Chef Terrence has 30 years of experience working in the professional kitchen. He graduated from the Professional Culinary Institute in California, USA, and he was a former Culinary Instructor, Corporate Chef, and Executive Chef. He also won several awards in culinary competitions and is the founder and owner of Zilla Pizza.
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Knives have several categories for different applications that might confuse a home cook. That is why we're going to uncover the common types of knives and which tasks they are suited for.
As a great all-rounder knife, a chef's knife or cook's knife has a long and broad shape with a straight edge. It has a slightly curved outline that tapers into a sharp pointy tip. This allows so to rock it back and forth on the chopping board with easy slicing strokes. You can pretty much do all your chopping, cutting, slicing, or mincing with this knife type.
Everything that a chef's knife does, you can also do with a utility knife. It is shaped the same. It works the same but on a smaller profile. This knife is used for more precise cutting tasks, smaller food items, and other slicing jobs where a chef's knife is too large to be used.
This short and slim knife is a lighter and mini version of the chef's knife. It is used for paring, peeling, deseeding, or cleaning up bits and pieces of unwanted parts of food. Anyone can maneuver this knife easily because of its smaller blade with a full grip handle.
A long and thin blade with a serrated edge is what best describes this type of knife. Obviously, it is used to slice through crusty pieces of bread, bagels, or cakes. It allows you to do the job without crushing the food and ruining its form. Others also use it to slice or carve cooked meats to cut evenly.
Cutting huge chunks of beef or serving delicately cooked poultries requires careful preparations, so different types of knives for certain tasks are needed. When serving cooked meats, a carving knife can create a thin, neat, and evenly slice portion every time. This is the best tool for carving turkeys, slabs of barbequed meat, or portioning out a grilled whole chicken.
When preparing raw meat, a butcher's knife or a cleaver is used to divide and chop them up. Its bulky and heavy qualities make it easier to ration out chunks of meat and poultry.
However, to precisely cut and debone different meat ingredients, a boning knife will do the job. Its rigid and thin blade can easily slice through cartilage and pick out the bone without destroying the meat around it.
These knives are specifically used for preparing seafood, descaling, or removing fishbones. A salmon knife has a long and thin flexible blade that is slender enough to remove the skin off of larger fishes, slice the meat, or fillet it.
A filleting knife is the best tool for intricate bone removal work without damaging the flesh of the fish. The long and slim shape makes it a perfect knife to create longer slices for serving evenly portioned fish meats.
Dinner knives are created to make your dining experience much pleasurable. A table knife, like a steak knife, has a short and pointed blade with a serrated edge designed to saw through cooked meat. It allows the user to cut up tough meat and other food items on the plate into smaller bite-sized pieces.
A butter knife can be commonly seen in classy restaurants where a basket of bread is served before the main course. The broad blade with a serrated blunt edge is used to spread butter on any food without scraping the surface and accidentally cutting it.
Before we dive down on the kinds of kitchen knives for various purposes, let us know the common materials used. Manufacturers are always trying to find the right blend of materials for their hardware, and we're here to discuss those.
Although this is good, the performance can be subpar when it comes to holding its edge. You need to constantly sharpen and hone the edge to keep its sharp form.
High-carbon steels provide the best of both worlds when it comes to keeping a sharp edge longer and being less prone to staining like stainless steel. The higher carbon content on the knife allows more durability, longer edge retention, and excellent cutting capability.
Since this material is expensive, be on the lookout for those products that are brandishing as having high-carbon materials without actually holding more than 1% carbon content. It's better to be more inquisitive while inspecting the product than be sorry later on.
This material does not rust, can hold its sharp edge longer, and is very lightweight. The thin edge could cut through any fruit or vegetable, but don't use it on frozen food or meats as it is prone to breakage when applied with greater force.
Extra care is needed when handling this type of blade since it can chip or break when dropped. And if ever it gets dull, you will be needing a professional to re-sharpen it and will still come out as good as new.
However, it is very expensive and may be less sharp than carbon or ceramic materials. Knife collectors want this as a specialty knife but it doesn't do well in terms of performance.
This makes the end-product much more expensive because of the laborious and elaborate process. Forged knives are on a different level in terms of quality and longevity. Oftentimes, knives with a bolster between the blade and handle are a strong indication that it is probably forged.
A stamped knife will require constant re-sharpening and honing as long as it's used. Experts and professionals aren't bought on using this knife before because it usually has poor qualities, but this stigma has already changed over the years.
