Kitchen Knife for Young Daughter

Find deals on amazon
Miura knives
Kitchen Knife Forums

Help Support Kitchen Knife Forums:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
B

BostonBull

Active Member
Joined
Nov 24, 2018
Messages
29
Reaction score
4
Location
Boston, MA, USA
My 10yo is excelling in the kitchen. She does most of our slicing and chopping of fruits and veggies. I want to get her a decent knife that she can grow with and perhaps have for a long time. She currently uses a 130mm utility knife from the Wustof Classic line.

She cuts 90% on the board.

We don't eat much meat and never cook it at home, this knife will be strictly fruits and veggies

LOCATION
USA



KNIFE TYPE
Petty/Utility

Right handed

She currently uses western style handles ony, but I am open to her experiencing something new.

120mm - 150mm

Do you require a stainless knife? NO. REACTIVE CARBON IS FINE.

What is your absolute maximum budget for your knife? $50



KNIFE USE
Do you primarily intend to use this knife at home or a professional environment?
HOME

What are the main tasks you primarily intend to use the knife for? SLICING VEGETABLES , CHOPPING VEGETABLES, MINCING VEGETABLES,

What knife, if any, are you replacing? NONE

Do you have a particular grip that you primarily use? SHE IS STILL LEARNING. PRIMARILY PINCH

What cutting motions do you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for types of cutting motions and identify the two or three most common cutting motions, in order of most used to least used.) PRIMARILY PUSH AND CHOPPING

What improvements do you want from your current knife?



Comfort (e.g., LIGHTER KNIFE ; IMPROVED BALANCE )

Ease of Use (e.g., ABILITY TO USE KNJFE OUT OF BOX, PUSH CUTTING , SLICING MOTION ; LESS WEDGING ; BETTER FOOD RELEASE ;

Edge Retention (i.e., length of time you want the edge to last without sharpening)? WE OWN A HAPSTONE V7, NOT AFRIAD OF SHARPENING. THAT BEING SAID, EDGE RETENTION WOULD BE NICE



KNIFE MAINTENANCE
WOOD

Do you sharpen your own knives? YES
 
upload_2018-11-24_17-42-37.jpeg Misono Child’s knife.
 
Nah. She does fine with regular knives and excels in this.. No need to get her training wheels back on.

She's been prepping fruits and veggies since she was 5. All of my kids start with knives in the kitchen at this age.
 
Those kids knives are decent, the Misono suggested probably has better steel than the Wustof. My son (4yrs old) uses a Masahiro kids knife to break down an entire 10lb prime rib roast.
The shape and heel height promotes the use if a proper pinch grip (see picture), the rounded tips and heel is nice so they dont accidentally nic themselves. Its added bonus that they are very light, comfortable and cheap. If you must get her a carbon, maybe the Munetoshi 165 petty? That thing has good height, but beyond the $50 budgeting
_20181124_121147.jpeg
_20181124_123517.jpeg
_20181124_123811.jpeg
 
Maybe herder windmuehlermesser have something in the range?
 
parbaked said:
If stainless is ok these MAC Superior are light and useful.
http://epicedge.com/shopexd.asp?id=83628

You also get a KKF Forum 10% discount at Epicurean Edge
Click to expand...


Not married to full carbon, it was just a suggestion. Those reactive blades seem to be more bang for the buck in this limited price point. Would love to support a smaller knife maker if I can, and not leave something to be desired...
 
BostonBull said:
Not married to full carbon, it was just a suggestion. Those reactive blades seem to be more bang for the buck in this limited price point. Would love to support a smaller knife maker if I can, and not leave something to be desired...
Click to expand...

Down around that price range there are few, if any, carbon steel knives to choose from. Especially not with the height your daughter will need. Likewise, smaller knife makers aren’t likely to have $50 offerings. For that money, it’s fair to expect only mass produced stainless.

If I were in your shoes, I’d give that Misono more consideration, even if the rounded tip is off putting. You said she’s mostly doing push cutting and chopping, so why would she need a sharp tip anyway? And if she ran into a situation where she needed a sharp tip, why not use one of your knives?

But if the aesthetics are very important to you, then I’d look for a nice used carbon knife on eBay.
 
The herders are beautifully thin ground on the edges. Well ground for the money.
 
Your link didnt work for Cktogo, will not work from the KKF website.
The grind on the Misono is the thinnest, the Fujiwara a bit more robust. They are both AUS 8 steel, a good entry level steel. Not too hard to sharpen, holds a good edge for a respectable amount if time, can get as sharp as you want it or less for a child.
The carbonext is a semistainless steel, some like it most think its ok.
Of the 3 I would recommend the FKM.
 
dafox said:
Your link didnt work for Cktogo, will not work from the KKF website.
The grind on the Misono is the thinnest, the Fujiwara a bit more robust. They are both AUS 8 steel, a good entry level steel. Not too hard to sharpen, holds a good edge for a respectable amount if time, can get as sharp as you want it or less for a child.
The carbonext is a semistainless steel, some like it most think its ok.
Of the 3 I would recommend the FKM.
Click to expand...

Good to know. The link to CKTG was a Tojiro Shirogami Hairline Gyuto. Although that's bigger than I would have hoped for her. I really wanted to stay under 150mm

Is that FKM a good grind and setup for our needs? Is there another knife on their site in either handle, that perhaps is a better sale?
 
I have never bought a knife for a child, I do get the FKM 180 gyutos for gifts for friends, i think it's a very good knife for the price, a great entry level knife. Seems like it might be time to step up from a petty to a bit taller knife? The gyuto does have a point on it but so do pettys, that's why I thought a santoku might be better/safer. I did see kids Santokus on Amazon.
 
dafox said:
I have never bought a knife for a child, I do get the FKM 180 gyutos for gifts for friends, i think it's a very good knife for the price, a great entry level knife. Seems like it might be time to step up from a petty to a bit taller knife? The gyuto does have a point on it but so do pettys, that's why I thought a santoku might be better/safer. I did see kids Santokus on Amazon.
Click to expand...
She has some trouble with a Calphalon Katana which is why I am leaning toward a petty until her skills come along more and her hand strength/dexterity for handling a larger knife
 
BostonBull said:
More so than the Tojiro I linked to?
Tojiro Shirogami Hairline Gyuto
Click to expand...
I would say so indeed. Herder have a special grinding technique and grinds every blade edge to flex when pushed sideways against a nail. Like a straight razor.
 
This is what I am leaning toward, and hoping a cyber Monday deal helps. We can replace the handle down the road.

Misuzu SKS93 Bunka

Thoughts?
 
Cute looking knife. Fit and finish looks atrocious on the handle, but the price is in your budget.
 
I would choose either of these over the Mizou, which is pretty tall at the heel for a kid.
With 10% KKF discount, the price is close:
http://epicedge.com/shopexd.asp?id=84050
http://epicedge.com/shopexd.asp?id=323

If you really want to "get her a decent knife that she can grow with and perhaps have for a long time" you might consider increasing the budget to provide more options.
Otherwise just get her a MAC Superior. It can become her beater if she grows to want better knives...
 
parbaked said:
All your links are to product sold on a site that is banned in these forums.
You should go ask on that site's forum because no one here can navigate to your links.
Click to expand...

It is a knife. We should be able to discuss knives in general on a knife forum?

The link was for this:
Masutani VG1 Santoku 170mm
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top