From Damageinc: - Suji or Yani?

Ed note: This question came up in another thread - somewhat out of context. Damageinc was the author..


I want a 300mm (or longer up to 330mm but those are harder to find) slicer. I've narrowed it down to the Itinomonn Kasumi 300mm Sujihiki and the Toyama Noborikoi 300mm Yanagiba. I've wanted a yanagiba for a long time, but what's been keeping me from it is the fact that I have never had a single bevel knife before and I have no clue on how to maintain it.
The knife will pretty much only be used for slicing large protein, raw and cooked. Should I just stick to what I know and get the sujihiki or should I jump into the world of single bevels with a yanagiba?

Sorry about that. I was having a little cocktail with my lunch and my brain wasn't at full power.

Thanks for moving it and I hope someone will chime in.

Yanagiba is for slicing raw fish. How much raw fish do you slice?

Cheers

A whole salmon and cod a month. Not much fish.

The main use will be slicing roasts or other large hunks of red meat. I can already imagine you are thinking....

You can buy me lunch anytime....

The suji is the more versatile knife. Raw protein, cooked protein, sushi rolls, most sushi prep. It is a slicer and it will slice. I've a stainless mono 270 that I can portion tenderloins with faster than I can type about it. A stainless clad 270 thats a little more robust I use for crusted meats or where I might encounter bone. And a 240 stainless for portioning smaller stuff. I've not had a task where I felt I needed a 300 but they do look pretty cool. All will portion fish. All can be interchanged and I could certainly get by with only one. Any one.

The yani is more specialized and excels for slicing raw fish. A common (and not unreasonable) question is "if it will slice salmon why won't it slice roast beef?"

he answer is The Edge. Because its meant for slicing raw fish it is much thinner and thus more fragile than a suji. It's not intended to slice through crusts - it will make you pay for such abuse. Nor is it intended to slice through a large protein, the SB edge will steer the knife and preclude nice even slices.

There are other threads that go into the differences in more detail.

Suggest you first acquire a suji. It will do everything. If down the road you want to go with a more precise slicer for fish, then start shopping for a yani. We are here to help you spend your money.

Listen to Dave. He speaks truth.

As stated by BrainSausage, listen to Dave

For whole fish perhaps a deba would be a better introduction to single bevels...

Thanks for confirming my initial thoughts. I'll stick with a sujihiki. Already own a MAC SKS-105 slicer, but I find it too short for some tasks. A 300mm will fill the void nicely. While I would prefer a 330mm, they are not that easy to come by within the EU.

And thanks for putting up with my drunken forum buffoonery. I'll buy you guys some lunch next time I see you. Cheers.

Okay, this seems to be already solved, but never the less. A wise man once said: "If you are the least bit in doubt as to wether to get a suji or a yani, get the suji." That was, indeed, a very wise man...

That part about a drink sounds good....

I'll pour you a glass next time you're in Copenhagen. Get drunk, talk about knives...... Cook some onglet....