Knife suggestions

[Skylar303]

Hey guys, sorry don't know much myself about quality knives, so can't really help her much on that end.

I have a friend who's brothers birthday is coming up who does quite a bit of all around cooking, mostly meats and veggies.

Her brother is more close to a 'chef' than any of us. What would would be a intermediate-sort of high end option for knifes? ($500 or below) Can be Western or Eastern. Would you recommend getting 1 good utilitarian knife or possibly 2 dedicated knives for meat and veggies, respectively?

I was thinking a Gyuto or Western style chef knife. But any ideas would be appreciated.

Edit -A chef friend reccomend 'Mac Knives' I've never heard of them.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

Honestly, if he's into cooking he may or may not already have style preferences so sometimes a gift certificate to a knife vendor is a good move.

It's also always very helpful to know if and how he sharpens/maintains his knives.

 

[Skylar303]

Very good points. I don't believe he knows more than basic sharpening with a metal rod thing. But wanting to learn more advanced techniques.

I will ask about the styles. Are certain ones easier to maintain or learn to sharpen? I know the different steels sharpen differently. But that's about it.

 

[Infrared]

With $500, you can pretty much buy anything.

Some examples below.

https://realsharpknife.com/collecti...10-210mm-gyuto-black-nickel-damascus-custom-1Flashy.

https://realsharpknife.com/collections/gyuto/products/kobayashi-sg2-210mm-gyutoLess flashy, harder but more delicate.

https://realsharpknife.com/collections/gyuto/products/tsunehisa-western-g3-210mm-gyutoWestern handle, less likely to chip.

All should be great cutters.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

Just one consideration is to pair something like a King NEO 800 with a good knife.

Consider names like Mac PRO, Missono, Tojiro DP, Kanehide, Tsunehisa, and Harukaze.

 

[Skylar303]

With $500, you can pretty much buy anything.

Some examples below.

https://realsharpknife.com/collecti...10-210mm-gyuto-black-nickel-damascus-custom-1Flashy.

https://realsharpknife.com/collections/gyuto/products/kobayashi-sg2-210mm-gyutoLess flashy, harder but more delicate.

https://realsharpknife.com/collections/gyuto/products/tsunehisa-western-g3-210mm-gyutoWestern handle, less likely to chip.

All should be great cutters.

Thanks for the suggestions! We're thinking a gyuto or a western style one. But she's going to go over and take pics of his most used ones since she doesn't know off the top of her head.

 

[Skylar303]

Just one consideration is to pair something like a King NEO 800 with a good knife.

Consider names like Mac PRO, Missono, Tojiro DP, Kanehide, Tsunehisa, and Harukaze.

Yeah a friend suggested Mac Pro, not sure if he uses stainless or clad or?

 

[M1k3]

Honestly, if he's into cooking he may or may not already have style preferences so sometimes a gift certificate to a knife vendor is a good move.

It's also always very helpful to know if and how he sharpens/maintains his knives.

And what size they'd prefer. And whether full stainless or not.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

Ya know, a good petty might be a nice fit here too. He can get a feel for a high performance knife without impeding his usual driver. Then if he gets an appreciation for the difference and wants to replace his main knife, he can look for one that fits his style. If I went the petty route I'd personally look at 130-150mm.

Maybe one of the Takamura oferings.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

The Tsunehisa santoku in this thread is also a really good deal at a now $110:

https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/...saki-yoshimi-kato-tsunehisa.56693/post-865636
That with a stone and heck, even a petty if you wanted would be an awesome introduction. I have two Tsunehisa knives and really like them.

 

[Delat]

For an experienced cook I would throw caution to the winds and buy him this guy paired with a handle you like. 210mm is the safe choice if unsure of size, but best if you can measure his current favorite chef's knife to see how long it is.
https://sugicutlery.com/collections/yoshikane/products/yoshikane-skd-nashiji-gyuto-blade-only
Or if you want something flashy then any flavor of Yu Kurosaki that floats your boat.

The Yoshikane and Kurosaki are both thin knives, somewhat delicate, and reward good technique. But any good cook should be seriously impressed and happy with them.

If you want something a little more forgiving, then the Tsunihisa mentioned previously is solid, or a Shiro Kamo R2/SG2.

Throw in a Shapton Pro 2000 or Shapton Glass 2000 whetstone for around $50 and you have a more than solid intro kit to j-knives right there.

 

[Skylar303]

Ya know, a good petty might be a nice fit here too. He can get a feel for a high performance knife without impeding his usual driver. Then if he gets an appreciation for the difference and wants to replace his main knife, he can look for one that fits his style. If I went the petty route I'd personally look at 130-150mm.

Maybe one of the Takamura oferings.

Thanks, I was looking at knives last night a little and maybe $500 for a single knife is a bit much. So maybe 2-3 knives. But I still need to hear back from her with her brothers knife info. If we go the set route, I was thinking just off the top of my head a gyuto, santoku (although maybe redundant with the gyuto? If so maybe a petty) And a nakiri. I thought would be a nice set.

 

[Skylar303]

And what size they'd prefer. And whether full stainless or not.

Yeah ha definitely some good points brought up. Steel preference is one of them. A lot of this stuff just blew over my head. Not knowing 'higher end' knives. I'll use my Kiwi cleaver and my thrift store santoku...

 

[Skylar303]

The Tsunehisa santoku in this thread is also a really good deal at a now $110:

https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/...saki-yoshimi-kato-tsunehisa.56693/post-865636
That with a stone and heck, even a petty if you wanted would be an awesome introduction. I have two Tsunehisa knives and really like them.

Thanks for the suggestions, I hope to hear back from her with the info I need... Looking for knives for him is giving me knife envy though. I may have to up my own game a bit. That santoku does seem like a good deal. There's a lot to learn about Japanese knives vs western it seems. A lot more 'collectable' Japanese it seems almost like a at certain point those knives are more collectable than for use.

 

[Skylar303]

For an experienced cook I would throw caution to the winds and buy him this guy paired with a handle you like. 210mm is the safe choice if unsure of size, but best if you can measure his current favorite chef's knife to see how long it is.
https://sugicutlery.com/collections/yoshikane/products/yoshikane-skd-nashiji-gyuto-blade-only
Or if you want something flashy then any flavor of Yu Kurosaki that floats your boat.

The Yoshikane and Kurosaki are both thin knives, somewhat delicate, and reward good technique. But any good cook should be seriously impressed and happy with them.

If you want something a little more forgiving, then the Tsunihisa mentioned previously is solid, or a Shiro Kamo R2/SG2.

Throw in a Shapton Pro 2000 or Shapton Glass 2000 whetstone for around $50 and you have a more than solid intro kit to j-knives right there.

Thanks for the suggestions! Yeah after some good points made by you guys here. I've sent her on a recon mission to scope his current knives. Good news is I think we have a couple months to get everything sorted. Yeah stone was another part of the gift with a nice blade or 2 or 3... She was thinking a jnat would be a cool option, something more unique. Which I may already have that covered.