My current set of kitchen knives from CKTG.
https://www.chefknivestogo.com/https://www.chefknivestogo.com/ Great company with excellent knives and a good knife forum to learn from.
Loving the 240 Gyuto (top) and leaf spring Honesuki (3rd from the bottom). I had never used a knife with a Japanese Wa style handle before. It's the only style I'll use from now on.
DAMN that's a nice set. My only CKTG knife is the Tanaka Blue #2 270mm Gyuto...
It's amazing. It's a big knife, but I have large hands and prefer that, and it's got enough length to get over just about anything I cut comfortably. The above pic is from CKTG -- I've had my knife almost 6 months now (Christmas gift from the missus), and mine is developing the patina associated with carbon steel.
I'm looking into getting a smaller gyuto (maybe 210mm) in a stainless alloy, as well as a 150 mm petty/utility knife in the same, and maybe a santoku. My wife is terrified of the 270 mm size and doesn't want to deal with the worry about rusting the carbon steel anyway, so the 270 is only used by me. The 210 and 150 and santoku would be good upgrades for our current blades.
For chef's knives, the bolster design is much more important than the handle (assuming you hold one the way I do). The bolster is the thick area where the blade enters the handle. I don't like many of the traditional-looking japanese knives because they don't have a bolster at all - which can leave the blade much heavier than the wood handle. The center of gravity of the knife should be right there at the bolster, so you can hold the knife there and it'll balance. A properly-designed bolster ensures the balance is correct. It also provides a pleasing grip for your thumb and meaty part of your index finger.
I suppose some of this is personal preference of course.
What I've found with the Japanese knives is that they're very light. A Wusthof Classic is a heavy knife, and I do agree that it's a pleasing pinch grip.
One of the things I did before getting the gyuto was go to Sur la Table and try out the style, because I wasn't sure I'd adapt easily to the handle. They let me try a knife or two on some light cutting of potatoes, and I found it plenty comfortable.
Yeah, it's absolutely personal preference, so I recommend to
@Immocles that he take a couple styles of knives at a store for a "test run" before throwing down coin at a site like CKTG.
@Inkleg's assortment of Japanese cutters makes me drool...
Lemme add... Having used all kinds of knives over the past 50-some years, and having a drawer full proving some of that history, I find the 7" Santoku
the single most versatile all-round kitchen knife. I can cut, slice, peel, trim, chop/rock for hours without fatigue. It has excellent balance while the smooth, slightly tapered handle feels natural, comfortable. It's become pretty much the only knife I use.
Personally I can't get into the santoku. We have a 7" Victorinox santoku, and it's just an awkward size and shape, and I'm not used to the cutting stroke typically used with a santoku.
My wife loves that knife though, so as said above it might be on the upgrade list down the line too.
@Immocles Do you have a price point you are looking at? Cooks Illustrated and others have consistently rated the
Victorinox Fibrox Pro as being equal in steel quality and function with many of the most expensive European knives at a fraction of the cost. I have Wusthof Classic knives my dad bought me many years ago that are very nice. Some say they are over priced but they have a solid reputation and will last a lifetime. My wife bought me a couple Wusthof Ikon Classic knives a few years ago to supplement the others. It's the same steel but different handle. Those knives feel a lot nicer in the hand so it would be nice to hold some different knives if you can to see what you like.
My ex and I got a full Wusthof Classic set for our wedding--and I lost those knives in the divorce. Great knives. Pricy, but durable. They'll last forever.
After the divorce, I had to basically stock my own kitchen from scratch, on a budget. I ended up buying a knife block and building my set from individual knives, all Victorinox Fibrox. Ended up with a 10" Chef's knife, 8" Chef's knife, 7" Santoku, 6" utility knife, serrated bread knife, and a paring knife. They're very high quality for the price. They're extremely light and easy to work with. The blade angle is narrower, more like a Japanese knife. They hold their edge quite well, and are easy to sharpen.
I recommend them to anyone who is looking for a budget-friendly knife. These are a great value.
I'm not super concerned about pricing. I probably wouldn't want to go completely overboard, but we aren't opposed to buying quality if it costs a bit extra. I'm assuming that a couple of the knives will run at least 75-150$ a piece. I do think we will buy single knives instead of a set. We want the block off the counter, and after doing some rearranging in the kitchen, we found a good spot in the drawer to store knives and get rid of some non-kitchen items. The knife list keeps getting longer though.
Honestly, at the price of that Victorinox knife that you linked, we might just roll with that to start with. If its terrible, I'm only out 30 bucks. She posted a similar thread on one of her hobby forums and the folks there have also suggested that particular one, along with Wusthof Ikon. We do a lot of joint prep work, so two nice knives are needed. I'm sort of falling in love with one of the 7in santoku knives and will purchase one of those babies for myself. I'm terrible at sharpening, but I'm going to do my best to get adequate at it and resharpen up the steak knives we already have. So that leaves a paring knife, at a minimum.
Have you thought about the magnetic strip on the wall as a solution for not having them on the counter? I can't do that in my current house because there are no suitable areas to mount one, but down the road I'd consider it. I don't like the idea of knives being less accessible in a drawer--with the block I just grab & go. I think I'd do the same with the magnetic strip.
I also recommend practicing your sharpening on your current knives. Most cheap knives will actually take an edge just fine, it's that they're too soft and don't hold it long. This'll allow you to work on your sharpening technique without screwing up the bevel on a nice knife.
As said above, I am a huge fan of the Victorinox, but it seems like you're looking for "forever" knives... The Victorinox are not that. That said, if you need two knives, having one "nice" chef's knife and one Victorinox that you can beat on might make sense.
I also agree with individual knives instead of a set--most of the sets give you knives you don't need and will likely never use as "filler".
I do think one of the most overlooked knives is that mid-size "utility" knife. Something in the 5-6" range that you can use for more delicate tasks and smaller items that you might not pull out a big chef's knife for, but longer than a 3.5" paring knife. The Wusthof set had one of those and it ended up getting brought to an event and lost, and I missed it quite a bit--hence how I ended up with a 6" Victorinox utility knife as a mandatory purchase.
Is there such a thing as good, dishwasher safe kitchen knives?
No. Never. Not ok.
Most of the knives at CKTG are sharpened at 12 deg with one side bevel being specialty knives only. You can get some really great knives in your price range and smile every time you cook.
There are a lot of CKTG knives with even double-side grinds. This is something I look for as I'm left-handed.
Sure which I could find a left-handed serrated bread knife though.
