How to Choose Your First Good Knife

How to Choose Your First Good Kitchen Knife:
A Guide on What to Consider & 
How to Navigate the Nuance.
Kyle Cooper 
Illustrations: Marco Antoniolli
Photos: Tim Ferron

At the time of this writing, we have 605 different kitchen knives in stock at Bernal Cutlery and more often than not, first time visitors to our San Francisco shop don’t know what to say when they’re asked if they need help with anything, their wide eyes rapidly scanning the knife walls. Some customers come with a good idea of what they are looking for and are even familiar with some brands and makers, but for those that don’t, going at it alone can be overwhelming. The kitchen knife world is nuanced and what may be true for one knife is not necessarily true for another, even if they look alike or are made from the same materials. Helping customers of all knowledge levels navigate the different options to help them choose a kitchen knife that they want or need is our priority.

If you can’t make it into the shop or if you want to get a head start before you come in, here’s a rundown of what we go over at the counter and how to approach choosing your first good kitchen knife. So settle in, we have a lot to cover.
Start (somewhat) Prepared

We work with a lot of customers that come in knowing that they need a kitchen knife but have little-to-no idea of what they are looking for and that’s perfectly fine, but having an idea of what you’re after can be a huge benefit. Being able to answer questions like, “what are you using now?”, “what kinds of foods do you cook the most?” and “how do you like to move a knife; are you a chopper or a rocker?” gets the process off to a great start. Once we get to know you better,  we can narrow down the selection rather quickly. 

Knowing how you are going to use and care for the knife is also important because different knives have different use limitations and care needs. While none are wildly complex, certain knives won’t survive heavy use or significant neglect; e.g., if you are in control of your kitchen, like to stay neat and clean as you go and don’t tend to leave your knives soaking or dirty, then a carbon steel knife can be a great option. If you have a busy and somewhat unpredictable kitchen and prefer to clean everything up at the end or even the next day, a stainless steel knife is a safer choice. 

I’ve worked with lots of customers who say they would love to learn to be able to take care of a higher maintenance knife and that’s great, but it’s usually a better bet to invest in what is likely to happen rather than what you hope to do.

Next is to prioritize your ideal knife's characteristics. The main characteristics—in no particular order of importance—are: reactivity, toughness, edge retention, sharpenability and aesthetics. 

Reactivity refers to how a knife chemically reacts to its environment and tt’s a major determinant in how a knife needs to be cared for. Do you want a low maintenance knife or are you able to pay a bit more attention to keep from rusting if it means a better performing knife?

Toughness speaks to how easily a knife can be damaged and will determine the level of use-intensity the knife can withstand without chipping or cracking. Do you want a knife with power or finesse? Keep in mind, this is in regards to potential damage during regular use and not accidents, drops or questionable decision making, etc. 

Edge Retention can be loosely defined as how long a knife will initiate cuts with a reasonable amount of effort. Pretty much all knives can get sharp but some do not stay sharp as long as others and all knives will eventually become unusably dull, it’s just a matter of when. Do you want a knife to be usable for as long as possible before it needs to be sharpened or are you willing to sharpen or have it sharpened more often to gain other characteristics like higher toughness, lower maintenance or a knife that can get really sharp?

Sharpenability is a made up word that we use to describe how sharpenable a knife is; i.e., how easily a knife can form a new, sharp edge and how fine of a finish the edge can take and perform well with. Do you plan on sharpening the knife yourself or will you bring it back to the shop to let us do it? If it’s the latter, this can be a lower priority but if you are going to maintain the edge, having a high degree of sharpenability can be a huge benefit.

Aesthetics refers to what the knife looks like. How important is it to have a knife that you like to look at versus how it performs? Aesthetics and performance can often exist together, but if looks are at the top of the list, usually more compromises need to be made. However, I will tell first time knife buyers that placing aesthetics higher on the priority list is not a terrible idea. If you're new to good knives, then your baseline for how a knife can perform is most likely low. Choosing a knife that you are excited to use because it looks cool will get you far and when you come back for your second good knife, you’ll be able to tell us what you like and don’t like about what you have and we can further dial in the combination of characteristics that works best for your preferences.

It’s important to know that it’s rare to check all the boxes much less in the order of priority within one knife; compromises almost always have to be made.

Now that you have an idea of what you are looking for, we can start to narrow down the field.

Knife Style 

Japanese style knives are designed with specificity in mind. Different shapes and geometries are used to enable knives to do different or sometimes very particular tasks. While there are plenty of general use kitchen knives in the style, the overall approach is to have the perfect tool for a particular job. 

With the exception of some of the specialty knives, Japanese knives are categorically thinner, lighter with harder steels than western knives. This usually results in knives that get sharper and feel sharper for longer than western style knives due to the thinner grinds and harder steels. The catch is that because of the thinner grinds and harder steels, they are more prone to edge damage putting more restrictions on the types of foods they can be used on reliably. 

With Japanese style knives, it’s best to avoid hard and/or dense foods and not to use them for light butchery or tougher work. This means foods like winter squash, frozen foods, removing avocado pits and breaking down chicken and fish should be left to a western style knife or a Japanese knife that is designed specifically for the job. Our rule of thumb is if you can’t comfortably bite into it, you shouldn’t use a Japanese style knife on it. 

All knives need to be used in a controlled manner to avoid edge damage especially with Japanese style knives. Twisting, scraping and applying pressure with your off-hand on top of the spine are all actions that need to be avoided. At best, these actions will prematurely dull your knife and at worst, break off a detrimentally large portion of the edge or tip (think coin sized and up).

Japanese knives often come with a right-hand bias grind and bevel angle. In the right hand, the outside face of the knife has shape and the inside face is more flat with the bevel angle matching the asymmetrical grind. This is to help compensate for the slight but naturally outward path of the arm as it pushes the hand and knife forward. The asymmetrical grind will catch this outward movement and help guide the cut straight down. If used in the left hand, this the right-bias will extenuate the outward movement as the left arm pushes the hand and knife forward. We are seeing more and more symmetrically ground knives and only a few of our double bevel Japanese knives are so right handed that they are unusable in the left hand. But depending on the perceptiveness of the left handed user, they can feel awkward and are best to be avoided.

Western style kitchen knives are robust, versatile and tough. They are usually heavier with thicker edge grinds than Japanese style kitchen knives and are almost always symmetrical. This means they are less prone to edge damage and can be used on tougher foods and tasks that need to be avoided with thinner Japanese style kitchen knives, all while being a good fit for users of all handednesses. 

