Transitioning from Pro Kitchen to Domestic Cookery

Japanese Knives - by Tokushu Knife
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Just used my CCK kau Kong chopper for cutting plugs of grass. From 2X4 feet flats of grass. Cut strips with a serrated curved blade. Lay the strips on a 4X4 piece of lumber CCK cuts the plugs with one stroke going through grass, dirt, roots with ease. I used a cutting board & Stainless cleaver in the past. Destroyed the board and the cleaver after a while. This system works much better have to sharpen the CCK after 6 flats. Use a 1K diamond stone from JKI.
 
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holdmyphone said:
I've worked in pro kitchens for the better part of this decade, but no longer. I've been thinking about what this means for my knives. Anyone else made the transition to home cook? What knives did you keep, what knives did you sell, what do you reach for now? I find myself mostly grabbing my 180 petty, or a beater Kiwi nakiri, or even... 6" Chicago Cutlery chef knife. I'm giving serious thought to buying a 210mm chef knife despite having been a 240 or 270 guy at work. Now the amount of food is trivial, I can take my time, knife choice seems more novelty than necessity. Still, using a nice knife is more fun!
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Think it all depends on what you're personally into. I know pro chefs using Katos, Shigs and Yanicks at work, and home cooks using the same—as well as pros and home cooks opting for lower priced knives. Space and volume cooked are considerations of course. Personally my size sweet spot is 225, whether I'm cooking for 2 or 20—for me, 210s always felt too small. Advantage of being a home cook is not worrying that an expensive knife will get stolen or knocked off the counter. My home kitchen set is typically a 225 or 240 gyuto + 150 or 180 petty.

So, your transition might not be drastic. If your tools are creating issues, you'll know—and have a great excuse to buy more knives!
 
When I left pro kitchens, a bit less than a decade ago, I thought my interest in knives would wane. My experience has been the exact opposite. I never worked anywhere where a 270 was an option and even though I line in an apartment I'm still very much a 240 guy when I want a gyuto. I feel more comfortable these days racing for a specialized knife or even a smaller knife. My current favorite is a 180 petty. Obviously it's super personal and you'll do what works best for you.
 
Been a few years since I retired too. Sold most all of my work knives including 270 yanagiba. Kept my smaller 240 yanagiba. Takaji Honyaki and trusty CCK Kau Kong Chopper. Sold rest of my CCK cleavers.

Since retired have better gyuto for home use. Blame it on this forum. Don't look at BST anymore. Took me about 4 years to finally buy a Gengetsu.
 
Dont think Ill ever give up my nice knives if I end up not cooking professonally anymore. I enjoy them too much and I cant imagine a future where I wont ever cook something at home. At home like at work I like 240mm gyuto or 150mm petty for most things. 180mm is also starting to grow on me.

I really like mac knives as well. Only have a pairing but picked some up for family and a friend when I used to get a nice discount thru my last spot.
 
I've kept all my knives but really only use my nenox 210mm at home for the most part
 
Keith Sinclair said:
Just used my CCK kau Kong chopper for cutting plugs of grass. From 2X4 feet flats of grass. Cut strips with a serrated curved blade. Lay the strips on a 4X4 piece of lumber CCK cuts the plugs with one stroke going through grass, dirt, roots with ease. I used a cutting board & Stainless cleaver in the past. Destroyed the board and the cleaver after a while. This system works much better have to sharpen the CCK after 6 flats. Use a 1K diamond stone from JKI.
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I found a small beater hatchet to be the tool to cut sod Just lay the sod on the ground and chop around the shape and size you need. And old landscaper showed me that trick. Saves movements. No need to go back and forth from a cutting station.

I am so glad I don’t have a lawn anymore.
 
It's actually been pretty funny trying to be useful at home. The girl only has a 10" circle cutting board, so it's even smaller. I'll still bust out the 240-270 to mince a clove of garlic though if she's making a salad dressing or something...while there's a press in her hand.

She probably wants me back at work more than I do.
 
