Kitchen Knives: Preferences, Tips, General Care

[Suzanne F]

Jin, the little dimples in the Global handles really do help one's grip. (Unlike Füri, which are also all of one piece, but smoother.) But on the whole, I prefer others.

[Jinmyo]

Suzanne, I know about the dimples. I've tried several borrowed Globals. Nope. Don't trust them.

[DaveFaris]

Fwiw, I've never felt insecure working with one, slippage wise. (Sharpness wise, maybe.) And I've never developed blisters, or even hotspots on my skin, using it. But I could see if I were a professional, cutting mountains of stuff with it, maybe it would be an issue.

[Fat Guy]

If you get a bunch of line cooks around a dinner table and you can get them to stop talking about sex for ten minutes, you'll find that there are serious battle-lines drawn between the Global lovers and the Global haters. Plenty of people I respect swear by them, though I've tried a couple of times to like them and haven't been able to see the appeal. So it does seem sensible for anybody considering such a purchase to test-drive the product first. Me, I'm a Wusthof guy all the way.

[La Niña]

Recently I had the assignment to buy my beau new knives, at my discretion. I test-drove a whole bunch of knives (although I myself am a Wusthof classic gal all the way) and I came back to the Wusthofs in the end. I love the way they feel - the heft, the sense of security, the balance, the blades - nothing else can compare for me.

[Suvir Saran]

I don't care for Global. They're well balanced, very pliable, but I don't trust metal handles not to slip. I just don't.

I am with you Jinmyo.

[Double 0]

I'm on my third brand of knives in the last 20 yrs, Dick in cooking school (I love, but the handles are starting to wear out ), Henkels as a gift ( they're hard to keep sharp (S.S)), and recently (2yrs ago) Global. I got a vegetable knife (5-6 in) and wouldn't trade it for any other knife I've tried. I liked it so much that I bought the same style in a 8 in. length.

[BigMac]

I like the look of this thread, but I am a(n?) Henkel's man. What is a good sharpener for them a la the one for the Global? Can it be used?

[chopjwu12]

you know what global knives are good for?.....

FOR ME TO POOP ON.

They suck. They dont stay sharp very long and they are a pain in the ass to sharpen. Go real japanese from Korin. Im a chef and i use the tojiro line of knives. They are easy to maintain and shine when your doing vegatables and such. Take your globals and throw them out!!!!!!!

chop: If you want to throw them out, I'll take them.

I was never stupid enough to buy those knives.

But like steve said about the pro chefs. There is a line and your either for or against. Im am against if you couldn't figure that out. Oh yaeh hes rigth bout the sex thing too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have to say i hate all german knives too.

[snowangel]

Kitchen knives are very personal things, and thus you shouldnt buy them sight unseen -- you want to go to a really good kitchen store and try out a few, maybe go to a restaurant supply and have a look at a whole line of them. If you dont like the heft of it or arent comfortable using it, it will sit in your drawer and you won't use it. So pick one you like using. Rachel picked up the Henckels several years back, she likes them but I'm not crazy about them. Thats why giving people kitchen knives as gifts is a really shitty idea to begin with.

I got a Global as a gift, and hated the feel of it. A close friend got a Wusthof (again as a gift), and she hated the feel of it. She really liked my Global, and I really liked her Wusthof, so we traded. What was great is that we each had an opportunity to help prep a meal at each others houses, so we not only got to heft the knives, but use them.

Go shopping. Look, feel, pretend you are chopping. See what feels right. You may do better price-wise to purchase on-line, but I sure wouldn't spend a lot on a knife sight unseen or heft unfelt.

An added (edited) note; just because you really like the feel of one particular knife by a manufacturer doesn't mean you will like the feel of a different knife by the same company. I never bought a "set" of knives. My knives are a mish-mash of different brands.

Edited December 2, 2002 by snowangel (log)

[maggiethecat]

I don't care for Global. They're well balanced, very pliable, but I don't trust metal handles not to slip. I just don't.

I am with you Jinmyo.

So Suvir! Send me your two for Christmas (With a penny in the package. One of my granny's many superstitions was that a knife given as a gift would cut the friendship of the giver and the givee unless a small amount of money was included!)

We are Global converts...home cooks, though. Not much volume going on.

His Handsomeness keeps it sharp with the Japanese whetstone he bought to try to keep the Wusthoffs really sharp!

[mixmaster b]

I got Global knives recently. I like them, but I must admit that I am having a bit of trouble getting used to the feel. (I was a Wusthof girl for years, but lost one knife and broke another, and switched to Global because the S.O. picked them out...)

