I may not be the sharpest knife in the block. But my block on my shoulders now is sharp about good knives and my block on the counter now holds quality knives – sharp and able to get the job done easily and effectively. I found this post buried in my unposted drafts – from Jan. 07! It’s about time I get this info out!
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Knives are far from my area of expertise. But a chef will tell you they are the most important kitchen tool. Perhaps they are right. As I note at the beginning of our Modern Maidservants page, to eat completely natural we wouldn’t need any tools but a knife.
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But I have spent my life with cheap knives that don’t hold an edge and are usually super dull. It wasn’t that long ago that I told my daughter I really didn’t see any need for expensive knives. But then I began looking at the reason I hated using mine so much. The edges were not only dull, but horribly knicked up, and the serrated blades were bent over. The proof came as I sliced a loaf a bread and ended up with a big pile of crumbs, and my daughter tried to dice chicken and ended up with shredded. Yes, it’d been too long since they’d been sharpened, but it hadn’t been that long, and they were losing an edge way too quickly. I knew it was time to do something.
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That began my research into knives. I found out that generally forged knives are higher quality than stamped, that high carbon stainless steel weds the best of carbon – great edge, with steel – no rust. I learned that Wustof and J.A. Henckels were the names to have, if you can afford them. I also learned that it is far better to buy 1 or 2 good quality knives, than have a “set” of poor quality ones. And that a good chef’s knife can easily cost double what I paid for the highest priced set I’d ever bought, but is worth it. Wusthof Classic
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I learned that Chicago Cutlery, whose cheap versions I’ve had in the past, makes a forged set that gets favorable reviews for the money. They are called Walnut Forged. That there is a line of stamped knives that ranks very well, and a 3-piece starter set costs about what I paid for my big so-so set. They are Forschener/Victorinox, the company that makes the Swiss Army Knife.
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I learned that my recommendations for which knives are most necessary, are pretty much the same as the expert chefs say, though I probably use my utility and paring more, and they all say the chef’s knife is the most used. Those 3 along with a serrated bread knife and a shorter serrated utility knife should be all you need, at least to get started. The only other knife you may prefer to have is a currently popular Santoku, Asian knife great for cutting vegetables. If you prepare a lot of meat, you may want along the way to add a boning, fillet, and/or carving knife also. But I’d say, get an electric knife for carving. You can use it on bread too if you like.
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Update: After about 2 years of use, I highly recommend the Wusthof Classic line of knives. I’ve been totally pleased with them. They are worth the money to have a great kitchen tool that you use day in and day out. If you can’t afford Classics, the Wusthof Gourmet