Nagakin said:
It's actually been pretty funny trying to be useful at home. The girl only has a 10" circle cutting board, so it's even smaller. I'll still bust out the 240-270 to mince a clove of garlic though if she's making a salad dressing or something...while there's a press in her hand.

She probably wants me back at work more than I do.
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I guess the solution is to cook salad recipies that require more garlic cloves - boiled green beans with garlic and dill, for ex. 😁
Or meat processing - lots of cutting, boning, etc..Actions which the girls are scared to perform, for obvious reasons.
 
soigne_west said:
Unfortunately I think a lot of us pros are suddenly in this position. Through no choice of our own. It’s definitely weird. Still buying knives, still trying knives. I for one have been also reaching for smaller knives almost exclusively, which is soo not normally my jam. Recently got a knife in 270 that I had been yearning for, only to find, at home, I never use it. It’s a weird time, but in it, I’ve found a new appreciation for smaller knives, and shorter knives.
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same here, i'm using a 180 petty for most tasks at home in the last few weeks, while at work my most used knives are in the 250-270mm range.
 
boomchakabowwow said:
I found a small beater hatchet to be the tool to cut sod Just lay the sod on the ground and chop around the shape and size you need. And old landscaper showed me that trick. Saves movements. No need to go back and forth from a cutting station.

I am so glad I don’t have a lawn anymore.
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Yes a hatchet works. Put in a couple yards long before got melanoma from spending most of my life in and on the ocean. That was 5 years ago they caught it in time. Now I put on sunblock wear clothing & hat's block the sun. Cutting area in the shade. Fill up a couple 5 gallon buckets & take to where I'm planting.

The Kau Kong cleaver works because forward weighted has a good grind for a bone cleaver. It's carbon so easy to sharpen when it starts to dull.
 
I've made the transition from pro to home cook in the past, and my preferences didn't really change. There's actually more space in my home kitchen than in some of the places I've worked in.
A lightweight 240mm is still king for me, with 180-210mm for smaller work. I would never use a 270mm at home.
 
I’m super interested in what knives you grab the most Jules. Mainly your own?
 
Some of the left-over knives from when I was a cook before I became a maker (like the Sukenari ZDP) plus some of the mess around knives like the test chevron knife, which doesn't even have a handle but I still love to use.
 
Kippington said:
Some of the left-over knives from when I was a cook before I became a maker (like the Sukenari ZDP) plus some of the mess around knives like the test chevron knife, which doesn't even have a handle but I still love to use.
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You don't use your own knives? O-o
 
Yeah I do, I mentioned one of my own.

Not forgetting that I have a knife collection from when I was a chef, I've never set aside the time to make a complete knife for myself - Why do that for free when I can get paid to do the same for another person? :p
 
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Most appropriate home kitchen knives are whatever rocks your boat.

It's entirely difficult to define what the most appropriate knives are for home vs professional kitchens—too many variables, from tasks to personal preferences.

To me there's no difference between knives best for home use and knives for professional kitchens. I just see a difference between good and not so good knives, cheap and expensive knives. As I mentioned in an earlier comment, transition in type of knives from restaurant to home kitchen might not even be an issue.

I'm a home cook, but have cooked in a several restaurant kitchens in the past—main difference for me is that in a home kitchen I generally have complete control over the kitchen environment, thus allowing me to use whatever I choose. Depending on mood and objective I might use a cheaper, beater knife like Masamoto HC, other times it might be a coveted, high-performance piece of functional art. Cooking at home gives the opportunity to work with a knife that's higher priced without fear of it being damaged in the sometimes cramped work station of a restaurant kitchen during the rush.

Regarding size. My primary nightly, home setup is gyuto + petty, sometimes suji. 225 is my usual go-to size, though 240 and 270 used in my home kitchen depending on what I feel like using—having more than a few knives gives me the luxury of mixing things up. At the end of the day, knives are just tools, just want whichever I choose to get me efficiently from point A to B.

Current knives seeing the most action in my home kitchen are 225 Raquin gyuto, 360 Raquin sujihiki, 150 Yoshikane SKD Petty.

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