Most people that are either skilled in the kitchen, or professional chefs know the importance of having good quality knives. These are the essential tools of creating culinary masterpieces, and fine dining quality gourmet dishes. But a question always arises, should I have one complete set of knives that are the same brand or maybe have a hybrid collection of individual Chef Knives like a Henckel knife here and a Wusthof knife there?

There is no right or wrong answer here. The answer lies with two factors that you have to choose.

1. Your taste: what kinds of chef knives you like to use.
2. Your budget: How much are you willing to spend on chef or kitchen knives?

Here are some pros and cons to both choices for you to put to the test:

Complete Chef Knife Sets

Pro:

· You have found a brand you like and trust then purchase the matching set complete with sharpening steel.

· Typically, the complete knife sets come with a handy knife block, or knife wrap to roll up and store your investment when not in use.

· With buying sets that match handle color and logo branding your kitchen has an esthetic look of order and symmetry.

Con:

· The main con here is price. This is where your budget is a consideration. A complete set of Henckels may run a bit pricey but they will last a lifetime with proper care. So if price is a factor, you may have to sacrifice quality for a less expensive brand.

· Maybe one brand of knife makes a great 8″ full tang Chef Knife, but they don’t do such a great job on their 4″ paring knives. If you buy the knife set you’re stuck with tools that you really don’t like. This is a waste of money.

Individual Chef Knives

Pro:

· Buying individual chef knives affords you the opportunity to try out different brands. You may like the feel of a Shun Chef knife, and also like the Cutco bread knife. In each brand the bolster, tang and handle are made differently. Depending on the job you’re doing in the kitchen, an individual knife may be the best choice for you.

· Similarly, when you buy chef knives individually, you are able to control your budget and spending more. For example, you may want to spend more on a fine quality Wusthof 10″ chef knife but may only need the quality of a Victorinox paring knife.

· I think having a mixed selection of individual chef knives look more professional. It shows that you have taken the time to research the most efficient knife for the job you want to do.

Con:

· You don’t get symmetry look when buying individual chef knives. If you want each handle that sticks out of the knife block to match this is obviously not the way to go.

· Speaking of Knife blocks. Knife Blocks and knife wraps are typically sold separately when you buy chef knives one by one.

· Another trade-off for shopping this way is that you get a different quality of each Knife. That can be both good and bad. You can determine which ones will hold up to more use and which ones will keep a sharp edge more than others can. Again, this goes back to your budget, and preference.

In summary, choose to look for individual chef knives for sale if you like to mix up your collection, control your budget, and in my opinion look more professional. Or conversely, buy chef knife sets that will compliment the look of your kitchen with matching handles, of a brand that you like such as Sabatier chef knives. But also be prepared to spend a little more for the complete set.

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Expensive cleavers are a waste of money

Bill Barol at 11:32 AM Wednesday, Aug 11, 2010

Bill Barol (email, Twitter) is a former senior writer at Newsweek and his journalism has appeared in The New Yorker, Time, Slate, and elsewhere. He also blogs at True/Slant and Pix365.

I love many things about chef J.Kenji Lopez-Alt, not least his fantastic name, but today I’m enamored of his take on the cleaver. A cleaver is both metaphorically and literally a blunt instrument, he writes at Serious Eats:

…avoid expensive Japanese or German cleavers, period. If they sell it at Williams-Sonoma, you don’t want it. A cleaver is meant to be only for the toughest of the tough jobs, and will get beat up. It doesn’t require the razor sharp edge-maintaining abilities of expensive German or Japanese steel, so there’s no sense in paying over-the-odds prices for one when cheaper models are just as serviceable.There’s more, and it’s all a breath of fresh air. I particularly like Lopez-Alt’s brisk shredding of the $160 Shen Kun Onion Meat Cleaver, which he figures costs about $145 too much: Please. Unless you need a simultaneously pretty and menacing tool to perform ritual sacrifices with, it has no business anywhere near a real kitchen. His final recommendation is the very unsexy General Purpose Cleaver Knife with Wood Handle from Dexter-Russell. At $40 it’s more than twice as pricey as Lopez-Alt’s all-time favorite cleaver, which he picked up for $15 at a restaurant supply store in Boston. But the Dexter-Russell will do the job, he writes, and more — it will deliver “a lifetime of joyful chicken-hacking.”

When a person looks for a knife, it’s an easy task; but once he adds requirements for different functions and tools, it takes more time to get the best one. While looking for an ideal knife make, it is important to be sure of all requirements and what kind of knife one is looking for, for instance a survival knife, hunting knife or pocket knife. When one is clear about his requirements and chooses a pocket knife, he still has to select from a variety of designs and styles like translucent or alox colored models.

It is a rite of passage, and hundreds of types of folding pocket knife have become the ultimate gizmo for any kind of activity – regardless of whether it’s an outside or indoor activity. For open air activities there are some activities which are normal like cutting rope or carving, which can be done quickly with the help of right kind of pocket knife.

One needs to identify in what kind of job for which he will be utilizing knife and then make his selection accordingly. There might be many alternatives available for his task. Selecting the right knife as a fisherman, as outdoor man, a hunter, or even a trekker is important, because the selection can become very specific depending on its general use. Selection of a knife without defining its usage is always a waste of money. One has to keep in mind that one knife might not be for all kind of work.