If you wanted to make a list of the good things in life, you would undoubtedly include the areas of food or culinary arts. But here, too, the following applies: The journey is the goal. To put it another way, one of the most beautiful things in life is cooking itself.
What makes cooking better? High-quality, well-thought-out tool for work. Choosing the appropriate kitchen knife is, of course, the most crucial step here. But the scope is wide, and it is difficult to generalize the strengths and weaknesses of different products.
Through this article, I want to gain an understanding of the darkness and describe which aspects are relevant to me when choosing my own kitchen knife. Of course, I'd also want to suggest a few similar Kitchen Knives.
Blade Geometry & Structure
Of course, a kitchen knife should not only have high achievable sharpness but also terms of its hardness, high edge retention, and good grindability. The knife should also cut well. This is called the cutting force of the knife. The advantages of a high cutting performance are obvious: when working with a kitchen knife, less force is required and the work is more precise. This also reduces the risk of injury from the knife. In addition, the food does not get pressure points and the liquid remains in the food instead of spreading on the cutting board. Plus, a knife that can be cut is just too much fun.
The design of the knife and its blade geometry is sometimes responsible for this cutting ability. One aspect of a good blade geometry is the symmetry of the knife. Of course, knives must not be bent in any way and should be checked after purchase.
The different shapes of Kitchen Knives are not discussed in more detail here. Basically, there is the European chef's knife or the Japanese counterpart, the Gyuto, which competes with the classic Japanese all-purpose knife, the Santoku. In addition, there are various smaller utility and shear knives, some of which are also referred to as pocket knives.
In Japan, there are also carving knives called Sujihiki. When deciding between a European chef's knife and a Santoku knife, the crucial question is whether you also want to use a vibrating knife. This is easier with a European chef's knife or gyuto. Since these knives usually have longer blades than Santokus, I personally find them very pleasant to cut, so they are my personal favorite.
The Strength of the Knife
In terms of cutting ability, in terms of geometry, the most important aspect is the strength of the knife, the quasi-thickness. The stronger the knife, the stronger it is. At the same time, as the thickness increases, the knife does not slide well through the material to be cut until it splits rather than cuts the material to be cut.
Therefore, a blade thickness of less than 3 mm is recommended for chef's knives or Santokus. Any cut below 2 mm is hell, but that means the knife is more sensitive. In other words, they are not pumpkins or other coarse knives.
In order to obtain a thin knife that is strong and durable in relation to its small thickness, the one already mentioned above several times becomes relevant. The knife should not be too brittle. Otherwise, it will break very quickly. Therefore, it is generally advisable to rely on tool steels with lower hardness and less brittleness for the production of thinner tools. However, for a chef's knife with high hardness, a knife with a low thickness is of course also ideal for excellent cutting performance.
Thus, in turn, it depends on the professional processing of the correct heat treatment of the steel. This is the only way to reduce the brittleness of steel in relation to hardness. Therefore, it can be said that when buying very thin and possibly hard knives, it is more important to choose a knife manufacturer that masters the heat treatment of particular steel than it already is.
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