Steels typically found in western style kitchen knives are softer than the steels found in Japanese style kitchen knives. The softer steel paired with the thicker edge grinds usually means the knife will feel dull faster. This is not to say that western style knives don’t get sharp and stay that way. They do, but compared to the thin-edged, hard steel Japanese knives, they typically don’t have as much edge retention or peak sharpness. Keep in mind that even though they are not typically thought of as being as high performing as Japanese style kitchen knives, western fine dining as we know it—with all those fine, intricate cuts— was developed using western style knives.

If you are after that super-sharp, precise cutting feel, a Japanese knife will meet you there but only if you are willing to be more particular about how it’s used, what it’s used on and how it’s cared for. If you want a single knife that can do most everything or you feel like you need a knife that can be put through the ringer, go with a western style knife, especially if you live in a this-is-why-we-can’t-have-nice-things household.

Blade Shape & Length

The blade shape and length of the kitchen knife you choose should be influenced by the cutting motion you find most comfortable, the amount of space you have to work and store the knife and the type of foods you cut the most. For an attempt at brevity, I’ll only cover the shapes that are considered general purpose and in the lengths that make the most sense for most users.

Now is a good time to clarify that listed blade lengths on knives are more categorical than dimensional. It’s common that blades in a length category will be longer or shorter than the number listed in the title. Also worth mentioning is that blade height and edge geometry can vary within all blade shapes. Taller blades are generally more comfortable to chop with and can lend in a straighter cut through taller objects –if lined up correctly– and narrower blades have less drag moving through foods and can be redirected mid cut easier but have a higher propensity to wobble  —think boat rudder.

With the Japanese style approach of having the ideal tool for a specific task, you get many different blade shapes in the style. Looking at only the general purpose shapes, you have the gyuto, the santoku and the nakiri.

The gyuto is a general purpose kitchen knife available in several blade lengths. They are modeled after the western style Chef’s knife and have a similar edge line geometry. When most people envision a kitchen knife, this is probably the shape they are imagining. The prototypical gyuto is a triangular shape with a gradual but constant curvature from heel to tip, with the edge and spine forming the point near the midline of the blade height. The curvature of the edge leaves a narrow flat section at any point on the edge. The narrow flat section requires the blade to be rocked across the cutting surface to utilize the entire edge effectively.

The gyuto can generate power when it’s moved as a lever; the tip anchored to or only lifting very slightly off the cutting surface with the heel of the knife lifted up and down with a forward push or backwards pull ending with a rock into the next cut. If a vertical chopping motion is used — the edge staying parallel to the cutting surface with the knife moving up and down with or without a slight forward push or backwards pull — the cutting edge only makes contact with the cutting surface the width of the narrow flat section, resulting in the cut not completely severing the food across its full width. If you’ve diced an onion and it started to develop “wings” about halfway through, this is probably why. A longer gyuto is not only a more effective lever, it is also a great slicing knife. The longer lengths allow for fewer pushes and pulls to get through objects, resulting in a cleaner cut. The curvature also adds slicing length without adding dimensional length.

Gyutos are available in blade lengths ranging from 150mm (6”) to 330mm (13”) with 210mm (8.25”) and 240mm being the most common. Blade length helps determine knife capacity in terms of how efficiently it performs certain tasks. 

The smaller 180mm (7”) length is great for small kitchens where “one-piece” food are cut most, e.g., carrots, onions, celery, peppers and a lot of fruits. Even though the gyuto can be an efficient lever, the smaller length limits this efficiency when used as such. If more power is needed for large and dense foods or if a longer pull slice is needed, it could struggle a bit. If you aren’t limited by space or comfort, a 180mm gyuto is a great supplemental knife but is not my first choice for a single, main knife. If you know you want a smaller knife, looking at a santoku is a good way to get a “full-sized” knife with a smaller presence.

A 210mm gyuto is usually the sweet spot for most people. It’s the answer to the common ask for an “8” Japanese chef’s knife.” It’s a touch longer than 8” at 8.25” and this can be a benefit in terms of being a more efficient lever. It’s long enough to handle bigger foods like cabbages and for longer cuts like halving cucumbers or carrots lengthwise while not feeling oversized. 

A 240mm gyuto is the longest length that I typically recommend for the majority of users but I think it’s the ideal length for a gyuto’s lever and slicer edge geometry. It can feel a bit long to customers who have not used a longer knife but it's not so long that you lose control over the tip for finer work. Its 9.5” length can generate a significant amount of power when needed and it makes an ideal slicer for the home kitchen. The length starts to shine when larger foods like eggplants and piles of greens or herbs need to be prepared or when you want really clean slices for plating. It’s understandable that 240mm can be intimidating and it might even be too long for some small kitchens – you have to have space to set it down when you’re not using it — but if it’s comfortable and works in your space, I highly recommend a 240mm gyuto as a first Japanese style kitchen knife.

The santoku is the most popular general purpose kitchen knife shape that’s of Japanese origin. The shape has a smaller size range and has a smaller footprint in general. They are proportionally taller for their length with a flatter cutting edge at the heel; spanning half to two-thirds the length of the edge before a subtle curve starts to move towards a downward curving spine to a tip that’s in the lower third of the blade height. 

The wider flat section on the heel edge makes it a more efficient chopper than a gyuto; the edge staying parallel to the cutting surface and the knife moving perpendicularly with a slight forward push or backwards pull. The lower curve to the tip allows a low levering/mincing motion. Because the tip is closer to the edge, the heel can’t be lifted very high before the tip digs into the cutting surface which limits the size of foods that can be cut with a levering motion. It is possible to utilize the shape with a hybrid cutting motion of sorts by moving the knife like a chop but with the tip leading the downward stroke adding a levering action at the bottom and creating a circular motion.

Santoku come in lengths from 135mm (5.25”) to 180mm (7”) with 165mm (6.5”) and 180mm being the most common. Their shorter length makes them less optimal for long slices but they are ideal for those “one-piece” foods mentioned earlier. A 165mm santoku is nimble yet still big enough to manage most foods, but it can start to feel undersized quickly when you have those larger foods or you get that sneaky big onion. 

A 180mm is a great do-it-all-for-the-shape length. Its extra length lends itself to the larger foods and its still small enough to feel totally in control on smaller foods like mincing shallots and garlic. I use a 180mm santoku the most in my home kitchen and find that it does well on the majority of what I need to cut. Though when I need to work on something larger,  it is very nice and arguably safer to have a longer blade like a 240mm gyuto. 

