Japanese Kitchen Knifes 

Presenting Japanese kitchen knives after having introduced Japanese cuisine in “a nut-shell” is a logical step simply because kitchen knives are another pillar of Japan gastronomy.

Typology

 
There are many ways to classify Japanese kitchen knives. The first classification distinguishes knives that are industrially manufactured and standardized from those that are hand forged knives by artisan blade smiths in more limited series.

Another simple classification consists of separating traditional single bevelled kitchen knives “wabocho” and western style double bevelled knives.

A third possible classification is to separate Japanese kitchen knives that are made for and used by professional chefs from those that are polyvalent and fully fit for home-chefs and savvy gourmets. While there are no written rules, Japanese professional chef are generally using traditional “hocho” to prepare “washoku” dishes. Foreign chefs feel comfortable with western style Japanese kitchen blades.

Lastly a distinction can be made between knives made of high carbon steel and those made with stainless steel/high carbon stainless steel/powdered steel.

You will find below a short description of the most common Japanese kitchen knives. Highly specific knives exist to work a designated fish for example (eel, fugu, hamo) but are exclusively used by professional chefs.

 

GYUTO:牛刀

equivalent of the western chef’s knife, the “gyuto” comes in a wide variety of sizes. Its blade is generally thinner than its western counterparts and is made of harder steel. It has originally been designed to slice beef but it can also be used so portion fish or slice vegetables. 

 

SANTOKU:三徳

 Relatively recent in Japanese knives history the “santoku” has been designed to be the perfect home kitchen all-rounder. At ease with vegetables, its tip is sufficiently spiky to work poultry or cut fish. Double bevelled it generally comes in medium sizes.
 

PETTY/UTILITY:ペテイ

double bevelled knife coming in a wide variety of small sizes it is designed for the small preparation work in professional kitchen and can be used depending on the blade size as a small chef knife by home-chefs.
 

DEBA:出刃

 traditional single bevelled knife with a massive blade coming in a wide variety of sizes, it is designed to work fish and butcher meat or poultry.
  

YANAGIBA/SHOBUBA:柳刃

traditional single bevelled knife with a slim willow-shaped blade coming in a wide variety of sizes, it is mainly designed to slice fish. The Kanto version with a square blade tip is called “takohiki”.
 

AJI-KIRI:アジ切り

traditional single bevelled knife with a slim small willow-shaped blade, it is designed to work small fishes and shells.
 

USUBA:薄刃

traditional single bevelled knife coming in a wide variety of sizes, it is specifically designed to work vegetables. There are two regional variations. One called “kamagata” historically used in the Kansai area with a semi-circular tip and one called “edogata” typical of the Kanto area with a rectangular tip.
 

MENTORI:面取り

traditional single bevelled knife which has a small blade with a semi-circular tip similar to the “usuba”. It is specifically designed for precision vegetables cutting and paring.
 

NAKI-RI:菜切り

double bevelled knife coming in a wide variety of sizes. With a thin rectangular- shaped blade it is specifically designed to work vegetables at home.

 

Quick selection guide

 
There is no definitive one-size-fits-all selection guide when it comes to select a Japanese kitchen knife. It depends on many factors.

However, for first buyers, we recommend to start by acquiring an all-round double bevelled mid-size chef’s knife such as a GYUTO or SANTOKU (18cm). Adding to the kit a PETTY/PARING (15cm) knife for delicate preparation tasks is a good option.

More advanced home-chefs may want to acquire a mid-size DEBA (16,5cm) for fish or poultry butchering and possibly a short YANAGIBA (21cm) for fish slicing tasks.

As for professional chefs, it all depends on the type of food they regularly prepare and their budget. Traditional single bevelled knives are generally highly specialised for a cutting task and request more skills to be used or maintained whereas double bevelled ones are easier to start with and maintain.
 

Cutting is cooking

Old savoir-faire & tradition

Rich local knife-making tradition all over Japan

Several forging techniques

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