Let's Talk Knives,,,
Some of the reponses in the IKEA thread got me really interested in "cheap" knives. Personally, I've only ever had baaaad luck with knives I've bought cheaply at places ranging from Wal-Mart to Macy's. They either dull immediately, the tang comes loose from the handle, they're uncomfortable or they just plain suck straight out of the box.
The only really good knives I've ever owned are the infamous Cutco knives (and those were hand-me-downs!) and my current Wusthofs.
Does anyone have any experience with good yet cheap knives?
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27 Comments:
Oh, what I wouldn't give for an EDIT feature! Ignore those totally random commas in the headline, please. :(
sheeats at 4:19PM on 01/11/08
All of the advice is JEP's post about cooking lessons for beginners say to make sure you have good quality knives - that means, invest!
Chew on That at 4:22PM on 01/11/08
Oh, I totally agree. I'm definitely of the "you get what you pay for" persuasion. I'm just wondering if anyone's found a hidden gem of a knife out there in the world.... :)
sheeats at 4:25PM on 01/11/08
The best knife I've ever had for the money is the Kershaw Shun 8" chef's knife (130 +/-)with granton edge. I cut for hours a day, and am yet to have any discomfort while using it. Its ergonomic handle is available for lefties, which is quite fortunate for me. The only downside is that you really need to use Shun's sharpening instruments.
beth1 at 4:30PM on 01/11/08
Heh, heh, heh... popular topic... I posted The ultimate kitchen essential. Who makes the best knives? in October, because I didn't bother to search the site first...
Otherwise I'd have found the very informative Best Knives? thread begun back in April... blush...
I'm still shopping knives, and just haven't decided. I can say I've been disappointed in Henckels knives. They just don't hold an edge well for me, and they're prone to rust spots. So much for Solingen steel. They're decent, but seem way too expensive for the quality.
LoCo at 4:39PM on 01/11/08
I remember Mark Bittman recommending those simple Dexter-Russell plastic-handled knives you can get in restaurant supply stores. (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/09/dining/09mini.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin) Anyone have any experience with those?
meancougar at 4:41PM on 01/11/08
I got a set of Wolfgang Pucks and they are not so bad for everyday. I am of the mind you only need a few good knives. If you have 3 that work in your hand like magic you are blessed.
JerzeeTomato at 4:42PM on 01/11/08
I own a Shun Chef's knife (pricey) as well as a Forschner Fibrox Chef's Knife (~$25) and like them equally well. The Forschner (recommended by Cook's Illustrated) is light and dishwasher safe. They are similar to the Dexter-Russell knives, which are available in a lot of restaurant supply stores.
Dominic
the zen kitchen
dvchurch at 5:03PM on 01/11/08
I think, like a lot of things, it really is best to spend the money on one or two great things, rather than a whole bunch of junky things. Since all a cook really needs are three knives (chef, paring and serrated), it's worth it to spend the big bucks on those, than spend, say $20 on a 10 piece knife set that isn't going to last a year anyway. Might as well spend the money once. I haven't encountered any cheap knives that really did the trick the way a Shun, Henckles or Wusthof does. But, it's really less about the brand, and more about the tang running all the way through and high quality materials. I wonder if there are amazing knives in Asia that are a fraction the price, made by the local master knife maker.
FigswithBri at 5:26PM on 01/11/08
Since the subject of knives came up, what about sharpening?
Any good sharpeners out there?
Rookiecook at 5:58PM on 01/11/08
My favorite chef's knife was my mother's. It has a wooden handle and Japanese symbols engraved on the blade. I don't know where she got it, or the brand name, but it sure does hold a great edge. (Her favorite was a ceramic Japanese chef's knife that my SIL got in Japan). My next favorite is the one recommended by Chef's Illustrated - the Forschner Fibrox Chef's Knife (~$25) that Dominic mentioned. It is such a bargain, that I bought them for my daughters and nieces, along with some Boos cutting boards. They aren't just great for the price, they are great!
BTW: I never put my good knives in the dishwasher.
