Posted: 7/31/2004 11:59:06 PM EDT
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What are some good budget kitchen knives? I got 1 set of some BS ones that were quick to rust, and 1 made in China knife thats somewhat good. What are you using, I used to use the pocket knife but I stopped. |
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Wusthöf-Trident and J.A. Henckels make some of the best knives on the market. For their performance, they are cheap. They will outlast you, if you take proper care of them (sharpen often, USE ONLY WOODEN CUTTING BOARDS!, do not mistreat). The only part of our knife set that has ever rusted is the spring on the cutting shears, and those are made by Chef's Choice anyway. I just bought a Zwilling Henckels (two-man, not one-man-with-halberd) paring knife for 7 bucks from a local azn mart. Mofo is SHARP as hell. Cuts through damn near anything damn near instantaneously. I recommend Zwilling JA Henckels. |
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Get CUTCO, they are based in Orlean NY, they have a weird Mary-Kay like marketing and slaes structure of slaes people which is lame but they are great knives. I sold them when I was in college. I still have my demo set and I use them everyday, guaranteed for life etc. www.cutco.com/jsp/home.jsp |
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Wusthoff and Henkels will be the two big names people bring up when asked about cutlery. A few years ago I did my own research and discovered a little known brand...Tramontina. Look for the Tramontina Professional series. Based upon my research at the time and my experience, they are every bit as good, if not better than the other two heavy hitters mentioned. As a matter of fact, the other two feel cheaply made by comparison to me now. Just remember, you must look for their Professional Series...they have a lesser line that is common at Wal-mart. Check this place out... www.abestkitchen.com/store/knifesets.html |
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I use chefs choice.. works for me.. Just with whatever brand you buy get a diamond steel to sharpen your knives with.. It works alot faster and cleaner then a stone........ I use a Wusthof which I got for about 50, I wouldnt spend more then that on one.. no reason.. just make sure it isn't one that is hollow 'cause it will move around alot as you sharpen... |
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I'lkl second the Forschners, great knives. Forgo the "nice" wooden handles & get plastic handled knives, they will last longer. As for the Diamond Steel, remember what a steel is made for, they straighten, not sharpen the edge. Diamond will remove metal from the edge, which a normal steel will not. A steel is used to straighten the edge that is already there, not to "sharpen" like a stone. Diamond is fine for stones, but for a steel (which you should use every time before you cut with your knife) stick with metal, not diamond |
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+1 I have one of their block sets and have been adding a piece to the "collection" here and there over the years. I have a set of Henckles steak knives/forks (with wood handles) that I know are at least 35 years old and they look and perform like they were new. Spend the extra dollars and you'll only buy once. |
| I have had good luck with a set of Stainless steel, forged knives from Farberware; about $50 for the set, including a half-dozen steak knives. Only knife that is serrated is the bread knife, which is OK by me. There are better, of course, but this was a pretty good set for the price. |
+1 I have to keep reminding my wife of this fact. It always amuses me when people are in my kitchen and cut something. I often hear, "Wow, your knives are SHARP! Isn't that the point? |
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Another + for Henckels/Wusthof. Comparing Cutco to Henckels is like comparing a Nash Rambler to a Porsche. They are based in America, if that is your only requirement. I have Henckels, forged and stamped Chicago Cutlery, Cutco, and some carbon steel slaughter knives. There are better knives out there, but Henckels are fantasic for the $. If you don't want to buy a whole block set one of the three knife sets is cheaper and will have the knives you'll use most of the time. |
 These knives are what I mainly use in the kitchen. The Schrade at top is used for cutting up apples for pies and stuff lile that. The Kershaw beneath it I use to cut frozen meat like saugage because it has a very rigid blade. The two below that are Horschners. I use the big one to chop and the smaller one to slice tomatos and thngs like that. They sharpen easy on my vertical sticks and hold an edge well. |
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Forschner makes good, inexpensive kitchen knives. Lamson makes good, inexpensive kitchen knives. Henckels & Wusthof make very good kitchen knives (get the forged ones from Germany, not the stamped steel ones from the far East). There are other German manufacturers (mostly based in Solingen) who also make excellent knives (Messermeister, Schaaf, etc.) Global makes a very good knife (note that their metal handle is not liked by all) The ceramics are sharp, but must be returned to the factory for sharpening, and (as noted) they are brittle. Stainless knives are generally inferior to high-carbon stainless knives (in terms of edge holding). Non-stainless knives take the best edge, but will discolor if not cleaned immediately after use. Go with high-carbon stainless. In general, forged knives are better than stamped, but the Forschners (stamped) are quite decent. The Chinese Cleaver (the one Yan is holding) is a useful tool, about $30-40. "Never need sharpening knives" will need sharpening. (Henckels tried it with their TwinStar line) The best sharpener on the market is the EdgePro. Electric sharpeners will grind your knives into junk (although the Chef's Choice sharpener is passable) NEVER use the griniding wheel on the back of an electric can opener. You should get 5 knives and you will be good to go: 1. a paring knife (3-4") 2. a boning knife (flexible, the Forschner is good) 3. a Chef's knife (8-10", get one that feels good in the hand. Spending $70-90 on one is not unreasonable) 4. utility knife (6", narrower than the Chef's) 5. bread knife (8" min, 9 or 10 is better) Use a ceramic rod for steeling, the coarse metal fluted ones take away too much metal. Keep them in the block or on a rack - loose in a drawer the edges will be destroyed. Note also that the "sharpness" is very dependent on the angle of the blade, and whether it is ground on both sides or just on one. You can make a very very sharp knife that will go dull very fast (especially if cutting into bone) Never cut on anything but a cutting board. Wood & plastic only, no glass. Plastic boards must be sterilized (I throw them in the dishwasher on high heat) after usage, wood boards can be better but need cleaning & re-oiling (use food grade mineral oil) |
I got a set of ceramics about 6 months ago and they are the best knifes I have ever had. I gave all my steel ones to my father-in-law. I'll never go back to steel again. |
I was thinking the same damn thing, I use my hunting knives around the kitchen (with care) and get double duty out of them. That way they don't feel all neglegted in the safe!! 