 

The nakiri is a rectangular blade with a very flat edge. Like the santoku, they come in a smaller range of sizes from 135mm-180mm, with 165mm-180mm being the more standard sizes. The nakiri is a knife for chopping but due to the lack of any significant curvature to the edge geometry, it makes for an inefficient rocking knife. Most nakiri have a subtly rounded tip making it possible to use with a lever-like motion but the long, flat edge doesn’t aid in rocking the knife into the next cut. 

Nakiri are effective at cutting a wide swath of food in one motion, like 4-5 carrots all being cut into rounds at the same time. Because they lack a tip, they often need the support of a smaller petty or paring knife for more intricate tip work. If you cook a lot of vegetables, a nakiri makes a lot of sense. I reach for a nakiri when I want to do a lot of rough chopping quickly or if I need precision for thinner cuts on wider objects. 

The shapes covered above are speaking to their standard profiles. All three have alternate styles with an angled tip, tapering down sharply from the spine. This is called a kiritsuke tip and is a profile borrowed from a specific knife called a kiritsuke. While there is some practicality to the style, I think it should be factored in as an aesthetic consideration when looking for your first knife. 

It is worth mentioning the chinese style cleaver as a potential main kitchen knife. It’s used by a few billion people to do almost anything in a kitchen. It’s shaped much like a nakiri with a long flat edge, but being that a chinese style cleaver is much taller and often longer with a thicker edge, it can stand up to heavier use while using the squared tip that can do finer work. Though the nakiri and chinese cleaver are similar, they aren’t a like-for-like substitution for each other. Chinese style cleavers are growing in popularity but they do require  specific techniques to fully utilize them. If you attempt to use one with the same technique of a chef’s knife or gyuto, it can feel cumbersome.

The western style approach is to have a knife that can do all the jobs in a kitchen and is why they are referred to as Chef’s knives; a knife a chef can use to do pretty much everything and they are the inspiration for the Japanese gyuto. As a category they are heavier than gyutos with tougher edges. Chef’s knives come in lengths starting around 6” up to 12” plus. There are western style knives that are intentionally designed to do specific tasks, but all in all, a chef’s knife is made to handle any type of regular kitchen work. 

Decision making with a chef’s knife mainly involves considering the weight and length of the knife. Though chef’s knives are made all over the world with each region having slightly different design elements, the quintessential representatives come from Germany and France. A German chef’s knife will often be a bit heavier with a thicker edge than a French chef’s knife with both being tough enough to do the light butchery and heavier veg work that a gyuto can’t. A heavier knife can aid in force generation and some people find it makes cutting easier because the knife helps, but others can find the weight fatiguing.

The proper length is a lot like what was discussed with the gyuto, in the idea that a longer knife will be a more efficient force generator and cleaner slicer and a small knife will be more controllable. A 6” chef’s knife with some blade height can accomplish a lot in the kitchen but the 8” is the celebrity of the group. The majority of customers coming into the shop ask for an 8” chef’s knife before anything else. 

The German 8” chef’s knife has enough height to feel comfortable by giving knuckle clearance above the cutting surface while a traditional French 8” chef’s knife is noticeably narrower and does not afford the same confidence under the knuckles. I wondered for a long time why the French would design the most demanded knife length in a limiting height and the answer I finally got from a French knife maker was that the French use 9” knives. Fair. 

Like my fondness for 240mm gyutos, I encourage customers to consider going with a length of chef’s knife that maxes out their comfort zone to help get the most out of the shape. A 9” chef’s knife has a great ratio of length to control with a better height relative to its length while not appearing much longer than the 8” in hand. The extra height gives back the knuckle clearance found in the German style 8” chef’s knives that is lost in the traditional French 8” chef. A 10” chef’s knife can still be user friendly but does start to get heavy and a bit unwieldy. If power is what you are after, a 10” chef’s knife is the heavyweight champ. Once you get beyond 10” you lose some perceived practicality but gain the respect of your peers. 

There are some western style santokus that are absolutely worth considering if you like the idea of a flatter edge and smaller profile but still want a thicker, tougher edge. I do think that the santoku shines with a thinner blade but the style has become a fan favorite, now being found in almost every off-the-shelf knife set no matter where it’s made.

I am a firm believer that the perfect knife kit has a combination of Japanese and western style knives, but if you are looking for a low maintenance knife that can handle almost everything you would want to responsibly do with a kitchen knife, at the expense of some edge retention and finesse, western style chef’s knives are ideal.
Steel Type 

Selecting the appropriate steel type for how you will use a knife may have the largest impact on your experience with it. It will determine the regular maintenance routine in both daily and long term care. Steel type will significantly influence how long the knife can stay sharp, how easily it sharpens and how durable the edge will be. If there can be a summary of choosing a steel type it would be that usually, the more you invest –in money, time and/or attention– the greater the return can be. The decision will come when you reflect back to the characteristics we talked about near the beginning and what your priorities are. 

Even though it is a major determinate, steel type is not the sole driver of performance. The quality of heat treatment on the steel and the grind applied to the knife must be factored in when setting expectations on how well a knife will work. Heat treatment helps determine steel quality as a material. Generally, high quality heat treatments will bring out all the best qualities of the steel type and reduce the negative qualities. Identifying quality heat treatments before use usually comes from the reputation of the blacksmith or the brand and their quality control. Grinding the knife helps determine how the knife will move through food and how resistant to chipping the edge will be. Both will be discussed later. 

The two main steel categories are carbon and stainless steel. You may have heard that you should ask for a high carbon steel knife because they are the best and this is absolutely true, but what this idea skims over is that the bad ones are made from high carbon steel too. High carbon refers to the percentage of carbon present in the mass of the steel and helps determine how hard a steel type can be. There are low and medium carbon steels as well and they are generally reserved for common steel objects that need to have structure but don’t necessarily need to be hard to function properly, like pipes or paper clips.