I like the Global very much for veggies and delicate work. The lightness and balance are nice, and as a home cook, I have no trouble with slipping or blisters. It seems easy enough to sharpen. I give it a few goes on the steel before I use it and it is fine. (We have one of the sharpening contraptions for when it gets a bit duller. Learning to use the stone will be one of my resolutions for 2003!)

I miss the Wusthof for heavier jobs--big root veggies, bones, etc.

You can get good deals at Bed, Bath and Beyond. They send out those 20% off coupons all the time. We used one on a set of 3 global knives and got a great deal.

[Fat Guy]

Nina, in my opinion those fixed-angle sharpening devices don't work very well -- especially not for knives with bolsters like Henckels and Wusthof. I think it's best to get a sharpening stone. It's pretty easy to use once you get a few minutes of instruction and it allows you to sharpen at the angle you want all the way down to the bolster. JB Prince has a good selection of stones at competitive prices.

[Rachel Perlow]

First I've heard of Jason planning on getting that Global knife. Metal handle? No bolster? This one definitely needs a test drive before purchase. Also, no matter how dull my Henkles might be (gotta get my chef's knife sharpened), they are still amazingly sharp compared to my mother's Cutco knives. Blech.

[glenn]

Anyone have an opinion on Korin, the Japanese store in lower Manahattan? -- korin or japanese-knife. The sous chef where I work is taking me there to shop around.

[DaveFaris]

chopjwu12: I was never stupid enough to buy those knives.

You know, I kind of resent that statement.

[maggiethecat]

Anyone have an opinion on Korin, the Japanese store in lower Manahattan?  -- korin or japanese-knife.  The sous chef where I work is taking me there to shop around.

Glenn...haven't visited the shops, but thanks for the cool links!

[Nick]

The best knife is the one that feels good, does what you want, keeps a good edge, and is fairly easy to sharpen.

[Suzanne F]

Anyone have an opinion on Korin, the Japanese store in lower Manahattan?  -- korin or japanese-knife.  The sous chef where I work is taking me there to shop around.

I recently met the ladies who own and run the store, and now I really want to stop by. They were a delight. And I always drool uncontrollably when I pass by -- even if they only have fish-scalers on display. Their merchandise consists of practical works of art.

[pjs]

Just to be annoyingly pedantic, "stainless steel" means a 10.5 % chromium content and if a knife is advertised as being made of such run away. This is why conscientious manufacturers who use less chromium--chromium sharpens like shit but keeps the knife shiny--call their stuff more simply "stainless".

Maggie, Japanese stones are called waterstones. This is to differentiate them from the rancid oil-soaked natural stones Nickn uses.

PJ

[chopjwu12]

chopjwu12: I was never stupid enough to buy those knives.

You know, I kind of resent that statement. 

Yeah and????????????????

I love korin. i ahve been several times and thats where i buy all my knives.

[maggiethecat]

Maggie, Japanese stones are called waterstones.

Quite right. Sorry.

And he does have that rancid oiled stone. Steels without number (one eighteenth century, I believe.) Diamond. Whatever.

Nothing ever works as quickly as is hoped.

[oraklet]

for what it's worth:

global may be good steel - and the curvature of the edge is very nice - but they're lightweight, and slippery. honestly i think a forschner/victorinox with wooden handle is a better buy for a light knife if you get one of the bigger ones, with room for your knuckles. also, i think they are less likely to give you blisters.

as for sharpening bolstered knives: i have just finished resharpening my sister's henckel (had been "professionally" sharpened, urgh) and started the proces by filing off the lowest part of the bolster in an angle of 45 degrees so that the whole edge was free to be worked at. this is the way my sabatiers are made, and it reduces the risk of hollowing the edge. it does, of course, look a bit weird on a heavy-bolstered knife!

the new henckels seem to be made of rather soft steel. have to be honed quite often. and henckels are not so well balanced (handle too heavy) as sabs, wusthofs or macs.

and a question:

what is best, water stones or oil stones?

[Coop]

For me I started my formal training at Vancouver Vocational Institutute whre we all bought Victorinox chef and paring knives. The steel was so hard it was workout to get an edge on them. Not too good. During my apprenticeship I puchased an 8 inch Wuthof Trident and began my love for real knives. I have follwed with a 10 inch chefs, various boners and paring knives and never been less than 100% pleased. Years back I bought a Sabatier slicer with a round tip and flexible blade. This knife is also unequalled. I like the hollow ground edge. This makes carving and slicing a pleasure. My recomendation would be the Wustof Trident Grand Prix series. I have tried Globals and they are not for me. My hands are to big and powerful (don't mess with me!).

[dimitri steinberg]

I have a number of Wusthof Tridents that I received as a gift. I am embarassed to admit not knowing how to sharpen them. What would the experts suggest I do to go about learning how.

Many thanks.