PerkyMac at 6:03PM on 01/11/08
Thanks to Cooks Illustrated recommendations I saved a bundle and purchased Forschner's Fibrox 10-inch chef's knife, 10 1/4 inch bread knife, and paring knife last year. They have been the best knives I own and I've stopped using our Henckels and Wusthof's altogether in favor of Forschner/Victorinox. I got all 3 knives for less than $80 and a year later haven't had one problem with any of them. I also have a Victorinox Santoku that cost less than $30 that I probably use the most.
I have and would recommend these knives to anyone looking to spend ANY amount of money on good quality knives. I do strongly recommend going to a place like Williams Sonoma where they let you try the knives out, (they don't carry Forschner but for the price I figured I'd return what I bought if I didn't like them) and see what works best in your hands. I have heard awesome things about Global and Shun but did not like the way any of them fit in my hand or the weight of them.
I would say in my opinion the Forschner's feel in my hands like Wusthof Grand Prix series, and I love the fibrox because they don't get slippery when wet like our Henckels and Wusthofs.
I also went with the Forschners, and suggest the same to others, because of the cheap prices if you don't like them, and for some reason choose not to return them, it's not a huge loss, you can just go out and buy something in the more expensive lines of knives. And I'm proud to say I think I'll be sticking with Forschner for a very long time!
bobcatsteph3 at 6:09PM on 01/11/08
I have a Victorinox fillet knife that is really good and not that expensive. It came sharp out of the box. But my primary knife is a Wustof chef's knife.
As for sharpeners, go to Henry Wesptfal. If you meant do-it-yourself sharpening, then I would suggest not doing it yourself. It's best to leave that to professionals with a grinding wheel. Anyway, Westpfal just re-located. They also have a mail-order business. Call for more info. (212) 563-5990. Also, see here. If that's too much trouble or not in your neighborhood, ask around for a sharpener who uses water with their grinding wheel.
chungle at 6:27PM on 01/11/08
I second the comment on the Fibrox, although I've only tried the 10" chef's knife (I too got the recommendation from 'Cook's Illustrated').
I think that 'you get what you pay for' is true only up to a point; beyond that, it moves into the realm of 'pay for cachet' (or bespoke).
For example, although the Fibrox is a very comfortable and efficient knife, I don't love the way it looks, while, on the other hand, we also have a Zwilling Twin cuisine series 4" paring knife (http://www.zwilling.com/locale/en_ww/index.php/bereich/sortiment/produktbereich_id/1/produktbereich/serien/serie_id/3099/artikel_id/12579),
which in addition to having a very good blade (though no better than the Fibrox) is also extremely pretty... and quite expensive.
mongoose at 6:42PM on 01/11/08
I really don't like the feeling of a plastic handle in my hand. I like a riveted handle where I can see the rivets. I know there are lots of great knives with completely concealed handles but I really prefer to see the rivets.
Knives are mostly a matter of personal choice. You have to handle a knife. While on a knife-purchasing mission with my BF, he asked how I liked the Sabatier knives and I didn't like them because they were blade heavy. They felt very unbalanced in my hand.
One of my favorite knives was a cheapie but it's no longer available. A while back Ming Tsai did a bunch of utensils for Target and one was a nice heavy santoku. That knife resides in my knife roll so I can grab my faves and run (I mean walk). It met all my criteria - full tang, stainless steel, riveted handle, really nice balance. Didn't matter the name - the knife felt great in my hand.
I love my 10" chef but some cooks find a 10" blade unwieldy. You have to get what's comfortable.
chiff0nade at 7:04PM on 01/11/08
Wow. Almost every other knife recommendation discussion on the internet I've seen has resulted in some kind of huge pro- and anti- Cutco argument that doesn't go anywhere.
I worked for Cutco, so I kept my sales demo knives...which you get for like 10% cost or something like that. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't buy them since they are so expensive. I'd definitely agree with the inexpensive restaurant supply shop knives.
wunami at 9:00PM on 01/11/08
I like my cutco bread knife. It's super-sharp.
As far as sharpeners go, I just bought a ceramic Kyocera sharpening steel that has a sharpening surface as well as a honing one. Worked like a charm on my 8 in. Global Chef's knife.