High carbon steel knives have at least .08% of their mass made up of carbon as this is the percentage of inclusion when a steel starts to be capable of being hard enough that can be sharpened to a point and have that point hold for a usable amount of time. More carbon doesn’t necessarily relate to better knives, it along with the rest of the elements in the alloy –the steel “formula” or “recipe”– can be looked at to help inform what a steel can potentially do. Usually, a knife only marketed as being “High/Hi Carbon” doesn’t have much else to sell itself on.
Carbon Steels

Steels that do not have significant amounts of corrosion resistant elements in their alloy, i.e. chromium, will develop staining, spotting, color shifting and darkening, from normal use. This includes all carbon steels. These changes are the physical representation of a chemical change that has occurred on the surface of the steel and is caused by the oxidation due to moisture and oxygen exposure. This is often called patina. Patina development is inevitable with use and the formation of patina should be encouraged. The new chemical compound on the patinated surface is less susceptible to corrosion (rust) than unreacted steel. 

Some users of carbon steel spend a significant amount of time removing the patina to help maintain the original look of the knife but they are actually making their situation worse. Each time the patina is removed, fresh, unreacted steel is reexposed and the process starts all over again. If the patina is removed with common abrasives, deeper surface scratches are etched into the steel creating more exposed surface area that can and will react with continued use. It’s a fighting-a-losing-battle approach. If you own a carbon steel knife and don’t want it to aesthetically change, don’t use it.

Proper care of a carbon steel knife includes keeping it clean and dry when not in use. This doesn’t mean that it needs to be wiped clean between cuts but it does mean that if you are done using a knife for more than a few minutes, even if you aren’t done cooking, you should wipe the knife off at least. Though there is no definitive research that I have been able to find about reaction time frames, based on what I have seen, patina can start to develop on a new, unreacted carbon steel knife in 1-5 minutes after use and corrosion can start to develop in 10-15 mins. Once a healthy patina layer is developed, the appearance of more patina will slow dramatically, even to the point where it’s not noticeable and corrosion formation can take upwards of 45-60 minutes to begin. 

Example: If you are at your cutting board and need to go get another ingredient to cut, just set the knife down and go get it. If you are transitioning from cutting and prepping to cooking, wipe the blade off even if you are going to come back to cut more later. When you are done with the knife for that meal, rinse it off and towel dry right after; don’t even set it down. Rinsing and air drying will cause corrosion. Using a dishwasher is a bad idea for all knives, but especially carbon steel knives. 

It is important to be able to distinguish oxidation from corrosion to avoid inadvertently buffing away an otherwise healthy patina. Patina, no matter the pattern or color, will be smooth to the touch or match the surrounding surface texture. The color range is rather wide, but will mostly start with iridescent colors –like a rainbow oil slick– and transition to shades of grays. Sometimes, depending on the types of foods you are cutting, it can appear as dark blues or earth tones. The earth tones are tricky because they can resemble corrosion without having actually passed into the iron oxide phase. 

Distinguishing patina from corrosion can be as simple as feeling it. If you can’t feel the spot, it's probably patina and should be left in place. If it has texture, especially a chalkier texture that grabs a fingernail, it’s probably corrosion and should be removed before it spreads. 

 

Top: Rust/Corrosion; Bottom: Oxidation

 

There is a popular misconception when it comes to what sort of foods carbon steels should and shouldn’t be used on. It doesn’t take a long time to find somewhere on the internet that says you can’t use carbon steel knives to cut highly acidic things like citrus and tomatoes and this is entirely false. This idea seems to come from the fact that highly acidic things will cause more intense reactions than foods with pH levels closer to neutral. A carbon steel knife is going to cut a lemon just fine, you’ll just see more patina develop faster. Alkaline foods that are on the base end of the pH scale, like bananas, will also cause more intense reactions especially on unreacted carbon steel.

Another effect of using a new carbon steel knife is the transfer of oxidation residue onto foods. When using an unreacted knife to cut an onion or garlic, you should expect a metallic smell and some graying of the cut onion and garlic. It’s not harmful and generally does not affect the taste of the foods after they are cooked. As the knife develops a deeper patina over time, this effect will stop. This experience is less consequential for home cooks but professionals need to consider this when choosing a knife for work.

Corrosion can be removed in a few different ways but all of them include abrading the surface of the steel and is best done in a progression from most gentle to most aggressive. Early surface corrosion can sometimes be removed with a towel. More established surface rust will require something stronger like a stainless steel polishing product like Bar Keeper’s Friend. Next would be a rust eraser, a product that is more akin to a textured pencil eraser and comes in a variety of aggressions. This is the point where to remove the corrosion, the surface of the knife will start to show the signs of abrasion via scratches. If more aggression is needed than what rust erasers can provide, it’s usually best to have them professionally buffed.

Carbon steel knives are often harder than stainless steel knives and can hold a better edge for longer while taking a better edge faster when sharpened. They are usually less tough due to their propensity to be ground thinner and because they lack the added tensile strength from the addition of corrosion resistant elements. Carbon steels force a compromise of a higher performing knife at the expense of requiring more care and attention to not detrimentally affect its usability.

Shirogami (white steels), Aogami (blue steels) and tool steels are the most readily available options for carbon steel and all contain sub-types. The various carbon steels are fairly similar in alloy makeup, usually consisting of iron, carbon, some forging and hardening elements. They sharpen well and can have good edge life due to some intentional carbine inclusions. Carbides are irregular shaped particles that are harder than the steel grains. They occur in basic tool steels due to naturally occurring impurities that are not removed in the forging process but can also be added in for specific effects. The hardness and jagged shapes of carbides help to extend the edge retention of the knife because they become exposed on the edge as the steel grains wear down from use and help to break surface tension of foods to initiate cuts. Basic carbon steels and tool steels can be quite reactive, so expect to see patina development early. These carbon steel types can be found in entry level knives at a lower price point as well as the best of the best. 

Shirogami steels are carbon steels with less complex alloys and do not have a significant amount of carbide presence. Because what little carbides they do contain are small and sparse, it allows for a very fine steel grain structure that can compress tightly to create very hard steel. The lower-carbide-finer-grained steel can take new edges very quickly and hold finer edges more effectively with the compromise that without the aid of hard carbide inclusions, they may dull to a smoother edge sooner than other steels. Shirogami steels are known for being tough but because they can be forged very hard, they are often ground thinner which can mitigate some of the toughness. 

Practically speaking, white steels can get very sharp, very quickly. They can take a wide range of finishes but need to be sharpened more frequently to keep their high sharpness. Shirogami is truly a sharpener’s steel. 

Within Shirogami steels are three varieties: Shirogami 1, 2 & 3. The numbers are not indicative of a quality range but they do represent different alloys. The majority of what we see are Shirogami 1 & 2. They are very similar with the only difference being that Shirogami 1 has more carbon than Shirogami 2 and allows for it to be forged harder. A really well heat treated Shirogami 1 has the potential to outperform most carbon steels.

