You need to use a chef’s knife for many duties, be it finely chopping soffritto for spaghetti bolognese, chopping salted matcha fudge, slicing by way of bavette steak or halving squash for our stuffed butternut squash recipe. The one factor chef’s knives are usually much less appropriate for is okay work, akin to supreming citrus fruits or coring elements. For these duties, go for a paring knife. We might additionally suggest one thing hardy, like a cleaver, if it’s good to chop by way of bones.
We examined two of the commonest types of chef’s knives: Japanese and European. The in-depth variations between these two knives will be discovered on the backside of this web page, however at a look, Japanese knives are ultra-sharp and skinny, whereas European knives have a sturdy, thick blade.
We chopped, sliced and crushed our method by way of a spread of produce to search out one of the best chef’s knives. Uncover our high picks under.
Bounce to part
Greatest chef’s knives at a look
- Greatest chef’s knife: Takamura VG10 Gyuto 210mm, £175
- Greatest European chef’s knife: Zwilling Professional chef’s knife, £109
- Greatest Japanese chef’s knife: Miyabi 5000MCD67 chef’s knife, £449
- Greatest-value chef’s knife: Victorinox Swiss Basic carving, £37
- Greatest light-weight chef’s knife: Victorinox Swiss Basic trendy carving, £62
- Greatest full tang chef’s knife: World chef’s knife, £100
- Greatest chef’s knife for big fingers: Victorinox Grand Maître chef’s knife, £158
- Greatest chef’s knife for primary chopping: Katana Saya olive wooden knife, £84.95
- Greatest low-cost chef’s knife: Rockingham Forge Equilibrium, £19
Greatest chef’s knives to purchase 2023
Takamura VG10 Gyuto 210mm
Greatest chef’s knife
Star score: 5/5
Blade size: 21cm
Professionals:
- Engaging knife
- Nimble
- Snug deal with
Cons:
- Struggled slightly with thicker elements
That includes a tsuchime (hammered) end and ultra-nimble blade, the Takamura VG10 Gyuto shouldn’t be solely essentially the most enticing chef’s knife we examined, however it additionally excelled in take a look at.
This knife gives one of the best of each worlds: the deft precision of Japanese metal and sturdy assurance of European handles. It seems and feels high-quality, and has a reassuring weight to it. Within the hand, the knife is snug to carry and well-balanced. Greater than something, it appears like an extension of the hand.
Extra like this
It reduce by way of the vast majority of our take a look at elements with ease, slicing by way of onion, celery and carrots like butter. Although skinny, we had been capable of confidently crush a garlic clove below the blade. Our chef testers famous that the positive tip makes this knife ideally suited for precision chopping, they usually had been capable of chop a wide range of produce simply. The Takamura faltered barely when chopping by way of a butternut squash, as a good quantity of pressure was wanted to get by way of it. Although, as soon as we’d portioned off a spherical, eradicating the pores and skin and dicing the flesh was a breeze.
This razor-sharp knife is nicely definitely worth the funding. It’s snug within the hand and isn’t prone to trigger pressure if used for a chronic time frame. Simply remember to spend money on a sturdy sheath to guard the blade.
Out there from:
Zwilling Professional chef’s knife
Greatest European chef’s knife
Star score: 5/5
Blade size: 20cm
Professionals:
- Properly curved
- Basic design
- Sturdy deal with
Cons:
- Angular deal with
- Some rubbing should you maintain with pinch grip
If somebody requested you to image a knife, that is the one which would seem in your thoughts’s eye. It’s about as traditional in design as you could possibly probably get, with a curved tip and durable riveted deal with.
The deal with is quite angular, although we preferred the addition of the pinky relaxation on the again. Zwilling says that the bolster (the half the place the blade and deal with meet) encourages a pinch grip, although our testers who like to cut with a pinch grip disagree, noting that the bolster started to rub after extended utilization.
This knife is razor-sharp and made its method by way of our take a look at elements with ease. Just like the Takamura above, slightly further effort was wanted to get by way of the butternut squash.
Our cooks agreed that this knife is a pleasure to make use of, sturdy and properly weighted. It’s not fairly as balanced as our first-place knife because the deal with is barely heavier, however it’s certainly not unbalanced. A strong and dependable knife, constructed to final.
