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What’s your favorite kitchen knives?

5K views 57 replies 35 participants last post by  Redrunner 
#1 ·
Looking for a new set of kitchen knives, want a set of nice knives, I don’t want a cheap set. I would like a quality set of knives that will last and are sharp! Any ideas?
 
#2 · (Edited)
My wife has both German Wüsthof and Japanese Global in her large knife block. They are both good enough to last a lifetime. I keep them razor sharp with my Edge Pro system. I only have to touch them up a couple times a year and they get used a LOT. My wife is a hard-core foodie and is in the kitchen much of the day, seven days a week.

Williams Sonoma and Sur la Table are both high end cooking stores that carry good knives. Sur la Table in particular does not carry any junk products.
 
#3 ·
Zwilling J. A. Henckels are very good knives. They have varying degrees of quality sets but even the less expensive set of them are good.

Just a couple tips..
Look for a forged blade, not stamped... get a good multi grade sharpening stone and if you don't know how, learn to sharpen a blade properly... not with one of those gimmick sharpening tools. Take a honing steel to the blade often between sharpening. Never cut on anything except wood or plastic cutting board and hand wash only, never dishwasher.
 
#5 ·
I've used Henkels, Wusthof, Chicago, and some other brands. My knife block is just a mix and my wife refuses to let me replace with a set. The Wusthof are probably the nicest and my favorites (and they are among their cheaper lines of knives). The rest are usable but take more sharpening.

When they open back up, check out Sierra Trading Post, they sometimes have nice knife sets for very good prices (part of the TJ Maxx family).
 
#7 · (Edited)
Minimum. And that’s for a block with few knives and the cheaper handles. For Wüsthof’s better lineup and more knives, it can be closer to a grand usually, but I see Sur la Table is running some big sales and free shipping.

Here’s a sale price on a good set that’s not too small but room to add more pieces later.


If it were me I’d pick that up on sale and add a santoku knife if you do any vegetable chopping.


I think you’ll be happier with Wüsthof over Henkels, personally, just for a little more blade hardness. Globals and other good Japanese brands are harder yet, but take a little more time to sharpen.
 
#8 ·
I bought a wooden handle set in a block the first couple of years we were married. We will hit 50 this year and the only markings on the knives are the USA on the blades. I think I have seen similar looking sets sold by Chicago Cutlery.
 
#9 ·
The 3 best kitchen knives IMO in order would be Wustof, Sabatier and Cutco. Sabatier does have some low end chinese product to stay away from but very little, unlike Henkels. That being said if you were on a tight budget I would say get the Henkels (two man) made in spain knives, they are all forged and come from Toledo Spain and for the price cannot be beat. Wustof's poultry shears are hands down THE best set of poultry shears on the planet.
 
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#10 ·
I agree with everyone above. In our kitchen upstairs (not Mrs. Aqualung's work kitchen downstairs), I have a Henkels set I got as a wedding gift, 25 years ago. It's a great set and they hold up very well. I also have a Chicago knife added in as well, and that's great, too.

However, I want to suggest something else. If you're not up to dropping several hundred on a knife set, I know of an alternative to consider.

Look into finding a restaurant supply house and check into their commercial offerings. They may not be the most attractive knives, with their white, plastic handles, but they sure take a heck of a beating and hold an edge. If they didn't hold up in the commercial kitchens with the constant and hard use, they're not worth a dime, so they're built to take the punishment. Talk with the sellers there and see what they have for quality and durability. Then, you could build your own set for a fraction of the cost of the higher price sets.

Are they the super-duper, precision quality offered by the $1500.00 sets? No. But is your use going to justify the cost?

It kind of goes to the same consideration of whether you want a $3,700.00 Korth revolver or an $800 Ruger GP100

Just another consideration.

Aqualung
 
#11 · (Edited)
This coming from an avowed , life long , knife interested person who cooks every day and is tight with a $ ... Check out the kitchen knives by Forschner . These are the kitchen knives made by Victorinox ( Swiss Army Knife fame) the Swiss make good blades .
They make 3 basic block sets ranging in price from $190.00 to $340.00 depending on how large a set you want .
I own many , have used just about all (even Randall Made kitchen knife) and the Forschner are the ones I usually grab . Good value , not just paying for a name.
I sharpen mine with a steel ...a few quick strokes and the edge is razor sharp .
My father and brother were / are butchers and used a steel to sharpen . My brother turned me onto this brand ...it's the brand they use in his meat cutting / butcher shop .
There is a commerical line and they are great value for single knives . Commerical meat cutting knives must perform or they will not be used very long...my brother swears by Forschner and he cuts meat for a living .
Gary
 
#13 ·
I'm not a chef or foodie and can't justify nice kitchen knives but we've had some Chicago Cutlery knives that were a wedding present over 35 years ago and that are still going strong. We finally retired a really cheap set of junk knives and replaced with a set of Chicago Cutlery in a block that is also holding up really well. One piece blade and tang with some kind of phenolic material for handles but they hold an edge well enough for us kitchen hacks and the cost was under $200. I guess when it comes to kitchen knives I'm more of a Hi-Point guy.
 
#16 ·
If you have the money look into the German manufacturers: Zwilling, Wusthof, and Boker.
I forgot about Böker! Once on a “language immersion” trip when I was studying German, we took a tour of the major Solingen “Manufakturen” and I really fell in love with Bökers. I have some of their pocket knives but forgot they did kitchen cutlery as well.

Yeah if you really wanted a set of knives that were beautiful as well as functional, and not the same brand as everyone else on the block, the walnut handle Damascus Bökers are truly works of art.
 
#23 ·
I have bought many knives over the years but about a year and a half ago I saw an ad online for four ceramic knives and on a whim I purchased them. I have never owned sharper knives in my life. I use these knives exclusively now. All my steel knives of many different brands and types all sit in the bottom draw unused unless I need to open a box or something other than kitchen use.
 
#30 ·
The wife talked me into a six blade set of CutCo knifes 48 years ago when I was in the US Army at Ft. Bliss. I was an E-4 at the time and was quite concerned at what she was asking. However, we’re still married and we still have the same set of knives. What I especially like, personally, is their handles. We’ve bought nothing but CutCo since. We’ve added to them over the years and plan on giving them to our favorite niece when we no longer have a need to cook (i.e. we B dead).
Our last CutCo purchase (steak knives) was about 9 years ago. Their quality was still top-notch and maybe a touch better from our original set.
Tough decisions to be made. Good luck.
Dave
 
#32 ·
Redrunner, just a word to the wise. Cutco may be “OK” for the casual user who doesn’t know better or cook much, but they are just stamped, soft 440A steel. Vastly over-priced in my opinion, and marketed in some very weird ways. You’re better off investing in some truly good knives and learning how to sharpen them yourself with a good set of stones.

Also, ceramic knifes are very interesting and I own a couple, but they can be brittle so they’re good for some tasks like smaller paring knives, but not so much for other roles like carving meat. Generally I would rather have good steel that I can sharpen at the edge profiles I prefer, or do things like put on a double-bevel edge.
 
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#41 ·
Redrunner, just a word to the wise. Cutco may be “OK” for the casual user who doesn’t know better or cook much, but they are just stamped, soft 440A steel. Vastly over-priced in my opinion, and marketed in some very weird ways. You’re better off investing in some truly good knives and learning how to sharpen them yourself with a good set of stones.
I agree, my Cutco knives are fine but they get dull fast. I have yet to see a US-made knife perform up to the level of the German ones. I mostly got Cutcos because a young man who worked for me was selling them, as he put himself through college on scholarship.

That said, my Cutco kitchen shears are the finest I have ever used.
 
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