Best Professional Chefs Knives
Posted on November 7, 2010
Filed Under Chefs knife | Leave a Comment
Every cook whether a novice or professional needs a good kitchen knife and second only to the paring knife, a chef’s knife is the one you simple should have as part of your collection.
A professional chefs knife has a blade that can be anywhere between 8- and 10-inches long, depending on the brand and choice, and is the most suitable for the greatest variety of kitchen cutting tasks. A high quality chef’s knife will cost you around a hundred dollars or less and if properly taken care of it will last a lifetime.
Below are the very best chefs knives and their prices:
Overall best performing chef’s knives:
- MAC MTH-80 MAC Mighty Chef 8″ with dimples ($110)
- Global G-2 20cm Cook’s Knife ($86)
- MAC MTH-80 MAC Mighty Chef 8″ with dimples ($110)
- MAC MBK-85 MAC Mighty Chef 8.5″ ($120)
Best valued chef’s knife based on performance:
- RH Forschner Victorinox 40521 Fibrox 10-in. Chef’s Knife ($29)
Second best valued chef’s knives based on their Performance:
- Tojiro DP F-808 21cm Gyoto Chef’s Knife ($50)
Other chef’s knives to consider if price is no option:
- Global 8-inch Profession Chefs Knife - Global is a Japanese knife company that produces some very beautiful, yet functional knives. A favorite with professional chefs, the blades are extremely sharp and perfectly balanced. They are made from cromova 18 stainless steel, which holds its edge longer than other steels. The knives are also very lightweight, which reduces hand fatigue. The handles are a metal extension of the blade with dimples for a non-slip grip.
- Wusthof Classic 9-inch Professional Chefs Knife Le Cordon Bleu – Wusthof is a very reputable German company that has been making knives for a very long time. Their knives are thick and heavy in the German style and will stand up to the most brutal punishment in the kitchen. The blades are high carbon stainless-steel which sharpen easily. This is another traditional favorite of professional chefs.
- Kershaw Shun Classic 8-inch Professional Chefs Knife – Another Japanese company, Shun blades are made in the Damascus style with VG-10 super steel which is covered with sixteen layers of high-carbon stainless steel. VG-10 super steel is composed of carbon, chromium, cobalt, manganese, molybdenum, silicon and vanadium. This type of blade has a nonstick quality. The D-shaped handles are made of black pakkawood (available in right- or left-handed models.) A very beautiful knife and a favorite of Alton Brown, host of the Food Network’s Good Eats.
- Henckels Five Star 8-inch Professional Chefs Knife – A German company, Henckel five-star knife blades are made from friodur ice-hardened stainless steel. These blades are very sharp and hold their edge for a long time. The handles are ergonomically designed and made from polypropylene for a very comfortable grip.
- Sabatier 8-inch Carbon Steel Cooks Knife – Sabatier knives are made by the 150-year-old French company, Theirs-Issard. The blades are pure carbon steel, which make them softer then most blades. This means the blade is easier to sharpen to a razor sharp edge, but you have to do it more often. Also, 100% carbon steel will oxidize and rust if exposed too much to water. French knives are more narrow than their German counterparts.
- MAC Mighty Professional Chef French Knife – This American company produces some of the sharpest knives around and is recommended by such famous chefs as Charlie Trotter, Thomas Keller, Hubert Keller, and Nobu Matsuhisa. The blades are made of high carbon chrome molybdenum with vanadium. The knives are narrow in the French style, but are light and flexible like some Japanese knives.
- Misono UX10 Gyutou 8.2-inches – Another high quality knife produced in Japan. The blades are 440 Molybdenum for long lasting sharpness and ease of sharpening. The handles are comfortable water-resistant wood. A favorite of many professional chefs.
In conclusion:
Most salespeople at the cutlery stores will tell you that a forged-knife is superior to a stamped-knife. While this might have been true in the past with the onset of better technologies being utilized by today’s knife manufacturers, it is no longer a benchmark of quality. The two MAC knives listed above are stamped knives with bolsters that are welded on, ground, and polished. The MAC-knife manufacturer claims that the stamped steel gives their knives a level of control over the tempering, the bevels, and the thinness of the blade. Whether that is true or not, MAC-knives overwhelmingly outperform most forged knives.
As a side note keep in mind that consistent sharpening will not result in consistent performance. Blade hardness, composition, bevel geometry, weight, and thickness all play a part in how well a knife cuts.
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May 21, 2011 | Posted by 
Categories: Knife Set Reviews | 
Tags: chef knife, everyday use, home chefs, stainless steel | 
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