Many knife manufacturers have already refined and improved their processes to produce knives that are comparable to forged ones. Nowadays, many chefs and cooks favor the lightness and comfortable feel of a stamped knife to relieve muscle stress and fatigue from long hours in the kitchen.
A knife is useless without the handle. It provides better handling and an overall control as you wield your cutting tool. Below are the most common handle materials to choose from.
Wood is one of the most versatile mediums for a knife handle. It is naturally comfortable to grip, and there are various types to choose from. Unfortunately, wood can be a huge bacteria magnet when not properly cleaned and sterilized. Some wood materials require maintenance to be in better condition, while other materials are more durable and have a longer lifespan.
For easy cleaning and maintenance, laminated handles are widely used. It is made of laminated wood composites with plastic resin that mimics a wood handle.
The handle has the same woody sensation to the touch and weight but with lesser sanitary issues. The disadvantages of this material are quite a few, and if you can get past the color and feel, you are good to go.
This material can be categorized into different types such as polypropylene, fibrox, plastics, and Santoprene. Maintaining the handle is as easy as washing and wiping it.
It doesn't absorb bacteria but can turn brittle and could crack when exposed to high temperatures in the kitchen. The lightness might cause some issues to some users because it disrupts the overall balance of the knife.
If you're looking for a material that needs no maintenance, a stainless steel handle is your top choice. The durable and classy look of a stainless handle can elevate your kitchen's style. Unfortunately, it is heavier and could strain your wrist.
Also, it may be slippery at times you're cutting juicy ingredients. That is why some manufacturers add rubberized bumps and ridges to provide a better grasp.
The most important part of a knife is its edge. Without it, one cannot cut, slice, or dice any ingredient for cooking. Here are the common types that are made specifically for different tasks.
This edge is what we normally see on our everyday knives. It is used on almost all types of food ingredients for slicing, paring, dicing, or chopping. You can find this edge on a chef's knife, paring knife, cleaver, or utility knives.
Along the length of the blade, some grooves and ridges are sharpened to cut either solid or delicate foods. This edge can cut through meats or juicy fruits with tough skins. It can also slice softer foods such as bread without crushing it in the process. Steak knives, bread knives, or tomato knives are the best examples of serrated knives.
A scalloped edge features hollow dimples along the side of the blade that creates a pocket of air between the knife's surface and food. The air prevents the food from sticking to the knife and releases it as soon as it gets cut.
This edge is commonly used on sticky or wet ingredients like raw fish or vegetables. Santoku or salmon knives usually have this sort of blade edge.
Japanese knives are mostly hollow ground-edged, which tapers down from the middle of the blade and creates a very thin, sharp edge.
Because its edge is very fine, it may be prone to breakage and rolling. It may also need to be sharpened more frequently. Nakiri knives have this edge. That is why they can slice very thinly to create delicate cuts and precise food portions.
The KitchenPro Knife collection is a collaboration between Chef Gene Gonzalez, a famous local chef, and Masflex. It is designed for chefs and enthusiasts to create a full array of culinary products for Filipinos. This particular chef's knife is stainless steel with a sleek and ergonomic design. It is a versatile cutting tool for various tasks such as cutting, slicing, chopping, or mincing.
The enhanced bolster allows for greater control and balanced performance. The full tang construction also ensures that you are in full charge of the speed and precision of every cut. Its power handle has a triple-riveted shell aimed for faster and shorter cutting periods with great results. This is your perfect partner for all tough jobs around the kitchen.
If you're looking for an all-around knife for your kitchen, the Eurochef utility knife is your great choice. The five-inch length is just the right size for better control and precise cutting tasks that a chef's knife cannot achieve. It is made of high-carbon stainless steel with an anti-slip handle. You need not worry about stains and rusts forming on the blade.
This local brand is durable and convenient to the grip because of the thermoplastic rubber that coats the polypropylene handle. The blade is created with martensitic stainless steel with magnetic properties, better corrosion resistance, and high hardness once quenched. It can also be found on a variety of surgical tools, steam turbines, and cutting tools.
From ₱169
This cleaver or chopper is a staple in any Chinese kitchen. It is used generally, from hacking large chunks of meat to chopping smaller ingredients with minimal force. The weight and gravity pretty much do all the work when cutting. It is hand-forged and quenched to make the blade sturdy and durable.
The thick blade with a straight razor-sharp edge will slice and cut through any type of food material. The handle is made of wood for excellent grip, and it has a full tang to add strength over the handle. Get this awesome high-quality meat cleaver at a very low price.