My advice -- if anyone asks you what you want for your birthday, provide them with a knife wish list. It worked for me!
hereandthe at 9:47AM on 01/12/08
A friend of mine worked for Cutco during college, she had the set. They were all scarily sharp and worked very well...
I've personally been looking into a good all purpose chef's knife (I'd like to get my mother one), so I'll be browsing this thread often!
fuuchan at 12:07PM on 01/12/08
I totally agree with the recommendation to avoid sets and focus on having the three "essentials" -- a chef's, a paring and a serrated (specifically, a bread knife).
That said, you should consider the tasks you do a lot of, according to your individual cooking habits. You may find there are some "specialty" knives that are worth having. For instance, I'd hate to be without a long, well-sharpened carving knife. I do frequent roasts, carved steaks, turkey breasts, etc., and I find a carving knife to be much more efficient than a chef's knife, especially when slicing meat very thinly for sandwiches.
Come to think of it, if forced to choose, I'm pretty sure I'd give up the paring knife in favor of the carver.
Knives are just SO personal!
LoCo at 1:10PM on 01/12/08
I am a Wusthof die hard... but just today, I purchased a whole 14 pound OX1 Striploin piece of meat to butcher into my own NY Strip steaks and also purchased a cheap Dexter-Russell ($12) boning knife to do the break down. Even though I have a Wusthof boning knife, the D-R was SO sharp and did the job so good, it will be my go-to meat knife in the future.
jonfoxx at 10:05PM on 01/12/08
2 for 13 bucks at Sams Club. Best chef's knife's I've ever used. and If they break I don't have to cry because they were so cheap (haven't had one break yet)
barbigirl8 at 12:21AM on 01/13/08
The best knife I own cost me less than ten bucks. I sharpen every day regardless of which knife I use ( I have about 20), but my favorite is the cheap one that seems to fit my hand. So, who cares if it does this that or the other; each person has to find the knife that fits their hand. The problem arises when someone doesn't know how to sharpen...
cucinacecilia at 1:15AM on 01/13/08
I have a pretty good selection of good knives, chef's, paring, serrated, utility, boning, etc. from Wustof and they're very good. That said, when it comes to every day chopping, slicing, etc. I almost invariably use (hands head in shame) one of the 20 or so Smith & Wollensky steak knives I've gotten over the years. They fit my hands perfectly and they're always sharp. After years of honing the Wustof's every time I used them, the thrill was gone. Anyhow, it would never have dawned on me to do so, but one year I "regifted" yet another set I'd received, to my then boyfriend's Italian from Italy mom. And that's what she ended up using. After getting over my initial semi-condescending reaction to it, I tried it, and hey, the woman was on to something.
chisai at 2:52AM on 01/13/08
I'm so glad this came up, I just got a full set of Cutco for Christmas from my future mother-in-law and they are amazing!
I had never really heard about them so I'm curious:
What what is the anti-Cutco argument?
MML at 9:11AM on 01/13/08
Here is one of the many heated debates.
http://www.vegsource.com/talk/pressure/messages/58097.html
They are pretty good knives...just not worth how much they cost. A huge percentage of the cost goes to commissions of the sales rep, their manager, their manager's manager, etc. That's why they are so expensive. Also, their marketing methods are kind of sketchy. On the otherhand, they have a forever guarantee...so, technically, you can gift them to your kids or whoever and they can continue to get it replaced to the end of time.
wunami at 7:40PM on 01/13/08
I generally have my knives sharpened at the Broadway Panhandler in NYC. Yesterday, as I was dashing out to meet a friend, I saw a green truck (kind of like an ice cream truck) that had a sign on the side that said, "knife sharpening." Does anyone know about this? Recommend this? I didn't have time to investigate. I saw the truck in Chelsea.
elizabethw at 10:46AM on 01/14/08
Elizabeth - you're very lucky to have seen that truck. If you go to the thread called "Knife Sharpeners" you'll see my comment waxing nostalgic about this very service-on-wheels!
I have only one Cutco knife - a parer - and that's because I stopped myself from buying knives I didn't need. I found the Cutco knives to be well balanced with nice sculpted handles and frippin' sharp to boot. If I wasn't so well stocked in knives at the time, I definitely would have purchased more.
chiff0nade at 1:12PM on 01/14/08