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by amy reiley Knives are funny things. Every home cook needs them, but few bother to invest in a fine set. Certainly, the manufacturers of quality knives don’t make it easy on us consumers. Instead of enticing us with the seduction of their unique wares, they just continue to pump out more complicated and expensive sets while at the same time churning out cheap blocks full of plastic-handled knives. While Henckel once held a place as a top forger they now are just one of many manufacturers on a flooded market pushing a product that is marginal at best. |
Viking Cheese Knife $75
Somewhere between a utility knife and a cleaver, this heavy-handled model is one hell of a little weapon. I love the heft – it practically cuts an aged gouda on its own. Although I wash mine by hand, it is dishwasher safe and it looks so damn cool poised at the center of my cheese board. shop.vikingrange.com
Viking Hollow Ground Chef’s Knife $130
Hand-forged with dimples down the blade, this knife’s design is inspired by the Japanese Santoku. The tiny indents create air pockets during slicing to help reduce friction, softening the blow to delicate fish and meats – a dream for slicing pheasant breast or raw tuna, but it’s shape still offers the full rocker of a traditional, 8” chef’s knife. shop.vikingrange.com
Wusthof Classic 8-Piece Santoku Block Set $300
Wusthof is one of my favorite knife companies because they make knives light enough to be manipulated by female hands. Their new block set brings together all the usual suspects: paring knife, bread knife, sharpening steel all made from single shafts of high-carbon stainless for better balance. But this new kid brings a twist to the typical block. In place of a chef’s knife, the big boy in this set is a 7-inch Japanese knife, perfect for precision chopping veg or thinly slicing fish. But if you miss the feel of a badass chef’s knife, the block comes with additional slots so you can slide any of your favorite choppers next to the original eight. www.wusthof.com
Oxo Lettuce Knife $5.00
This goofy looking little knife’s raison d’etre is chopping lettuce. (The plastic blade is supposed to prevent the bruising of the lettuce caused by metal knives.) But what self-respecting cook regularly chops instead of tears? At any rate, I’ve found a number of uses for this colored plastic blade. It’s clutz (and child) proof (says the woman who once was rushed to the ER in a potato-slicing massacre); and it doesn’t nick counter tops. My favorite use is for chopping herbs, as the plastic blade tends to cause less browning than a traditional metal edge. www.oxo.com
