Home (Or Professional) Chefs - Lets Talk Knives.

[bluegrassbrian]

Before I became a dedicated pipe smoker, knives were my main hobby. Folders, fixed blades, factory and custom pieces, blade steels, heat treats.. and on top of it all I've been involved with food prep professionally for over a decade.

A week before Xmas last year I realized my car had been broken in to and my work knives were stolen. It was very sad indeed.. some of these knives had been with me for nearly 10 years.
A Phil Wheeler chefs knife in S35VN, a Daniel Rohde chefs in 52100, and s super custom paring knife in W2 steel with coffin shaped handle and koa scales.

Turns out Phil and Dan don't do much knife making anymore so the past two months I've been doing some high level shopping lol.

Just got my new main chefs knife today, an 8" Meglio gyuto in Magnacut (the hot new super steel made by Crucible). Also just ordered a new parer, a Miyabi Koh in AEB-L. Also got some heavy duty Missen shears!
Excited to go back to work this week!

Any one else in to kitchen knives? What's new nu

 

[BarrelProof]

I am, but I don’t buy boutique ones because I’m not that serious about it, just a serious hobbyist in the kitchen at home.

I run Shun’s Premier line and love them.

 

[reloader]

When I owned my food truck I used "workhorse" knives. Never found any that would beat a Vitorinox with fibrox handle. Loved those and they are cheap in comparison to high end knives. Those are the knives I still use in my home.

 

[The Amish Tyrant]

I spent 18 years grinding it out on the kitchen line (including moonlighting to pay off student loans).

Wusthof has been my brand of choice both in the restaurant and at home. I have a knife roll and block of Wusthof knives. They are sharp German steel with a decent weight, good balance, comfortable balance, and lifetime warranty.

I also have a cheaper knife block for guests and a few knives from Dollar Tree in a drawer for wine I'm lazy and just want to throw them in the dishwasher. Surprisingly, the Dollar Tree knives last despite my abuse (maybe 2-3 years a knife) and are actually decent.

 

[mso489]

My wife grew up on a farm and helped her grandma cook for the people who worked on the farm and otherwise for the family, then spent her career in New York City and on Long Island reviewing restaurants and writing about food, so she has a long background in the food business. She treasures her carbon steel knives, and I just avoid using them, though I wash them and put them away carefully when she uses them.

For myself, I have some good Chicago brand kitchen cutlery that I enjoy using and feel more at ease using. It's sturdy, and I maintain it, so they are durable friends.

 

[telescopes]

I really like my Japanese knives, one of them a Ken Onion Chef knife, but for everyday work, I have an older set of Chicago Cutlery that we've used for 30 years. I keep them sharp and they can take a beating without me worrying about the knives. I use to keep the knives scary sharp, but truthfully, it was just too much work and I found very sharp much easier to maintain. Now, I only have to go through the ritual of wetting the stones once a year to keep them operational.

I am partual to Chinese cleavers. One maker from Hong Kong comes to mind, CCK.

 

[TheIronMonkey]

I am partual to Chinese cleavers. One maker from Hong Kong comes to mind, CCK.

Since I mostly prepare Cantonese dishes I learned from my late father, I use a Chinese carbon steel cleaver:



I have some more conventional chef knives, but, I feel most comfortable using this.

 

[telescopes]

Since I mostly prepare Cantonese dishes I learned from my late father, I use a Chinese carbon steel cleaver:

View attachment 203711

I have some more conventional chef knives, but, I feel most comfortable using this.

pure simplicity

 

[ashdigger]

I was a professional chef for over 10 years. I owned and used plenty of high grade Henckels. I owned four each of the French knives, boning knives and utility knives plus a shitload of special use knives.

We had a service come once a month and sharpen knives. He also sold knives, think Snap-On.

Best chef knife I ever owned I still have, it is a Gerber with Slate scales. Gerber made them for two years then went back to making garbage and pocket knives.

Here’s a pro tip: it’s not the knife, it’s the skill set.

 

[warren]

I use my kitchen knives often. I simply like them to be sharp, very, very sharp.

 

[captpat]

I use Forschner for general butchering, easy to sharpen and decent at holding an edge, Japanese knives are used for more delicate work when cooking.

 

[fireground_piper]

I’m a Cutco fan when I’m looking to spend the money. They are like the zippo of knives, for me. American founded and owned along with free product service for the life of the knife.

I have a very old cutco hunting knife I inherited from my Nan. It’s still sharp but does need a good servicing that I haven’t gotten around to contacting them about. It’s what got me into the company.

 

[bullet08]

Mostly whatever I can get my hands on. Do have German steel, need to sharpen it. When helping out at my father's restaurant, all the knifes were cheap supermarket knives ran through crappy sharpeners. They cut pretty sharp.

 

[RustiePyles CPG]

I like my knives like I like my pipes, old… I have mostly early Henkel carbon steel.

 

[ashdigger]

Mostly whatever I can get my hands on. Do have German steel, need to sharpen it. When helping out at my father's restaurant, all the knifes were cheap supermarket knives ran through crappy sharpeners. They cut pretty sharp.

In every professional kitchen in Las Vegas they have dozens of cheap knives with fibrox handles.

I kept my knives in a locked tool box.

The kitchen owned knives that were branded (like cattle brand) and they were cheap.

 

[The Amish Tyrant]

I kept my knives in a locked tool box.

My chef roll was padlocked and never left in the restaurant overnight. I still have the padlock on it.

Never got pulled over or stopped while walking with the roll, but it reminds me of a joke:

What is that? "It's a kitchen knife, officer."

And that? "A kitchen gun?"

 

[ashdigger]

My chef roll was padlocked and never left in the restaurant overnight. I still have the padlock on it.

Never got pulled over or stopped while walking with the roll, but it reminds me of a joke:

What is that? "It's a kitchen knife, officer."

And that? "A kitchen gun?"

I worked with a guy who took his knives home in a tool roll every night. He got into an altercation on the road and when the guy attacked him with a baseball bat, he responded by running the guy through with a 12 inch Chefs Knife.

No charges were filed.

 

[OzPiper]

Sorry to hear of your loss.

Strictly a home cook and not a terribly competent one at that. My kitchen knives are strictly boys toys rather than tools of the trade.

 

[pipingfool]

I bought a set of Wusthof Classics almost 30 years ago when I worked in restaurants and now use exclusively at home.

They have stood the test of time and I love the feel and balance of them. The only change I would make is adding a Chinese vegetable cleaver which I plan on adding soon.

 

[kcghost]

I don't cook much but when I do I prefer a Victorinox. It is inexpensive and works well.