Buy a very good chef’s knife. There are expensive options, there are some more affordable options. Carbon steel is best, but there are some very good stainless alloys too. Do some research. Don’t cheap out, this is a tool you’ll buy for life if properly maintained. Pro range Wüsthof, Zwilling or Kai are great options.
Learn how to properly and safely use it.
Learn how to maintain it and keep it razor sharp (not exaggerating, you should be able to shave your arm after sharpening it). I use a dual sided Japanese wet stone (1000/3000 grit), it’s great.
Not only proper knife skills with a good, balanced, sharp knife are much safer and save a lot of time, they also make cutting a joy instead of a chore.
I agree with you 100%, I use both Wüsthof and Zwilling at home and have subscribed to the mindset of “a dull knife is a dangerous knife” for a long time.
However, I would place more emphasis on learning to sharpen a knife and purchasing a whetstone kit, because even the cheapest 2nd hand blade can be made to cut razor sharp at least once.
Yeah I sharpened a shit Ikea knife once. It was good for about 5 minutes. A quality knife holds an edge for a very long time. I use and mine daily and hone them about every other day, and feel the need to resharpen them maybe once every two months.
PSA: a honing steel does NOT sharpen a knife, it straightens the edge and should be used very gently.
Also, never buy knives in kits. First of all, these are shit 99% of the time. And second, when properly used, a chef’s knife is the only knife you’ll ever need.
I’m glad to hear that! I have a 8" chef’s knife, 3 ¼ straight paring knife and a 12" serrated slicing knife, they work wonders and I can do everything with them.
Knife skills.
Buy a very good chef’s knife. There are expensive options, there are some more affordable options. Carbon steel is best, but there are some very good stainless alloys too. Do some research. Don’t cheap out, this is a tool you’ll buy for life if properly maintained. Pro range Wüsthof, Zwilling or Kai are great options.
Learn how to properly and safely use it.
Learn how to maintain it and keep it razor sharp (not exaggerating, you should be able to shave your arm after sharpening it). I use a dual sided Japanese wet stone (1000/3000 grit), it’s great.
Not only proper knife skills with a good, balanced, sharp knife are much safer and save a lot of time, they also make cutting a joy instead of a chore.
I agree with you 100%, I use both Wüsthof and Zwilling at home and have subscribed to the mindset of “a dull knife is a dangerous knife” for a long time.
However, I would place more emphasis on learning to sharpen a knife and purchasing a whetstone kit, because even the cheapest 2nd hand blade can be made to cut razor sharp at least once.
Yeah I sharpened a shit Ikea knife once. It was good for about 5 minutes. A quality knife holds an edge for a very long time. I use and mine daily and hone them about every other day, and feel the need to resharpen them maybe once every two months.
PSA: a honing steel does NOT sharpen a knife, it straightens the edge and should be used very gently.
Also, never buy knives in kits. First of all, these are shit 99% of the time. And second, when properly used, a chef’s knife is the only knife you’ll ever need.
I’ve been out of the knives game for a while, but I’m pretty sure Victorino Fibrox knives are still one of the best bang for the buck.
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I’m glad to hear that! I have a 8" chef’s knife, 3 ¼ straight paring knife and a 12" serrated slicing knife, they work wonders and I can do everything with them.
Yes, a good chef knife really upped my cooking.