The Best Kitchen Knives

The best kitchen knives today we call “chef knives.”  Every good chef must be able to multitask, so a chef’s knives must be designed to handle multiple jobs. You want a single tool that can handle all the slicing and chopping involved in a stir-fry or stew yet also be good for slicing the family roast. One must take several factors into consideration such as weight, balance and sharpness. Most of these become a direct function on how the knife was made. Is it a forged blade or stamped blade and which is better?

Forged knives is made of a single bar of steel, which is heated and then pounded into it’s shape. Where as a stamped knife, is “stamped” or cut out from a large sheet of steel, then is sharpened and heat-treated for durability. As a result, the forged knife is typically heavier by several ounces than a stamped knife and will be less flexible and keep its edge longer than a stamped knife.

It used to be that forging almost always meant that knife was of better-quality and more comfortable and efficient to use. However, today you can find high-quality stamped knives. Not all forged knives are of the same quality so make sure you are failure with the brand.

Shun Knives

Shun Knives

Incredibly sharp edges and unmatched aesthetics set Shun knives apart from every other kitchen knife on the market today. In the great tradition of Seki’s sword smiths, every knife is handmade by highly skilled specialists and requires at least 100 handcrafted steps to complete. Every day, the legacy of ancient sword smiths serves as inspiration to the artisans in the Kai factories. Kai’s 100-year-old tradition of blade-making excellence, combined with the newest technology and the most advanced materials, makes every Shun knife a functional work of art.

Because of the hard, premium steel from which Shun cutlery is made, the blades can be thinner, lighter, and sharper. A thinner edge cuts more easily by putting less stress on the edge—so fewer strokes do the job. Thinner edges are easier to control as well, making cutting smoother and, once again, relieving stress on the edge. Shun’s handcrafted Japanese knives are sharpened to a precise 16° angle on each side of the blade (for double-beveled blades, this means a comprehensive angle of 32°). For comparison’s sake, European-style blades are generally sharpened to 20-22° each side for a comprehensive cutting angle of 40-44°. Due to the premium-quality steel we use for the cutting core of our blades, Shun’s incredibly sharp edge will nevertheless last an incredibly long time before resharpening is needed. Experience shows that with Shun you get extremely sharp edges that last an extremely long time.

Wüsthof Knives

Wüsthof Knives

Family owned for seven generations, Wusthof has been in Solingen Germany for over 200 years. Long renowned as “The City of Blades,” Solingen, Germany has earned the reputation of crafting the world’s finest cutlery for generation after generation.

Located in Western Germany near the banks of the Wupper River, Solingen has been home to master blacksmiths for over 2,000 years. The many creeks and spillways of the river were perfectly suited to provide power for the production of blades in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was then, in the year of 1814, when WÜSTHOF first got its start in Solingen and the business has remained in the WÜSTHOF family ever since.

Knives made in Solingen have long been honored and prized for their outstanding quality and craftsmanship. For that reason, the name of Solingen has been protected with legislation, “The Solingen Decree,” so that this dedication to quality is maintained and that knives made in Solingen meet the most exacting standards.

Conventionally hand-sharpened knives are plagued by irregularities that diminish the blade’s sharpness and overall performance. Through a proprietary process inclusive of computer-controlled robotics, WÜSTHOF’S PEtec yields a smoother, more refined edge with dramatically increased sharpness and sharpness retention along the entire length of the blade. Each knife is precision forged from a single piece of sturdy high-carbon steel that resists stains and corrosion. Wüsthof’s Precision Edge Technology (PEtec) ensures a 20% sharper blade with twice the edge retention.

Global Knives

Global Knives

Global is another Japanese Knife company inspired by the art of crafting Samurai Swords. First designed is 1985 by Komin Yamada, his mandate was to design a range of knives that were truly revolutionary. Golbal created a one-piece stainless steel knife.  Each blade is carefully weighted to ensure perfect balance in the hand. Using it’s own proprietary stainless steel called Cromva 18, it’s hard enough to hold a steep acute cutting edge for a very long time yet soft enough so that it isn’t to difficult to sharpen.

Global Knives is the winner of many prestigious international awards. Introducing GLOBAL at International exhibition in Frankfurt, Germany in 1988, the world praised that “GLOBAL holds a Japanese curvaceous beauty.” This was the beginning of successful history. Mainly among the European countries, famous chefs began to use GLOBAL, and it spread out to the public.

Shop for Chef Knife Sets

Featured Chef Knife Sets

Shun Hiro 7-Piece Knife Block Set
Shun Hiro collection features high-performance Eastern-style knives designed for speed, agility and balance as well as striking beauty. A cutting core of ultra premium SG-2 steel gives them a super sharp, lasting edge, and hammered blades help keep foods from sticking for fast, efficient use. Handcrafted in Japan, our exclusive seven-piece collection includes essential knives for home cooks.

Shun Kaji 11-Piece Knife Block Set
For ambitious cooks, this set makes an excellent introduction to the Kaji cutlery series developed exclusively for us by Shun. The process of forging the blades combines ancient Damascus and clad construction techniques.

ZWILLING ® J.A. Henckels Miyabi Birchwood 7-Piece Knife Block Set
Part of the Miyabi collection jointly developed by Zwilling J. A. Henckels and Chef Rokusaburo Michiba, this knife set exemplifies the traditions and craftsmanship of Japanese sword makers with the excellence of German engineering. Manufactured in Seki, Japan, the knives feature a potent core of SG2 super steel protected by a 101-layer stunning flower Damascus pattern. Each Cryodur blade undergoes a multistep process to maximize the properties of steel: hardened in a state-of-the-art vacuum furnace, rapid-quenched to room temperature in seconds, and cryogenically treated at -321° F to enhance corrosion resistance.

Wüsthof ® Gourmet 36-Piece Acacia Knife Block Set
One of the most trusted names in cutlery, Wüsthof® offers the perfect knife for every cutting, chopping and slicing job. This comprehensive collection combines all the knives you’ll need plus eight steak knives, sharpening steel and shears stored neatly in a custom beechwood knife block. Strong, long-lasting blades with a v-ground edge are precision-tapered from bolster to tip to maintain their shape and hold their edge. Blades are laser-cut from a single piece of steel and easy to sharpen.

Wüsthof ® Classic Ikon 22-Piece Knife Block Set
Wüsthof’s set of Classic Ikon knives gives you everything you need for a well-equipped kitchen. Builds on the company’s fine cutlery tradition, the knives feature thinner blades, refined ergonomic handles and recessed bolsters that allow full sharpening to the heel. Precision-forged knives feature tempered and hardened high-carbon steel blades with a long-lasting V-ground edge that’s easy to sharpen.

Global Classic 10-Piece Wood Block Set
Global’s award-winning knives are designed to the exacting standards of Japanese professional chefs, making them an excellent choice for dedicated home cooks. This set equips you with a full assortment of all-purpose and specialized kitchen cutlery, all in a bamboo block for handsome storage.