Take a chance on this lightweight and well-balanced 12-inch knife for your bread slicing needs. Its sharp serrated edge will not leave your pastries crumbly or falling apart. The commercial-grade stainless steel is corrosion resistant and very convenient to clean. Just wash it with mild detergent and water after use.
The ergonomic handle is made out of durable polypropylene material and Santoprene with finger dents for excellent handling. Use it to slice through sandwiches, cakes, cooked meat, or fleshy fruits. Its length and thinness make slicing faster, easier, and precise. Serve mouth-watering delicacies at well-defined proportions.
This is another product from the KitchenPro cutlery lineup that is handy and versatile enough for smaller cutting jobs. KitchenPro's paring knife is an indispensable tool for processing vegetables and fruits such as deseeding, making small cuts, or peeling. This makes probing and preparing small pieces of protein such as poultry, smaller fish, or ribs.
It's an excellent tool for food and pastry decoration, such as garnishing and food carving. The handle uses an ergonomic triple-riveted design with polypropylene material. Just don't forget that the paring knife is not dishwasher-friendly. Get the benefits of having a KitchenPro paring knife in your kitchen for smaller and more defined cutting purposes.
Many professional cooks favor the balance and cutting performance of a Santoku knife. If you want to achieve the precision of this cutting tool, this one from Eurochef will do the trick. Any food ingredients such as meat, cheese, vegetables, or fruits are no match for this knife. The non-stick dimpled edge of the blade prevents the food from sticking to the knife's surface.
The blade is also made of high carbon stainless steel with a Titanium coating to ensure that it releases any food when cut. Plus, this nine-inch Santoku knife has a good balance and a unique design to keep your fingers away from the edge. Create fine slices and the right food portions with this durable Santoku knife.
A perfectly smoked meat or gorgeously barbequed poultry will require a top-of-the-line carving knife like this one to preserve its consistency and inner juices. With just the right flexibility, there is no meat shredding or tearing, which a serrated blade typically does. It features an ultra-premium forged hyper steel with a "Liquid Metal" pattern on the surface.
The addition of Nitrogen to the blade increases durability and flexibility, while its woven fiberglass handle is invulnerable to heat, cold, or moisture. When creating this blade, bladesmiths also took a three-step Honbazuke method. Another great thing about this is that it comes with a sheath made of polyurethane leather with a button clip to safeguard the edge.
If you're frustrated by the expensive price tags of premium knife brands, you may want to look at Mercer Culinary for your equally good knives. Their six-inch boning knife is crafted using high carbon Japanese steel, which is made by stamping. It features a hollow ground blade that is easy to sharpen and maintain.
It is also resistant to rust, corrosion, and discoloration. And since it has a comfortable ergonomic handle made of stain-resistant polypropylene material, the textured finger points prevent slip, too. The best thing? Rigorous tests are made on this product to achieve certification from a highly-respected independent organization that provides safe management solutions.
If you want to upscale your dining experience, do it with the Wusthof 4-piece steak knife set. As part of their Silverpoint series, this steak knife is light and nimble to use, making it easier to manage while cutting your prime steak or bits of meat. It is stamped from a single piece of stainless steel, which is a suitable material for everyday use.
The handle is made of synthetic material that is comfortable to grip. Wusthof also claims this knife is dishwasher-safe, so it's easier to clean. The elegant designs and tradition of this brand came from Solingen, Germany. The Wusthof brand has been around since 1814, and after over 200 years, the company remains one of the pioneers of commercial-grade cutting tools worldwide.
Global Knife's Salmon slicer features a long, thin, flexible blade specially made for slicing or de-skinning large fishes. It is a part of the Classic series used to slice thin pieces of smoked salmon or trout traditionally presented in dining places. It is a well-balanced knife that provides total control while slicing.
Its blade is stamped from a single piece of steel with a hollow handle filled with sand to achieve the ideal weight. It's also ice tempered and hardened at high temperatures. Moreover, whe stainless steel is also a CROMOVA 18 that mixes Chromium, Molybdenum, and Vanadium. The handle is also in stainless steel with dimpled patterns for a comfortable and non-slip grip.
Below are some of the most asked questions on the web answered by professional chef Terence Fereday.
From cutting boards to gas ranges, take a look at the best kitchen products that you can find online today. Below are our recommended items for you to check out.
Author: Chafi Lacson
Our buying guide was carefully researched and crafted by the mybest team of writers and editors. We used the buying guide as a basis for choosing and ranking the product recommendations, and we looked at reviews and ratings from different E-commerce sites like Lazada, Shopee, and more.
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The descriptions of each product is referenced from the content available from the manufacturer, e-commerce sites etc.
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