Precision Poultry and Fish

First of all- thanks for your other help. I ended up going with the Hattori FH in Cocobolo 240 Gyuto and a matching petty.

I now need a knife (or two) for precision fish and poultry. Im looking for recommendations as the style vary so drastically.

KNIFE TYPE
Im looking for the sharpest knife for detailed work on fish and poultry.

I am looking into the high end Japanese blade. But maybe the western handle- looking for pros/cons.

I dont require stainless. A precision knife of this kind, I dont mind the extra care.

What is your absolute maximum budget for your knife? I would like to keep the knife in the 250 dollar range.

As I am moving over to all Japanese type knives (only had a couple before)- I am not sure what shape I prefer. I would like to hear which knives/handles people prefer for this type of work.

(currently I use a custom made blade from the iron range, and I dont like the super thin/pointy profile- feel like a millionaire fisherman- but it was a gift)

Describe some of the tasks your current kit performs poorly at. ??? Breaking 60 whole chickens // snapper down vs trimming and detail work. Elaborating on precision will help people give accurate answer.

Ok, no problem.
I dont:
Break down 100 chickens (line cook does that or I use my workhorse knife)
Bash bones of any kind (have a large butcher knife for that and a saw)

I do precision work:
Remove all the bones from poultry without breaking the skin (pigeon, chicken, quail, cornish, etc)
Detail work with offal from a whole beast (often removing specific items from pig head, etc)
Trim from smaller proteins, rabbit loins/belly, suckling pig
Large protein detail work- silver skin, shaping, etc
Fillet special seafood (cuddle fish, small fishies, octopus, and sometimes larger fish)

Im looking for something sharp- no 'sawing' action, butter smooth and maneuverable.

For poultry and silverskin or tender trimming I use a Honesuki. For whole fish in the smaller range it would be a 165mm to 180mm deba. I typically just use a 210mm deba but that's what I'm used to. For salmon it's my 270mm mioroshi deba. Octopus? Takobiki of course!

I'm thinking petty in 150-180 or so and here's why:

you probably want something really thin, and perhaps with a bit of flex at the tip for stuff like pig head trim, precision boning of poultry, and squid/cuttle/octo trim. this isn't popping thigh/wing joints, where a honesuki works well due to the blade's mass and stiffness. I usually use a honesuki for breaking down birds, but I wouldn't call it exceptionally maneuverable (except at the extreme tip), particularly in tight spots, and you'd struggle with it for any kind of fish work I think. I use a small suji or an unusually shaped knife that I have for this kind of detail work. A lot of different shapes will handle portion shaping and silverskin, so that's probably not a decision maker here. I really think you'd want the narrow, thinner blade - even if it meant you needed to be a bit more careful with the full-boneout of game birds to avoid chipping.

there's certainly room for a bigger knife for some of what you're describing, but you likely already have that covered?

handle is really personal preference- some have argued that western style handles hold up better in pro use, many think that's crazy talk.

I am certainly not a pro chef but I cook and study technique a ton. I don't see how you are going to do large and small meat and seafood with one knife. This is a two knife purchase....

This is a tough one. There isn't really a good high end version of a western boning knife readily available. This may take some time for you to figure out. On the bright side the petty you just bought is a great choice for the tasks you described.

The best fit may be a vintage sabatier like this:



Do you want flex in the blade?

180mm-210mm petty. Big enough to fillet fish break poultry and small enough to debone poultry and trim meat.

I,ve been using this knife for such detailed work. The blade is stiff. It tapers to a strong but thin tip. I have the five inch but I bet the six inch might suit your needs better. I had to soften the spine a little but edge retention is really good and even when ballon toning whole birds I've never had a chip.

http://www.epicureanedge.com/shopexd.asp?id=85680

I think I looking for a stiff blade.
Im leaning towards the Honesuki- but wondering which is the best metal choice and brand.

Im trying to rotate/update my whole knife inventory, and I realized my Gyuto and Petty recently purchased may do the job, but I would love to have some more specialized knives, and I think a Honesuki might be the little gem (functional but beautiful).

I tried to see if I could buy a Honesuki with a water buffalo horn handle (I see water buffalo pretty regularly here in HK, just wondering around when I go for hikes- I thought it would be a nice touch as a memorable token). But Hattori doesnt do custom and longer, im sure it is because he is 73 yrs old....

Thanks so much for your detailed reply. Yes, just bought a Hattori FH petty.... Just want to add more to the arsenal.

So I guess then im really looking for the Honesuki for breaking down the birds on a regular basis (actually never do chickens, but lots of rabbits and ducks).

I use a Tojiro DP honesuki for poultry & small fish. A curved, semi stiff Forschner for general meat butchery, and a 180 deba for larger fish.

Small fish = porgy, black bass, etc

Larger= striper, halibut, blues, etc.

http://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/s...ybrid-True-Single-Beveled-w-Hollow-Back/page2

This is beautiful BTW. I know I get caught up in the handle.... I am a woman, what do you expect. lol

What are everyone's thoughts on this:

This Konosuke Wa-Honesuki is made by the Fujiyama blacksmith and uses White #2 steel. The handle is made of ebony with blond buffalo horn ferrule.

Handle: Ebony octagonal
Ferrule Buffalo Blonde
Steel: White #2
HRC: 61
Spine thickness is 1.9mm
weight: 5oz
blade length: 144mm
total length: 290mm
blade height: 37.90mm

Moderna said:

http://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/s...ybrid-True-Single-Beveled-w-Hollow-Back/page2

This is beautiful BTW. I know I get caught up in the handle.... I am a woman, what do you expect. lol

Click to expand...

I can't help in your quest, I'm just a home cook and only break down chickens for the most part. As a woman, I totally understand liking beautiful things lol. I've never handled one but Marko does make some very elegant looking knives!