Aogami steels are known for high edge retention while maintaining sharpenability with one variety having a high degree of toughness. For most customers, having high edge retention is a top priority so Aogami steel knives are very popular. Their alloys are more complex than Shirogami with the inclusion of tungsten being a major component of their performance. Tungsten is a very hard element that creates large, irregular and hard carbides. The presence of the tungsten carbides helps Aogami knives cut for a very long time. The downside of having these large carbides is that cracks are more easily formed at the boundaries of where the carbides and steel grains meet. This does not mean it is a fragile steel, in fact, Aogami steels have other elements in them to help mitigate chipping. 

The Aogami steel family of steels includes Aogami 1, 2 and Super. Like Shirogami, the numbers are simply labels (the coded steel type names are literally taken from the color and number used to label the steel in the steel yard) and are not indicators of better quality, only different characteristics. Aogami 1 is known for being the most sharpenable of the Aogami family and is capable of taking and holding a finer edge. It contains the second highest amount of carbon and tungsten which both support its hardening ability and edge retention but increase its potential to chip. Aogami 2 is the middle of the road in the family in terms of performance and I consider it to be the best fit for the widest range of customers. It has the least amount of carbon and tungsten which can affect its performance but reduces its likelihood to chip. 

All of the Aogami steels are alloyed with chromium but only in a fraction of a percent and is not nearly enough to have any sort of real corrosion resistance. It does make it a bit less reactive than Shirogami steels and adds a slight amount of toughness. 

The outlier of the family is Aogami Super. Aogami Super has the highest amount of carbon and tungsten in the Aogami family and it also contains vanadium. Vanadium is an element used in steel alloys to give toughness through wear resistance. Wear resistance refers to the willingness of the material to wear down or change shape. This means that steels with a significant amount of vanadium will hold a sharp edge for longer than other steels. This also means that when it comes time to sharpen, forming a new bevel can take more time and effort and may need a more aggressive grit progression. The better the heat treatment on Aogami Super, the more sharpenable it is while retaining toughness and edge retention. Because of the wear resistance, we rarely see really thin grinds on Aogami Super blades. When paired with a slightly thicker edge, it can make a tough Japanese style knife. 

If you are prioritizing edge retention and toughness and have no plans on sharpening the knife yourself, Aogami Super is an excellent choice. 

Stainless Steels

Like carbon steels, stainless steels are alloys of carbon and iron but they also include chromium. During the forging process, the non-reactive chromium atoms migrate to the surface of the steel and act as a barrier between the reactive carbon and its environment. This protective layer results in a knife that does not oxidize with use and one that won’t form rust with long term exposure to moisture and debris. Most knives that people just have are made from stainless steel.

The inclusion of chromium in the alloy can and often does cause a softer steel. This softer steel can take more impact before chipping but it can take longer to sharpen and can dull go faster than a harder steel type. The compromise here is lower maintenance for a lower performance ceiling. 

This is not to say that stainless steels are worse than carbon steels. Their goodness comes down to what you prioritize and how it will fit into your use case. Stainless steels can survive sitting dirty overnight waiting to be cleaned, though this is still not ideal. Putting a stainless steel knife in a dishwasher is less detrimental than with carbon steels, but it will negatively affect the edge performance and may eventually lead to oxidation and corrosion due to the more extreme environment. 

There are a lot of choices in stainless steels becuase more time is spent developing new and better performing stainless steels than carbon steels, so we are seeing more and more come to market.  Instead of talking about specific stainless steels, we will talk about some of the more popular types.

Standard stainless steels are the most prevalent in the category. They contain significant amounts of chromium making them highly resistant to oxidation and corrosion. They often contain hardening elements that help to make a relatively soft steel into a hard steel that is tough and can hold an edge well. In this category, it’s safe to assume cheaper knives use a less refined quality of stainless steel. These are great choices if you prioritize low maintenance and edge toughness. 

Powdered stainless steels are seeing the most advancement and are starting to bridge the performance gap between carbon and stainless steels, especially in terms of sharpenability and edge retention. Powdered stainless steels start as what would otherwise be a large-grained, stubborn steel and is turned into a fine grained steel capable of holding thin, sharp edges without compromising corrosion resistance. Basically, the steel is turned into a superfine powder in a nitrogen rich environment and then is sintered back together to form a solid mass. They can remain quite tough but because they can be quite hard, they are often ground thinly for sharpness at the expense of some toughness. Powdered stainless steels that we find in culinary knives are a great choice if you prioritize low maintenance and edge performance, though they can get quite pricey.

Semi-Stainless steels could be a category on their own but fit best into the stainless conversation. Semi-stainless refers to the idea that these steels have some percentage of chromium that is capable of resisting oxidation and corrosion much better than carbon steel knives, but they don’t contain quite enough to have what could be considered a true stainless effect. We consider the magic percentage of chromium to be 13%, though some other sources will say as little as 11% percent qualifies. Semi-stainless steels can range from 6% to 12.5%, making the higher range effectively stainless. They can and will show oxidation with neglect, but you would need to try really hard (or not at all) to get them to rust. The benefit is that they are able to retain more hardness, toughness and sharpenability while remaining fairly low maintenance. Semi-stainless steels are great, all-round steels as long as they are cared for properly.

There is another bridge between stainless steel and carbon knives called stainless clad carbon. This means that a soft stainless steel has been forged on the outside of a piece of hard carbon steel. You’ll get the benefits of carbon steel on the edge and the benefits of stainless on the face of the blades. You will still need to keep it clean and dry when not in use as the exposed carbon steel will still react. Read more about clad knives and other blade construction types.

Grind Geometry & Cutting Feel

The shape of the knife as would be seen in a cross-section of the blade is, in my opinion, the most under-appreciated aspect of good kitchen knives especially when compared to the off-the-shelf, mass produced options. While the heat treatments and steel selection will dictate edge and material performance, the grind geometry will determine how the knife moves through food. There are many types of grind shapes that are applied to knives and while we see a good variety, there are a few staple geometries that make up the majority of our selection.

Convex grinds are popular in both Japanese style and western style knives. Convex grinds are often applied by hand, one piece at a time. You typically won’t see them on cheaper mass produced knives, but higher quality Western style knives and a lot of Japanese knives will use this approach. 

