorinox 10-Inch chef’s knife makes sense because it’s just a damn fine knife for not much money.
BEST SPLURGE
Miyabi Black Chef's Knife, 9.5"
On the other end of the spectrum, if you want a very good knife that doubles as a show piece the Miyabi Black Chef’s Knife is the way to go. Featuring a core of micro-carbide powdered steel surrounded by 132 layers of stainless steel that’s hand-sharpened, the intricacy of the blade is matched in the black-leaf maple handle. This knife is handcrafted in Seki, Japan, a city known for producing cutlery and, in this case, a nice fact to share with any guests who ask about what is a truly striking piece of craftsmanship.
Frequently Asked Questions About Kitchen Knives
How many kitchen knives do I need?
You could do nearly all of the most common kitchen tasks with just a chef’s or santoku knife, but adding in a utility and paring knife will give you a selection that will let you do medium and small tasks more comfortably and precisely.
What makes Japanese knives different?
They’re typically lighter and thinner, and while many resemble their Western counterparts there are specific knife shapes and sizes that you can only find in Japanese cutlery.
Do I have to sharpen my knives?
Yes, and luckily for you the feeling of cutting with a freshly sharpened knife is one of life’s great pleasures.