Out there from:
Miyabi 5000MCD67 chef’s knife
Greatest Japanese chef’s knife
Star score: 5/5
Blade size: 20cm
Professionals:
- Engaging
- Properly packaged
- Snug to make use of
- Extremely-sharp
Cons:
- Tester struggled with positive chopping
There’s no denying that is a pretty knife: an ergonomic black ash deal with and Damascus-patterned blade make this an actual deal with to behold. Straight out of the field, you’ll be able to really feel its high quality – the deal with is sturdy and the blade sturdy and nicely made.
The blade is nimble and ultra-sharp. We managed to attain wafer-thin slices of carrot and celery when chopping, and this knife posed no actual points when slicing by way of butternut squash. Our chef commented that they discovered this knife light-weight and cozy to make use of, although they struggled when doing positive and exact work utilizing the tip.
The deal with is clean and cozy. Notably, we discovered the blade barely heavier than the deal with, although this isn’t significantly noticeable whenever you’re utilizing the knife.
We had one slight grumble about this knife: it’s the costliest on our checklist (and utterly definitely worth the value), so it was disappointing to find that no sheath or blade cowl is supplied.
Out there from:
Victorinox Swiss Basic
Greatest-value chef’s knife
Star score: 4.5/5
Blade size: 19cm
Professionals:
Cons:
- Very mild
- Not ideally suited for heavy obligation duties
Outfitted with an ergonomic textured deal with, this Victorinox knife gives a sturdy grip when chopping. The knife is a good measurement and out there in a spread of colors (black, orange, yellow, pink, pink, yellow). It was notably nimble when chopping a wide range of elements.
This knife may be very mild, weighing simply 92g. It’s balanced within the hand, however the deal with feels plasticky and the blade itself may be very versatile – virtually as versatile as a fish knife – which makes it uncomfortable to chop by way of onerous and heavy obligation produce. However, this knife excelled when chopping by way of on a regular basis gadgets akin to onions, carrots and celery. It cuts cleanly and may be very sharp.
We had been slightly tentative when chopping by way of butternut squash: it didn’t reduce by way of easily, however we simply reduce off the rind and cubed the squash.
Out there from:
Victorinox Swiss Basic trendy carving
Greatest light-weight chef’s knife
Star score: 4.5/5
Blade size: 20cm
Professionals:
- Engaging
- Light-weight
- Looks like an extension of the arm
Cons:
- Blade feels slightly flimsy
This Victorinox knife options the identical smooth, textured deal with because the knife above. Relatively than being ergonomically formed, this one is trendy and angular. Fortunately, the angles are smoothed out, making it snug to carry.
We had been capable of easily chop by way of a wide range of greens. Our cooks discovered it slightly troublesome to be exact because of the size of the blade. However, when chopping and dicing, this knife excelled.
This knife didn’t really feel as sharp as its Basic counterpart above. We discovered we wanted to roll the butternut squash across the knife, quite than seamlessly chopping by way of it. However, the rind got here off with complete ease.
It’s slightly heavier than the Victorinox above – 148g – however nonetheless undoubtedly light-weight. Although, it is not so mild that it feels uncontrolled within the hand.
Out there from:
World chef’s knife
Greatest full tang chef’s knife
Star score: 4.5/5
Blade size: 20cm
Professionals:
- Engaging
- Textured deal with
- Full tang
Cons:
- Grime traps within the deal with
- Some rubbing on forefinger
World knives had been the model of selection for Anthony Bourdain, and Michel Roux Jr reaches for them right now. It’s simple to see why. The chef’s knife is enticing, with a traditional, clean form. The knife is full tang, which means it could possibly stand up to extra pressure than its half-tang counterparts. Whereas it’s unlikely you’ll be placing the knife by way of its paces fairly like an expert chef, it’s reassuring to know that the knife is designed to face the take a look at of time.
It sliced by way of the vast majority of elements with ease. Our cooks famous how direct this knife was when chopping, which means they felt in management the entire time. Like a few of the different knives we’ve examined, the butternut squash proved slightly too robust for the knife, and we wanted to roll the squash. Fortunately, this sturdy knife allowed us to place as a lot stress as wanted behind the knife.