A convex ground knife will appear to have flat sides at a distance or quick glance, but will actually have a curvature to the face of the knife, with the high point being somewhere near the midline of the blade. This shape allows for the thinnest part of the knife to enter the food first and gradually make its way through. When the food reaches that high point in the curve, it will start to separate from the blade, reducing the surface contact and drag. This effect is commonly called food release. While food release is a real effect, even knives with excellent food release will still hold onto thin, moist cuts (i.e. thin cucumber slices or diced onions) as they will often bend and travel over the high points without releasing. 
Convex ground knives are identifiable as blades that appear to be smooth with no significant lines or beveling. You can gauge the convexity of a blade in a few different ways but my preferred method is holding the knife in your off hand and lightly pinching the blade at the spine with your thumb and forefinger on both sides with the edge pointing towards your hand. Pull your lightly pinched fingers down the blade towards the edge, feeling for the change in the face of the blade. You should feel the curve as you get closer to the high point and then get thin again as you approach and slide off the edge.

Another technique is to use a flat edge like a business or credit card. While holding the blade horizontally, place the edge of the card perpendicularly to the blade and flush against the spine. Look for the space that’s created between the card edge and blade to gauge how the curvature moves from spine to edge. You can even rock the card back and forth to find where the high point of the curve lies on the face.

In the culinary knife category, wide bevel grinds are almost exclusive to Japanese style knives. While it’s fairly rare to see a non-Japanese style or Japanese-inspired style knife with a wide bevel grind, they do show up from time to time. It’s a relatively new way of grinding double bevel Japanese knives and it was taken from the single bevel grinding approach with a wide bevel only on one side. 

Wide bevels are recognizable as having distinct sections on the face of the blades, usually with a non-straight line running through the middle of the face from the heel of the knife to the spine behind and above the tip. The line is referred to as the shinogi line and is the ridge where the wide bevel grinding starts to dive towards the edge. The wide bevel geometry accomplishes two main things; it allows for a very thin edge on a more robust spine and makes for more straight forward thinning. 

When knives have been sharpened several times, the thickness of the edge increases as it moves up into the wider section of the knife. This can create a feeling of the knife having to be forced through foods and can negatively impact edge retention in significant ways. When knives become too thick or wedgey, the sides of the knife can be ground down to restore some of its original thinness. With convex grinds, the curvature needs to be replicated by hand with a subtle rocking of the blade during a thinning (usually a sharpening faux pas). This technique takes a lot of practice to get right. A wide bevel knife is easier to thin. The wide bevel section of the blade face can be laid down onto the whetstone and pressed flat without a need to find and hold a specific angle or apply a curve. This technique also takes practice to do really well, but the learning curve is less severe. 

The wide bevel is usually not perfectly flat. Experienced grinders are able to apply a convexity or concavity from the shinogi line to the edge, further affecting the smoothness and/or sharpness of the cut. This means that even though a knife has a thick spine and feels like a heavy workhorse, the edge can cut finely and be rather delicate.

Historically, Japanese style knives have had a biased grind favoring a right hand user while western style knives have been ground ambidextrously. There are some left-handed biased double bevel knives out there, but they are few and far between. 

With either a convex or wide bevel grind, the biasedness is shown by having a more drastic shape on the outside face of the knife and a flatter, more subtle shape on the inside face of the knife. This geometry can be useful when used in the appropriate hand because it helps to catch the natural outward push as you move the knife back and forth away from your body. The curved shape will push against this outward motion and help the knife fall straight down leaving a more even cut. If the same knife is used in the opposite, unintended hand, the curve will be on the inside and exaggerate the outward push, leading to uneven slices and cuts.

Biasedness in knives can vary from present but hardly noticeable to almost unusable by the opposite hand. From what I have been told, most lefties are used to adjusting to right handed tools, so even the slightly biased ones can be fine. But being significantly biased can cause frustration. You can use the pinch or card trick again to gauge the biasness though a good look at the faces of the knife should expose the significantly biased knives.

 

Edge Radius & Performance
Edge radius, or how thin or thick the edge was ground and how that dimension extends up the blade towards the spine, can significantly impact how a knife performs and how it needs to be used. Information regarding blade geometry and how it affects the use of a knife can get complicated quickly, but it is important to introduce even if just slightly because misjudging or misunderstanding the edge radius of a knife can ruin the experience and/or lead to damage. 

We’ve already discussed that Japanese style knives are thinner than western style knives and the general impacts on sharpness and edge retention and you’ll find knives with edges that are much thinner or thicker than the average in both categories but is usually more apparent with Japanese style knives.

Thinness is what has given Japanese knives their reputation for being sharp, high performing knives. The hardness of the steel allows for the knives to be ground thinner without rolling over or becoming unusably fragile. The thinner the edge and the further this thinness extends up the blade, the sharper and smoother the knife will feel. Putting a sharp point on a thin edge will break the surface tension very easily leading to that sharp, smooth cutting feel. 

A thin edge will also feel sharper for longer between sharpenings. Because the width of a thin edge is so small, it can still break surface tension even without having a sharp point. I believe that almost all knives are best if sharpened at least once a year, but I have had customers come into the shop for the First Free Sharpening three, four and five years after purchase because of this effect. The knife they are using has been dull for a very long time but the thinness still allowed it to cut food effectively, though not optimally. Once they get it sharpened, they are reminded what a truly sharp knife feels like and we see them again for a touch up much sooner.

Edge radius will also factor in as the knife is used and sharpened over time. The cross section of a knife is essentially a triangle and as knives are sharpened the edge is moved further down the triangle becoming thicker over time. There is a point where the thickness becomes detrimental to performance and edge retention and is when we would suggest having the knife thinned to bring back some of the original edge radius. The further the thinness extends up the blade, the longer it will feel thin through rounds of sharpening, not to mention that thin edges generally take new edges faster.

Thin edges are also more fragile. No matter the toughness of the steel, there will be a point of thinness where the edge becomes too fragile to use. The magic of a really well made Japanese style knife is that they are taken to the point of thinness where sharpness and cutting feel are maximized without passing the point of usable fragility. All that to say, a thinner knife will be more prone to edge damage. 

The same can be said for western style knives but the difference between a thin edge and a thick edge is much smaller. There are thin western style knives that are more fragile than thicker western style knives but they are generally still thicker than the average Japanese style knife.

You can gauge and compare thinness prior to purchase or use by using a technique that we have seen from knife makers all over the world: Place the side of the edge on top of your thumbnail (parallel to, not perpendicular/edge down) and applying pressure to the edge while rolling your thumbnail back and forth. This will distort the edge and the degree of which will indicate how thin the edge is. 

