All purpose kitchen knife, what's a good one?

Redright9

Redright9

Joined
Sep 18, 2018
Messages
464
Location
Kern Co. California
Hello, I am very fortunate that my wife loves to cook. She has the Cutco brand knives which are nice, but I would like to get her a higher end all purpose knife to have. What would be some recommendations?

Thank you in advance.
 
I have old cusinart set that keep a good edge but my Victorinox is for the real cutting. A razor edge out of the box and stays that way with occasional use of a steel. I'm sure like oils you're gonna get a lot of favorites!
 
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I have a few sets of really, really good knives! The link above is what I believe to be the best 8" chef knife for the price. You see this knife uses worldwide in restaurants .... excellent overall prep knife. The second link is for a slicer. Another excellent choice. Both have antimicrobial handles as well. Hold up to a good number of sharpenings to!

My everyday set (I cook a lot!) is Henkles Pro series. Very nice knives. They go on sale at their location Elsmford NY around Thanksgiving. I'd bet they do at other main locations as well.

Zwilling J.A. Henckels Pro Knives & Knife Sets | Williams Sonoma

Shop Williams Sonoma's huge selection of Zwilling J.A. Henckels Pro knives and Zwilling J.A. Henckels Pro knife sets.
www.williams-sonoma.com www.williams-sonoma.com
 
This cheap deba-style thai knife is the most frequently used knife in our kitchen - very sharp and very thin, which makes slicing and chopping easier than all my other knives.

 
Victorinox Fibrox are really good and their no frills design makes them inexpensive. I use a Wusthof. They sell Chef's knives from 8" - 10"
 
Ontario Knife Company has great knives and are made in the USA. I have the 7111 old hickory butcher knife and like it a lot.

Kiwi knives are the sharpest knives I've ever owned. They're cheap but well made, had mine for two years and they hold up very well. I have the 171 and 172 models.
 
We had a similar thread a few years ago and people loved this cheap knife from Thailand. I bought it. It's very sharp. Lacks heft but it's a nice knife. My favorite. I added a link but not sure it's showing. It's the Kiwi knife.

 
When I was in my teens, my grandmother asked me to peel potatoes and handed me a paring knife. I was used to the Ecko paring knives that my mother had-it didn't matter which edge of the blade you used, it cut about the same. I was amazed at how easy it was to pare and dice potatoes with my grandmother's knife. I asked her where she had gotten it and she told me that she got it as a wedding gift 60 years earlier. The brand was J. A. Henckels. I've had mine now for 40 years. They hold an edge well, and can be scary sharp. Make sure that you get a sharpening steel to maintain the edge between sharpenings. Henckels makes knives in China, Spain and Germany. Buy the German knives and you won't replace it in your lifetime. My sister bought these last year and she is amazed at how well they cut: https://www.cutleryandmore.com/zwilling-ja-henckels-four-star/knife-block-set-p135730
 
Redright9 said:
Hello, I am very fortunate that my wife loves to cook. She has the Cutco brand knives which are nice, but I would like to get her a higher end all purpose knife to have. What would be some recommendations?

Thank you in advance.
Click to expand...
There are more factors than just sharpness in a kitchen knife; there is balance, weight, full tang length, bolster and how much carbon in the steel.
Also how much are willing to spend. For a chef's knife with all of those qualities and certainly not THE best around $100
 
Leo99 said:
We had a similar thread a few years ago and people loved this cheap knife from Thailand. I bought it. It's very sharp. Lacks heft but it's a nice knife. My favorite. I added a link but not sure it's showing. It's the Kiwi knife.

Click to expand...
My Kiwi knife is still my go to knife
 
We have a drawer full of excellent knives. Some of our best are inherited carbon steel knives. They discolour but boy do they cut. We also bought some new old stock carbon steel knives made in France in the1920s and 1930s.

We have a number of stainless steel Henckels. Good but not as good as the carbon steel ones.

If you're looking for one good knife I'd start in an antique store, a second hand store, or a boot sale/flea market. Pass up the stainless steel knives, if they're for sale as used knives chances are they're duds. A really good carbon steel one might be $10.

PS You have to take care of carbon steel. You don't let it sit in water. You don't put it in the dishwasher. You wash it by hand and dry it carefully. If the handle is wooden you treat it periodically with walnut oil.
 
Another vote for a Henckels Zwilling chef knife in whatever length you find comfortable. We have a 6" chef and 5" santoku that do the vast majority of our food prep.
 
Costco usually has a kitchen knife for a good price.
I recently bought a carving knife for the 2 or 3 times per year we do a nice piece of meat.

He who dies with the most tools wins.
 

My buddy is a chef. I asked him about a knife I was going to buy for my son for his birthday since he loves to cook. The knife I was considering was a really beautiful handmade knife that he would have had for years. My friend squashed that and said get the one I linked above. Turns out, its a really good knife. What a surprise.
 
Check out the Vicorianox
BISCUT said:


I have a few sets of really, really good knives! The link above is what I believe to be the best 8" chef knife for the price. You see this knife uses worldwide in restaurants .... excellent overall prep knife. The second link is for a slicer. Another excellent choice. Both have antimicrobial handles as well. Hold up to a good number of sharpenings to!

My everyday set (I cook a lot!) is Henkles Pro series. Very nice knives. They go on sale at their location Elsmford NY around Thanksgiving. I'd bet they do at other main locations as well.

Zwilling J.A. Henckels Pro Knives & Knife Sets | Williams Sonoma

Shop Williams Sonoma's huge selection of Zwilling J.A. Henckels Pro knives and Zwilling J.A. Henckels Pro knife sets.
www.williams-sonoma.com www.williams-sonoma.com
Click to expand...
Vicorianox are well made knives and stay sharp. The fibrox handle is NSF approved. As long as you dont put them in the dishwasher they should last you a very long time. Read up on proper knife care and get a high quality honing and sharpening kit and learn the proper honing and sharpening techniqes, nothing ruins a good knife faster than a bad sharpening attempt (and putting them in the dishwasher)
 
Picked up some Japanese knives from the local Asian family market, cheap but super sharp, great knives. Got the matching steak knives. (y)
 
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