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in the budget arena the Forschners as said are probably your best bet-found in almost every western professional kitchen. They are stamped but will take and hold an edge well. They are also on the light side weightwise. If you want quality, Wustoff are good German Stainless knives, Sharpening can be a pain though due to the the metal's hardness. Another player in the forged German knife area are Messermiesters. Used to run 2/3 price of wustoffs and same steel. Henkels are now being manufactured in Asia and Spain among other places-be sure what youre getting for the $$. I have used all of the above manufacturers and am retiring most of my knives for french Sabatiers. 100% carbon steel, will take an amazing edge, very easy to steel, full tang with composite handles. They also require more care, keeping clean, wiping down, do not run through dishwashers(same is true for any knife!!) and they will get a nice patina. Must get the pro carbon series as the lower grades are also made in different factories. No French jokes please ;) knives are the tools i make a living with and have found these work the best for me. Note that there are differences in shape, handle, feel, weight, etc so your best bet is to hit a cutlery store and decide what is right for you. hth, danny p.s. for sharpening i now use an Edge-pro Apex made in OR. Like the lansky etc systems. Run about $140 but worth the investment for me. I've used most sharpening systems out there and this sucker will make your German s.s. knives shine, instead of sending them out to the knife dude. |
My parents have a Chinese cleaver that is older than I'm, ie more than 50 years old and it is still being used. If you get only one knife, this is it. The Chinese cleaver can replace a drawer full of knives. The Chinese clever as it is thinner, from the European cleaver is thicker & heavier because it is designed to chop thru bones and nothing else. |
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I really would like a set of Wusthof-Trident's. The J.A.Henckles are nice blades, but I really dont care for the way the handles feel in my hand(yes, I spend alot of time in the kitchen). I've been using a set from Cutco for about 4 years now with zero complaints. The knife on the left is the one that is used for about 90% of my kitchen cutting needs 
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I saw an article about them making them once. Im trying to keep everything in the sub $100 range about what I spend on C&R guns. I use my knives alot of times, but I dont cook for alot of people normally just me sometimes 1 or 2 other people. So I dont have to buy the 73 peice knife set. |
My ex GF was attending a culinary college, and I bought a big set of Henckel's Pro-s knives and a block for her for Christmas one year. Between the time I bought them and the holiday, we had broken up, so I now have a very nice set of cutlery! She should have tried harder...... Nice knives!
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I would never buy an entire set, I actually talke dot my wife about this and she explained that alls one really needs is a good paring knife and a boning knife and a heavy knife to cut some serious meaty parts or bone. SHe hasn't cooked in two or three years seriously, but she says that a good knife will set you back about $350.00 to $400.00, it should last a year or so without needing to be resharpened (I never notice a dull knife when I am whipping up one of my late night specials), when it needs to be resharpened it is sent back to the company and for a small fee they put a new edge on them. Other than that they ought to last pretty much forever. I know that a cermic knife will slice paper thin tomatoe,and will chop through some nasty bone. Works for me, YMMV. |
Once you go ceramic, you never go back. |
Dano1, I would be interested in what your thoughts are vis-a-vis steel vs ceramic. |
Another good brand is F. Dick, mid priced, and very high quality. I can't seem to locate the lit on the cutlery lines my company carries, but Dexter-Russell is coming out with a forged line to ompete with the Dept. store Henkels brands and they seem to be very nice from the samples the factory rep had on hand. |
As posted below ceramics are very sharp but brittle. I've used them but wouldn't plonk down my hard eraned $$ on them One drop is all it takes and your done. They must be sent back to the factory for resharpening. Mind you this is in a professional kitchen where speed is of the essence and equipment is used to the limit-in a home environment they may work for you. As also stated f. Dick's are also a good mid line knife; i beleive they are now school issue for Johnson and Wales University. hthy, danny |
Hey, if Yan can use a cleaver for everything, so can you. I watch him regularly. He does everything with that cleaver and chopsitcks. He's a great cook; been around for a while. |