It’s a technique that is used by grinders to determine if the steel is of proper hardness and if the edge is at the intended thinness. If the edge distorts and holds that distortion, the steel is too soft. If the edge distorts and breaks, the steel is too hard. If the edge distorts and springs back into place, it's properly hardened. The amount that the edge distorts indicates if the edge is properly ground as intended. This is referred to as being “nail-going” and it's a real bed-and-porridge situation in the idea that what’s too thin for one person, may be perfect for another.

I use this technique all the time to compare knives and can make educated assumptions on how their edge grinds will affect their performance without having to actually use them. 
Handle Type
The choice of  handle type on a knife is not just aesthetically driven and is almost entirely a personal preference. It’s the main contributor to perceived comfort and is what determines the weight distribution and balance of the knife. Handles come in a wide variety of materials but the majority of what we see are wood or resin infused wood. Wood handles can be unique, beautiful and can age gracefully, but they are an organic material that can move and shift due to the environment. Resinated wood is more stable, consistent and resists heat damage and absorbing odors and water better than wood but can feel and look more generic. 

In the greater knife world, there are two main types of handles creatively called western style and Japanese style (or yo and wa respectively when associated with Japanese style knives).

Western style handles are usually 3-4” long and are consistent in length relative to blade size and can vary accordingly in overall mass. They are made from two scales riveted to either side of the tang, the part of the knife that extends off the blade to form the handle. The extra weight in the handle from the thick metal tang and riveting acts as a counterbalance to the weight of the blade and are usually thought of as being more balanced, with the balance point being right where the handle and blade meet and can feel more present in the hand. 

A Japanese style handle (wa handle) is often 130mm-145mm long depending on the type of knife it’s going on with a round shape and are generally made from wood. Tapered tangs are buried into an opening at the top of the handle by heating the tang red hot and burning it in, using epoxy or both. Burning on the handle on allows for a firm hold as the wood contracts around the tang as it cools but with the possibility of detaching the handle to replace it in the instance that it gets damaged. 
 
If you’ve already decided a western style chef’s knife is the one for you, choosing a handle can be simple. Chef’s knives come with western handles. Some are thicker or thinner with more or less pronounced ergonomics but for the most part, they are all very similar. It’s really down to personal preference and how the handle complements the total package.

Like Japanese style blade shapes, there are multiple styles of handles to choose from. Japanese knives do come with western style handles as described above, but the quintessential Japanese knife has a wa handle. In fact, the traditional handle for a gyuto is a riveted, two scale handle much like western style handles and have only become available with true wa handles in the last 40 years or so. 

Some wa handles are completely smooth or have a ridge on one side (called a D-handle), but the majority are octagonal with ridges running the length of the handle. You will find other geometric shapes on custom or specialized knives. The D-shape is meant to be a right handed handle with the ridge sitting in the hand crease at the first knuckles. I have found that the ridge falls just beyond the fingertips and essentially disappears when held in the left hand. Wa handles are longer than western style handles because they are lighter and need the extra length to help balance the weight of the blade. Even with the counterbalance, almost all wa handled knives will feel blade heavy, with the weight noticeably in front of your hand. This can give a feeling of control from having an increased tactile response from the blade but to some it can feel unbalanced.

There are hybrid handles with buried tangs like a wa handle but with pronounced ergonomic curves like a western handle, but these are not as common. The choice of which handle is right for you is ultimately determined by how it compliments the knife and how the entire package  feels in your hand.

Fit and Finish
The finish of a knife refers to the texture and appearance of the blade plus how all the components are put together and is what determines the aesthetics of a knife. A knife with a higher degree of fit and finish generally commands a higher price, but this is usually more fit than finish. The more time spent getting the knife to seamlessly fit together or if it has a handle with more ornamental components is the main price driver with the cost of the materials trailing closely behind. We’ll save handle materials for another day and focus on the common types of blade finishes that you’ll see.

Staying on brand, Japanese style knives have a wider range of finish types. The most common types are migaki, mirror-polished, kasumi, kurochi, tsuchime, nashiji and suminagashi. A single knife can have multiple different types of finish and while the type of finish is ultimately aesthetics driven, some are meant or thought to serve a practical purpose. 

Migaki is the most common type of finish and refers to any sub-mirror finished blade. Migaki is representative of the common idea of a shiny metal knife. Migaki is a clean look with the higher end variety looking perfectly smooth with some shine and the lower end showing some grind marks on a soft metallic color. 

Mirror polished knives are buffed until they show a clean reflection and are some of the more visually striking knives. While the shine of mirror polishing usually steals the show, the practical purpose is that it greatly reduces friction as the knife moves through foods; the shine is a bit of a bonus. If you are set on a mirror polished knife for the aesthetics, I highly recommend getting a high-quality stainless steel because a carbon steel knife with a mirror polish will show oxidation dramatically. 

 

Kasumi is a finish that is hazy or misty in appearance with a lightly textured feel similar to a very smooth stone or etched glass. This finishing technique is used to help break up the surface contact between the blade and the food to create a smoother cutting feel. A kasumi finish is most often found on the kireba bevel on wide bevel ground knives but there are some convex ground blades with a full kasumi finish. Some people have found the extra surface area created by the texture of a kasumi finish increases the feeling of drag as the knife moves through foods, though I think this is primarily a personal preference.

Kurochi is the most distinct type of finish due to its dark coloring that stands out against a typical shiny blade. Translating to “first black,” a kurochi finish comes from the iron scaling that is forced to the surface as the steel grains tighten and become hard during quenching. All knives have this kurochi scaling at some point and will be polished away, left in place or reapplied to resemble the natural kurochi. An important thing to know when owning a kurochi finish is that it is not permanent and will be worn away over time. Aggressive wiping or buffing to remove corrosion will speed up the process.

Tsuchime or hammer-marked finishes are blades that have repetitive dents in the blade that are either from or are meant to resemble the marks from hammer strikes. This patterning can vary from tight and symmetric to random and organic with the denting in all shapes and sizes. This finish is often asked for in an attempt to increase food release and while the texture does help foods to not stick to the blade, the grind shape of the knife is a bigger factor. Tsuchime finishes are either left over from the forging process or applied after the fact through stamping and are often found combined with other finishes.

