You can’t get by without a Sharp Knife!
Knives and Knife skills are paramount to you being effective in the kitchen. I have a lot of knives and some are specialty use but there are three knives in my kitchen that I use – probably 85% of the time. Often these three are sitting by my butcher block cutting board waiting to be used – as I just cleaned them and didn’t put them away. When doing a lot of cooking – you can expect to be chopping a lot of vegetables if you are eating in my Kitchen or eating like you are in my Kitchen! Especially when I’m trying to maximize vegetables or eat a hearty meal with low calories (i.e. #VegItUp!)
My Primary Knife – Santoku:
My primary knife is the Wusthof Classic Santoku – with the full tang – meaning the knife blade goes all the way through the handle. This isn’t a cheap knife, but if we were amortizing the knife over dinners where it was used (cost per usage) I’m sure I’ve gotten down to pennies per meal. I’ve had this knife for years and years and years.
Every now and again I’ll ask David to please sharpen it or run the blade by the honing steel and get my knife in tip top shape. There’s nothing more dangerous in a kitchen than a dull knife. (unless you are using a mandoline slicer without a guard…but that should go without saying, LOL)
I’ve tried to find a better knife. I’ve bought Cutco knives – and they are generally great – really – I have a LOT of them. But (you knew that was coming), IMHO not good enough to replace my main knife. Yes, I even bought the Cutco Santoku and it didn’t feel as ‘right’ in my hand – maybe from learned usage / familiarity or maybe because the Wusthof is just lighter, thinner and easier to handle and slice through vegetables and whatever else you may be cutting.
I even bought the smaller Wusthof Santoku knife and the 5″ knife is just not needed. The 7″ can do everything and anything the 5″ knife can. Not sure why you’d need both. Save your money!
I also tried the Wusthof Chef’s knife. Again – couldn’t compete, or hold up to the chopping I do. It seemed heavier, harder to maneuver and just dragged me down. I’m happiest when chopping veg with my 7″ Santuko in my hand.
I’ve smooshed millions (millions?) of garlic cloves with my Wusthof, cut thousands of onions and every vegetable known to man. I just love that knife.
Should you want to consider adding this knife to your kitchen you can check it out on the Williams Sonoma page.
My Serrated Edge Knife:
This one is new! I used to use a Wusthof 5″ serrated utility knife until just a bit ago – but it’s been replaced by the new (2023/2024) Cutco Santoku style trimmer. This knife is the bomb. I love the shape and the handle is comfortable and this knife goes through tomatoes like you are cutting butter.
Funny story… My introduction to Cutco… Dave and I were at the San Diego state fair and we had just found the wine bar / outdoor patio where they were serving adult beverages. We had a good time – sampled a few things and then proceeded into the retail venue areas where there was a Cutco display. I’d not been familiar with Cutco – but Dave’s Mom had Cutco and he was interested in some so we went over and heard the spiel.
Since I already had a drawer full of knives and they Cutco knives aren’t cheap, I wasn’t terribly interested in getting any – until the nice girl said – Lifetime warranty – lifetime sharpness guarantee – free sharpening – all knives come with a Forever Guarantee. How can you not love all that? Then the woman said – you can even put them in the dishwasher. SOLD ! We bought a bunch of steak knives and other things that day. But not the serrated knife I use as my second favorite since it is brand new!
The serrated edge of the santoku knife allows for precise slicing through foods like delicate fruits and vegetables (cutting tomatoes is primary use). The knife’s crazy sharp and has a proprietary serration that makes effortless cuts every time.
Cutco knives are known for their handle and grip – which makes the knife fit fairly perfectly in your hand. This knife is also light and very easy to maneuver. Given the lifetime guarantee and the fact it is made by American’s for American’s this knife is expected to be performing well in my kitchen till I’m no more in my kitchen!
If you want to check out this knife – here’s a link to the cutco page. (Cherry tomato for scale)
Lastly – My Paring Knife:
My pairing knife is cutco’s smallest paring knife. I just love it for trimming out vegetables, clearing stems or otherwise getting my vegetables ready to chop. Delicate work is done with this knife. Trimming garlic bulbs, cutting out pepper stems etc etc. For all the same reasons as noted above – lifetime warranty, made in USA, light weight, good grip, dishwasher safe – I just love this little knife.
If I could only have 3 knives, these three would be the ones.
To checkout this lil paring knife – you can go to Cutco here.