Usually, the knife was snug in use, although some testers famous that the knife rubbed on the forefinger after extended utilization.
Out there from:
Victorinox Grand Maître chef’s knife
Greatest chef’s knife for big fingers
Star score: 4/5
Blade size: 22cm
Professionals:
- Good for big fingers
- Reassuring weight
Cons:
- Somewhat uncomfortable on forefinger
- Deal with very angular
That includes a sweeping, curved blade and ergonomic deal with, this Victorinox knife simply achieves a clean, rolling chop when working by way of massive portions. Its massive, broad blade makes it an environment friendly selection.
This knife options one of many thickest blades of all of the knives we’ve examined. Consequently, we struggled to attain the precision wanted for positive slicing and dicing. However, it powered by way of butternut squash simply.
The deal with is lengthy and clean. There’s a thick bolster, which proved an irritant for individuals who use a pinch grip when chopping. Testers with smaller fingers discovered the deal with slightly too massive, although these with bigger fingers mentioned it felt excellent. So, should you usually discover the handles on knife a bit small, this Victorinox knife is price contemplating.
Out there from:
Katana Saya olive wooden chef’s knife
Greatest chef’s knife for primary chopping
Star score: 4/5
Blade size: 20cm
Professionals:
- Engaging
- Sheath supplied
- Fantastically introduced
Cons:
- Chunky deal with
- Deal with virtually too clean
Unboxing the Katana Saya chef’s knife was an actual pleasure. It arrived in a picket presentation field and even comes with a sheath to guard the blade.
That is a pretty knife. The blade is Damascus metal and the deal with is comprised of olive wooden. The deal with is fairly chunky. This, coupled with the dearth of ergonomic shaping and smoothing, means it is not the best to grip. We felt the deal with was virtually too clean. This posed no actual problem when chopping by way of primary greens, however we felt rather less safe after we had been required to make use of some actual pressure.
The blade is sharp, although not as sharp as some others on this checklist. However, for onions, celery and carrots, we reduce by way of with relative ease. We additionally confidently crushed a garlic clove below the blade.
It is a knife geared in the direction of loose-gripped, primary chopping versus onerous, intense work.
Out there from:
Rockingham Forge Equilibrium chef’s knife
Greatest low-cost chef’s knife
Star score: 4/5
Blade size: 20cm
Professionals:
- Beautiful rocking movement
- Snug deal with
Cons:
- Struggled with squash
- Can’t use full size of knife
This curved knife was constructed for individuals who take pleasure in chopping elements with a rocking chop. The blade flicks upwards and the deal with is ergonomically formed, making it very snug to carry. The form of this knife meant we chopped, brunoised and minced with complete ease.
It’s not the sharpest knife on our checklist, and because of this we struggled to get by way of butternut squash with out a number of pressure.
Certainly one of our chef testers famous that the form of the blade is barely restrictive. For instance, whenever you wish to use the tip of the knife for positive work, you’re pressured to contort your self in a barely uncomfortable method. Equally, the curved form stops you from utilizing the total size of the knife comfortably.
However, the blade itself is sturdy and the rocking movement achieved is managed and environment friendly.
What’s a chef’s knife used for?
A chef’s knife is a multipurpose, on a regular basis knife. It’s essentially the most versatile knife within the kitchen and the one you’ll attain for many when cooking. Chef’s knives are significantly adept at chopping meat, greens and different onerous and smooth elements. You too can use them to carve and debone, and use the flat facet of the blade to crush garlic.
We additionally consider it’s best to have the ability to use your chef’s knife for positive chopping: dicing carrots, celery and onions for soffritto, for instance.
What to search for in a good-quality chef’s knife
The primary query it’s good to ask your self when shopping for a brand new knife is: “Do I need a European or Japanese knife?”
European knife options:
- Extra sturdy, thick blade
- 20-degree edge
- Product of a softer metal than Japanese knives
- Wants sharpening extra usually
- Not as troublesome to sharpen as Japanese knives
- Handles are usually artificial, are usually bigger and heavier
Japanese knife options:
- Gentle, skinny blade
- 15-degree edge
- Retain sharp blade for longer than European knives
- Sharpening can take time, as it’s best to use a sharpening stone or go to an expert
- Constituted of a more durable metal than European knives, however the skinny blade is brittle and liable to chipping if used incorrectly
- Handles comprised of wooden or wooden composite – they taper contained in the deal with
Hybrid knives
We’re beginning to see extra hybrid knives in the marketplace; these are likely to merge the sturdy deal with of a European knife with the agile and sharp blade discovered on Japanese knives.