A Nashiji finish is similar to tsuchime in that it is a rustic finish left from the forging process. It’s most often found combined with a kurochi finish or has the kurochi scaling removed leaving a lightly polished but textured finish. Derived from the word “nashi” meaning “pear,” the slightly rough and pocked finish is thought to resemble that of pear skin. Nashiji finishes could also aid in food release but should not be relied on for the effect. 

 

 

Suminagashi or damascus is the group's celebrity and can be identified by layers of contrasting lines and in a seemingly infinite array of patterns. Often touted as an indication of quality, a suminagashi finish can be found across the entire spectrum of knives. Among all knife characteristics, it probably has the most misconceptions about what it is and is not.. The term damascus comes from a specific type of steel and process that resulted in visible carbon banding showing as lines across the face of the blade. The term is now applied to any lined finish. 

 

The lines on true suminagashi come from multiple layers of alternating metals that become visible when ground and etched. There are applied suminagashi finishes that are not made from layering but are lasered onto mono steel knives to appear layered. The lines on layered knives do have different textures to go along with the contrasting colors which can reduce drag but the effect is usually minimal. 

Western style knives do not have the same diversity of finishes as Japanese style knives. They almost always have a polished finish with major differences in aesthetics being found in the handle styling. Damascus finishes can be found on custom knives from western knife makers.

 

Price
Knife pricing outside of specialty shops can be tricky. Knives that are readily available from lots of franchised stores and websites can be some of the worst offenders when it comes to value for money spent. These are often household brands making knives in the millions per year that can be bought with little or no guidance. Not to say that all knives that fit this description are inherently bad, but they are usually overpriced for the actual quality you're receiving. 

Western style knives as described above are some of the most prevalent knives that most people have in their homes – the set of 8, 12, 24 knives that come in the block that are wedding and graduation gift staples. Western knives like this are almost always (and with few exceptions) soft stainless steels that prioritize durability over edge performance. When bought as a set, they can cost thousands of dollars. This can seem like a good value when the individual knives cost several hundred each, but that’s capitalism economics at its finest. The most popular brands that are of this type used to be of great quality before the demand from excellent marketing necessitated lots of knives to be made quickly and they are riding the wave of their former reputation. 

Japanese style knives that fall into this category are difficult to navigate if you are looking into quality knives for the first time. They are often found at large specialty retail franchises and look impressive while emphasizing marketing buzzwords like “damascus”, “high-carbon”, “__ number of layers” and “the perfect __ degree edge angle” while not mentioning specific steel types and other critical details for decision making. 

These aggressively marketed knives are generally decent to good when brand new but this is mainly due to their thinness compared to the western style that most western buyers are familiar with. Once these knives receive a few rounds of sharpening, they become thick quickly. The softer, more stubborn stainless steel that they are generally wrapped with is laborious to abrade. When it comes time to be thinned, the price of the work is often higher than the value of the knife.

Price can be a good representation of quality across all levels –you get what you pay for– as long as you’re working with a reputable source. The more prioritized characteristics are found in a single knife, the chances are good that the price will be a reflection of how many boxes can be checked. Though there are exceptions, price is generally based on material quality, quality of heat treatment, quality of forging and grinding, level of aesthetic finishing, the reputation of brand and maker and overall time spent on each knife.

 

To help with budget setting, general pricing groups can be set based on what you can expect to get:

An entry level knife can cost $50-$150. In this tier, you can expect to get a quality knife that was most likely factory made from stamped blades with some but not a significant amount of hand work. Both carbon steel and stainless options are available, with some stainless clad models showing up at the higher end of the price range. Depending on the steel type, you can expect a basic heat treatment that means the steel will meet the standard expectations of the steel type. 

You can also expect to find some aesthetic flourishes towards the top of this range. If a knife is in this price range and overly ornate, it’s probably lacking in material, heat treating and/or forging quality. Beware of knives in this range being heavily marketed with the common buzzwords as they are only meant to distract from less desirable characteristics.

Most western knives are in this category and you’ll be able to tell why some of the more expensive examples jump into the next price range, but overall, you can get a really great western knife for less than $150.

$150-$350 would be considered the middle tier. You can get a simple handmade knife or a factory made knife with some aesthetic flourishes or advanced materials and techniques in the lower end of this price range. At the upper end, you start to see some high performing and aesthetically pleasing knives made by notable smiths and sharpeners. Here you’ll find some more advanced steel types like powdered steels and a wider range of quality stainless steels that start to compete in performance to carbon steels. 

These knives are typically made in lower volumes but while they are frequently stocked, they are not always readily available because they are in higher demand. The biggest difference between this tier and entry level is the quality of craftsmanship as seen in the heat treatments and grinding work first and finishing work second and together help create a better user experience. 

The “top shelf” price range starts above $350 and can go upwards of $1,000 plus. It is a wide range but here you start to see the best of what’s readily available. The best blacksmiths and grinders collaborate to make knives that are often made from the same materials as the other tiers, but to a level of intention and detail that results in some truly impressive pieces. The highest quality of heat treatments and grinding meet the most refined finishing and most challenging forging techniques. You’ll find mirror finishes and mesmerizing damascus patterns that are exclusive to the craftspeople who made them. Differentially heat treated honyaki forged knives start to show up in this range. 

The quality of heat treatments often create steels that maximize the potential positive characteristics of the steel type while minimizing the negatives. That is to say that knives made from steels that are not known for edge retention stay sharp for longer and steels that are usually stubborn to sharpen take new edges and finer finishes with ease. All of this combines with handle materials that aren’t usually included in the middle and entry levels like exotic woods and precious metals.

The main differences in the lower and upper ends of this range usually comes down to the reputation of the makers, the time spent on detail oriented work and the level of finishing and materials, all with consistency from piece to piece.

Past $1000 are the uniquely special knives. This could be from rarity, accessibility, reputation or any combination thereof. When the highest-end materials, craftsmanship and execution are delivered by the legends, they land here. We do see some newer makers also show up here. Their high quality work is combined labor hours and minimal production of a few pieces a year and the prices start to jump. Usually these custom makers create one-off pieces from unique materials to compliment the time spent. 

I believe that most people can figure out how to make any knife work. I mean, most people have been figuring out how to manage with their current knives that made them want to buy a new one anyway. But when you are using a knife frequently, if not multiple times daily, having the right one for you is invaluable and can make a significant impact on your experience in the kitchen. Once you feel the way a good knife performs, we’ll be here to help you find your second good knife (and third and fourth and fifth…).