August 2006 Weddings
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nest chefs, recommend your high end knives
I already have my dream cookware (All Clad) and a great set of knives is next.
did you buy a set (knife block) or individual knives?
tia for any recs.
Re: nest chefs, recommend your high end knives
Anything you can achieve through hard work, you could also just buy.
I have the Chicago Cutlery all-metal ones (the regular line has metal or hard rubber handles) and I PPH them. Especially the Santoku knife.
*sigh*
We have Henkel. Most of them were my husband's from before we were met. I think he got a starter set of like 2-3 knives and then would get a new one once a year or so.
I've heard that to start, you should get a chef's knife, a paring knife, and a serrated knife. Those are the three basics. Of our chef's knives, I use our santoku (sp?) the most...that knife is awesome.
My H is obsessed with Shun knives. We don't actually have them because we can't afford them, but they are supposed to be awesome. Alton Brown uses them. The only store we've seen them in is Williams-Sonoma, and the H drools everytime he sees them.
America's Test Kitchen ranked Forschner knives by Swiss Army as the best value when it comes to moderate-priced knives.
As far as what to get, a chef's knife, santoku and paring are the most essential. Then bread and fish knives if those are things you'd use a lot. I'm not sure I'd pay high-end knife prices for steak knives. I'd be more likely just to get a decent set of those than a block.
W?sthof? I got the paring knife to try out. It's very nice! Feels good and sharpens well. One day I'll get the Chef's knife.?
Just a word of warning, Wusthof has 2 lines, one really good, one cheap. ?The two person symbol, rather than 1, is the good line.
I have Sabatier knives, and I think they're great. ?I asked for a set of knives for Christmas a few years ago, and my dad the obsessive researcher picked them out for me. ?He has Wusthof for himself, but he said the Sabatier were better weighted and with a better sculpted handle for my smaller female hands.?
We have Cutco. They are AWESOME! They NEVER need to be sharpened! Amazing!
http://www.cutco.com/products/product.jsp?itemGroup=1818
Another vote for Wusthof here. I cooked professionally for 6 years before starting my business, and Henkels were the most preferred by other cooks/chefs, followed by Wusthof. Don't get anything with a wooden handle, they'll warp eventually.
I also concur with the 3-knife starter set. A good chef's knife (at least 10") will be your best friend in the kitchen! A good serrated knife and a paring knife, and you're set. I'd also recommend a large bread knife, if your serrated knife is on the smaller side. I've been known to cut tomatoes with my bread; there's no shame in it!
Oh, and a good steel is crucial. I've never gotten a better edge on my knives than I get from sharpening them the old-fashioned way.
I used to sell these in college and I still have my starter kit. These knives REALLY are awesome! When we got married we registered for Henkels, and I honestly don't like them as much as my old Cutco knives.....
We're acquiring Shun knives... slowly...
there's a local place that sells them at a good enough discount that we can buy one or two a year.
We started with this one:
(we've since got the paring knife, a smaller chef's, and the mezzaluna/bowl set)
I recommend getting it - or something like it, and a good paring knife, instead of a set... for the most part, those are the two that people use, and the other ones in a set just go to waste... a very good chef's knife, and a very good paring knife are way better than a moderately good set.
I made this same recommendation to a serious cook friend of mine, who was replacing her costco-level set... she bought the Shun chef's knife and a paring knife (I think Wusthof) and keeps thanking me for convincing her not to buy a set!
I am the 99%.
I am the 99%.
I have a block set of Cutco knives that includes the steak knives. I use them all the time. They are like 20 years old. I did get the sharpener and maybe have used it a couple of times over the years.
I also have a Hainkel paring knife that I rarely use. It is probably close to 20 years old too. Ex-H bought that knife and loved using it but somehow I ended up with after we split.
90% of the time all I need is a good chef's knife. I don't have a high end one but the one I do have works fine for me (as long as I keep the sharpner handy, ha!). I've never really understood the need for an entire set of knives, to be honest. So I'd say, spend your money on a top chef's knife.
Good luck!
America's Test Kitchen makes the same recommendation as LMW. ?However, on the show where they did this, they mocked as useless one of the knives I use most. ?Out of my block of 6, I use 3 regularly, but I use the other 2 on enough occasion to justify having them. ?The only thing I think is wasteful is that I have 2 paring knives of similar size.
I just want to throw out a recommendation that if you're going to buy individual knives, go for a santoku. ?I never found one I wanted in Japan mostly b/c I was never in the areas where I could find a good quality one, but they're awesome. ?My parents bought one, and it's pretty much the only thing they use now.?
We have Global knives, which you don't hear a lot about, but they are fantastic. They are Japanese, like Shun. Whatever knives you get, go to a store to try them out first. Some have much heavier handles than others. I found Global because my friend has them, and I loved using them. They fit in the hand very nicely, are comfortable to use, and are just great to use.
We started with the 8" Chef's knife, then added as we went . We use the Chef's, santoku (two sizes), and cheese knives the most. Love, love them.
Williams Sonoma and Sur La Table both carry Global. Here's the pretty santoku knife..
my read shelf:
Coming in late, but agreeing on this one. We have Globals and LOVE them. They're light and perfectly balanced. Also, whatever you choose be sure to invest in a honing stone and get a lesson on how to use it. A steel isn't effective in sharpening, only in re-aligning the blade. The stone will allow you to sharpen and improve the performance of any knife.
I am a runner, knitter, scientist, DE-IVF veteran, and stage III colon cancer survivor.
Thank you all for these AWESOME recs!!
I can't wait to go to Williams-Sonoma.
if you must... but in my experience, they're much, much more expensive than other places for the same stuff...
I am the 99%.
Mominatrix, I found this to be largely untrue, especially with home goods. Before we registered, I compared prices from WS with Bed Bath and Beyond and Macy's. For most things (knives, pots & pans, etc), they were within pennies of each other. There are def things they mark up by a few dollars here and there (appliances, for instance), but for basics, they can't get away with being much more expensive; otherwise, no one would register there, and that's a huge part of their business.
if you say so.
we have these guys...
http://www.citykitchensseattle.com/
who deeply discount their products... which are very much the same brands and quality as WS
I am the 99%.