What do I do with a kiritsuke?

So I did a very irresponsible thing and bid on a left handed Keijiro Doi Kiritsuke during Korin's charity auction to support the victims of the Kumamoto tsunami in April. I put in a bid at the last minute thinking I would regret if I didn't and put just above the current asking price figuring I would get sniped (since left handed knives are hard to come by and it was a Doi). So long story short, $633 later, I am now in possession of a 270mm kiritsuke I don't know how to use. Reading about it, it seems like the skill level required to use it is very high as it combines all the drawbacks of an usuba and a yanagiba. It hasn't touched food yet because I'm scared to do anything with it. Any suggestions on what I should do? Buy a cheaper lefty yanagiba and practice on that first? Buy an usuba and learn katsuramuki? Just say f*** it and go in on using it? Any suggestions would be awesome.



P.S. Korin was awesome, they threw in a suisin bread knife and carbon steel petty, though the petty is right handed so I'm not exactly sure what to do with it. I guess I could let my girlfriend learn how to use it.

It's your knife, use it however you want to. Traditionally, yes, it is used as an usuba yanagiba hybrid. So katsuramuki and slicing raw fish are it's intended tasks. You could however use it to slice or portion any boneless protein raw or some even cooked. It is not however a gyuto substitute and should not be used like one.

Also, usubas aren't just for katsuramuki. Many veg cuts you use a gyuto for work well with an usuba, as long as you keep it parallel to the board. The only problem is thick chunks, where they wedge sometimes. I recommend picking up a copy of Japanese Kitchen Knives by Nozaki.

Awesome pick up! and that was a wonderful thing you did.

Sorry i have no experience with this, so i can't offer any advice.

There's someone who tried to use a usuba as a gyuto and he has the following few pointers:
Keep the knife parallel or you'll chip the tip.
Be prepared to sharpen the tip a lot.
Knife will tend to wedge when cutting certain
Get used to the lack of curved belly or you'll chip the tip.

I'm not sure if mentioning the other forum is against the rules here, so if you want to read this post just pm me and i'll send you the link.

Enjoy the lovely knife!

I think clumsy and inexpert katsuramuki is underrated as a technique for using medium-hardness veg - no need to go for the beauty contest at the mise stage, you'll still win it with the salad (compared to cutting uneven length strips or using a crummy, teary julienne peeler) even if you have 1-3mm variance

Get an eggplant and size-matched zucchini and do a movie-style "ratatouille" (confit byaldi. I think it's even better if you go into an agrodolce/caponata-style sauce, but that's my folly) if you feel the need to slice something thin Or bake a sheetcake with sliced fruit (don't go tooo thin, mind stones and patina building)...

First off--That is a beautiful knife!

I would buy some sushi-grade ahi. Sprinkle blackened seasoning and sear it, then use this knife to cut slices. Mix some mayo, sriracha, mirin, and sesame oil. serve with a small salad and enjoy.

This. And garnish with some "thin as you can" scallions.

Thanks all. I guess I let the bit I read on the internet about how a kiritsuke is only used by executive chefs because of the difficulty of mastery get to me. So as long as I'm delicate with it it should serve me well?

Don't believe what you read on the internet.

Especially here! HA!

daveb said:

Don't believe what you read on the internet.

Especially here! HA!

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lol...so trust nobody, eh? I'll never use my knife at this rate

Or you could get on it and see what it does for you.:cool2:

Frame it and hang it on the wall!

:justkidding:

Beautiful knife, seems like a good deal too.

I have a 270 from Mizuno, mostly use it like a yanagi and push cut vegetables

"and push cut vegetables" so you use it like a usuba... QED

I'm also kind of scared of letting such a beautiful knife patina... But then again, what's the use of a knife made for one purpose? I'm denying it it's purpose!

I have a Toyama kiritsuke, and I mostly use it as an usuba. It is also good for slicing protein though. I find it easier to control than a yanagiba when I have to make a sawing motion.
There will be a learning curve to learn to use any single bevel knife. When used on vegetables I don´t think this knife was harder to learn to use than it was to learn using a yanagiba (for protein).
Start using it to make salats when ever you have enough time to be slow and gentle. Eventually you´ll be abel to cut more quickly with it. For a long time I used about twice the time when using the kiritsuke compared to a gyuto. You need to have a really gentle touch regarding board contact and it probably falls through most vegetables. Enjoy it - it is a great knife that is probably going to make you smile when you take the time to use it like it deserves.
I started making my wife a salat every day after I bought mine. This way I spend 30 minutes with it several times a week - it was pure enjoyable knife-porn-quality-time.
- Kim

@AzHP being afraid of letting a beautiful knife patina is like being afraid of giving your beautiful wife clothes

@Life...that was a poetic metaphor. Like.

LifeByA1000Cuts said:

@AzHP being afraid of letting a beautiful knife patina is like being afraid of giving your beautiful wife clothes

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Haha alright then, you've convinced me. =) I'll see if I can't make my girlfriend something nice for her birthday coming up next week with this.

With respect to the comment about not using a Kiritsuke as a gyuto replacement- would people mind expounding on that a bit more? I've been quite smitten with the kiritsuke profile, and have flirted with the idea of getting one.. But I'm very much just a home cook that could probably get by with a single chefs knife and a petty. Is it just certain tasks that should be avoided? Or is it a technique thing- items need to be approached differently (past only push cutting)?

To OP: damn.. what a beautiful knife. Very nice score!

Omega said:

With respect to the comment about not using a Kiritsuke as a gyuto replacement- would people mind expounding on that a bit more? I've been quite smitten with the kiritsuke profile, and have flirted with the idea of getting one.. But I'm very much just a home cook that could probably get by with a single chefs knife and a petty. Is it just certain tasks that should be avoided? Or is it a technique thing- items need to be approached differently (past only push cutting)?

To OP: damn.. what a beautiful knife. Very nice score!

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This is a single bevel knife, you can find a kiritsuke tipped double bevel knife...not sure of the proper name but commonly referred to as a K-tip gyuto. The K-tip gyuto will require a certain amount of caution due to the often thinner pointy tip but you can use the knife like any other gyuto. That said, the profile favors push cutting. OP has a single bevel knife that is somewhat of a cross between styles.

chinacats said:

This is a single bevel knife, you can find a kiritsuke tipped double bevel knife...not sure of the proper name but commonly referred to as a K-tip gyuto.

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Yes! I actually do have one of these- and really enjoy it. It's part of what has made me want to experiment with the single-bevel version. I just.. see a lot of caution around the topic from other posters, so I've tried to do some do-diligence in asking.

The K-tip gyuto is so fun to use!

pretty much wish I could do katsuramuki though

Just takes practice. Or a mandi:cool2:

practice katsuramuki and then ken cut (chiffonading the wrapper you cut prior, essentially) on a soft tubular vegetable like a cuke. Go slow and be careful. Read up on the technique beforehand.

Get tubular with it bro

cowabunga dude

I wouldn't take the risk. I'd just give it to me!. Beauty pickup. Also I have no advice. Ha

do what everyone else does with stuff that looks cool but are useless, leave it in the drawer collecting dust. or put it in a frame with other silly knives.

You have a usuba now. You now have no excuse not to look down on people using mandolins at home for non-time-critical work

panda said:

do what everyone else does with stuff that looks cool but are useless, leave it in the drawer collecting dust. or put it in a frame with other silly knives.

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You look kind of cool...

Im going to award a dollar for whomever finds a thread where panda made at least one post yet zero cynical remarks.