Measurement
A chef’s knife with a blade between 20-22cm is an efficient measurement for many on a regular basis duties. These which can be 23-30cm are higher for bigger duties solely.
Stamped or solid?
A stamped knife is reduce from a single sheet of steel. Stamped knives are usually cheaper, however they are often weaker than solid knives.
A solid knife is comprised of liquid steel that has been shaped right into a knife. These are usually stronger than stamped knives.
Weight
That is subjective, however it’s good to select a knife that strikes the stability between having a reassuring weight and never being too mild. A heavy knife could appear as if it’s the higher selection, however you don’t wish to change into drained whereas utilizing it. Equally, a lightweight knife is straightforward to regulate, however it might not have the ability to stand as much as more durable meals. A knife ought to really feel like an extension of the hand whenever you’re utilizing it.
The right way to sharpen a chef’s knife
There are various methods to sharpen a chef’s knife however at dwelling. A whetstone or handheld sharpener are two of the commonest strategies.
A handheld sharpener is normally small and has a V-shaped part so that you can pull your knife by way of. The “V” is comprised of two plates with differing grades of abrasion, just like sandpaper. Some sharpeners will simply have a single pair of plates, whereas others with have two or three with completely different abrasion ranges. Little ability is required to make use of these sharpeners – merely pull the knife by way of in a managed method.
A whetstone requires far more ability. These stones have to be soaked in water earlier than use, which might take round quarter-hour. When it is time to sharpen, merely slide your knife alongside the stone at both a 15 or 20 diploma angle, relying on the kind of knife you’re sharpening. This method can take round 20-Half-hour, relying on how boring the knife is. (Most sharpening stones have two completely different grit ranges. Start by engaged on the extra abrasive measurement, then flip to the sleek facet.) However, this does yield one of the best outcomes.
Due to the brittle nature of Japanese knives, we’d advise towards sharpening your knife utilizing a handheld sharpener. European knives will be sharpened utilizing each strategies.
How we examined one of the best chef’s knives
To place chef’s knives to the take a look at, we prepped a wide range of onerous and smooth produce, together with carrots, celery and onions. We chopped, julienned and brunoised to find how the knife carried out when finishing massive and small duties. To check the energy of the blade, we crushed a garlic clove and sliced by way of robust butternut squash.
We additionally gave the knives to our cooks to make use of whereas they had been recipe testing; they gave their real-time suggestions as they labored.
Knives had been additionally scored towards the next standards:
- Steadiness: we appeared for a well-balanced knife that wasn’t weighted too closely in the direction of both the blade or deal with
- Snug to carry: knives ought to match into the hand with ease and shouldn’t rub. We favoured knives that had been snug to carry, regardless of the person’s most popular knife-holding model
- Sharp blade: blades that reduce by way of elements with ease scored extra extremely than those who required pressure
- Sturdy blade: sturdy and sturdy blades provide extra versatility than these which can be versatile. We wished to really feel assured utilizing the knife; we had been much less trusting of weaker knives
- Properly-shaped: we most popular knives that allowed us to make use of the total size of the blade. Blades that had been upturned on the tip supplied much less snug usability
- Sustainable: knives that got here in cardboard or picket bins scored extremely, as did those who supplied lengthy warranties
Extra opinions
Greatest stand mixers
Greatest baking items
11 finest cake stands
19 finest espresso subscriptions
Greatest espresso machines
Greatest bean to cup espresso machine
Greatest espresso espresso machine
Greatest ice cream makers
Greatest bundt tins
Greatest loaf tins
Greatest springform cake tins
Greatest mixing bowls
Greatest KitchenAid stand mixers
Greatest cookie cutters
Greatest spatulas
Recipes the place a chef’s knife is important
Celeriac soup with chorizo oil
Vegan Bolognese
Roasted cauliflower steaks with romesco and fried eggs
Vegetable soup
Pan haggerty
Jerk rooster skewers
