# If you could only have one knife, what would it be?



## lph (Oct 5, 2009)

Santa is coming in a couple months and I would like to slowly upgrade from our Chicago Cutlery, one or two pieces at a time every year. If you could only pick one knife, what would you start with? What brand and why?  Thanks for your ideas!


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## gnubee (Oct 5, 2009)

*Victorianox 10 inch Chefs Knife*. They are good quality, reasonably priced and are thinner than some of the other top knives. Especially important in slicing thicker vegetables. 

They stay sharp well and yet are easy to touch up.

I like Henckels but they are heavier, thicker and after a while in the Kitchen will tire you out. 

If going for a Knife like a cleaver where weight is an asset I'd go with the Henckel.


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## meat hunter (Oct 5, 2009)

Have always wanted Henckels. Bought our first set last year, basic set for the kitchen. Not the top of the line Henckels, but they are more than durable, hold an edge far better than any other knife I have had to date, and priced right.


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## chefrob (Oct 5, 2009)

forshner/victornox are good knives.....go 12 inch. i have owned 4 star henkles for many years and they are the best of all lines from henkles and of all brands as well. that being said i love my forshners just as much. the single most important thing i can say is how does the knife feel in your hand?


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## rickw (Oct 5, 2009)

Another vote for the Forshner/Victornox but I would go with the 10 or 8 inch. I have a set of Bokers that are pretty nice for the money too. They keep an edge really well and don't break the bank. I must say though our steak knives are Forshner and they are amazing for the $$$.


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## tndawg (Oct 5, 2009)

This might sound weird, but my favorite knife in the house is my Rapala fillet knife!  It cuts meat very well, slices through tomatoes and other veggies like butter, and trims fat with surgical precision. That is my most used knife by far!


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## bbq engineer (Oct 5, 2009)

I have a basic Henckels set too, and I love it. Last year, when Linens and Things was going out of business, Mrs. Engineer loaded me up on the Henckels Twin Professional knives, and they are without a doubt the best knives I have ever used. I have hunting buddies that raise their eyebrows and say how scary sharp they are. 

I have since found the Henckels Twin series of knives in places like TJ Maxx and Marshalls (low cost stores), give a drive by in the houseware sections if you have one of these stores, because you just might pick up a heck of a deal.


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## guvna (Oct 5, 2009)

i have a ton of knives and i've got a full set of 5 star henkel's. i've been professionally cooking for about 9 years. i also own a couple of shun pieces. but i must tell you that my 8 inch forshner is my go to. what a great knife... i own a few 10 inch french knives that are good for production cooking, but they're just too big to use at home. my forshner is the only knife i own with a blue handle too, making it easy to see amongst an ocean of black-handle knives. i have actually been recommending this knife to my chef friends, but most already own one. i pretty much use it for everything. really... you should go and play with one, i think you'll like it.
-guvna


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## eman (Oct 5, 2009)

i think if i was just limited to one cutting implement it would have to be a good sharp hatchet. can cut meat, seperate bones and joints also can cut wood to cook it over.
 But for knives ,I'll stick w/ my wustofs.


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## meat hunter (Oct 5, 2009)

Not weird at all. Now that you mention it, I use my Rapala knife for lots of cutting in kitchen. I agree, it slices thru tomatoes like butter, and I cannot remember the last time I sharpened it. In fact, I don't think I ever have... I even used it last year to gut my daughters deer as I misplaced my hunting knife. I just went and pulled it out of the knife slot in the wood block, it still shaves the hair off my arm...I wonder what kind of steel its made from?


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## 66galaxie (Oct 5, 2009)

I use my Wusthof Classic 8" chefs knife for 90% of what I do.
And Like some others say, how does it feel in your hand?
BTW, I love a good filet knife too!


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## jamesb (Oct 5, 2009)

Only one? That would be hard, but I would start with a Wusthof Classic 8" or better yet, a 10" Chef's knife. I have an assortment of knives and at home, these are the ones that get the most use... I also use a fish fillet knife for trimming briskets, slicing comp ribs etc.


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## mballi3011 (Oct 5, 2009)

I havea good selection of kitchen knifes at home also but not as many as James. But my best knife is a Henkal twin serious. I use it more than any other knife in my collection. It's a 8" chef knife and this is the work house but I have another henkal twin that I only bring out when I need something really sharp don't think for a  minute that the other Henkal in not sharp it is very sharp. But this knife would take a finger not just a nail. So my vote is another one for Henkal Twin serious. This knife is the work horse of my Kitchen and it cuts everything like butter and has never let me down over 3 years.


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## zopi (Oct 5, 2009)

If I can only have one knife, I will stab someone until I can have more...

MY favorites are the cheap tramontina santokus from Sam's club...use it until it won't hold an edge and canx it...12 bucks gets you more..

Also have a 6" henckels santoku I adore for close board work...


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## jirodriguez (Oct 5, 2009)

I have an old Gerber Balance Plus 8" chef knife, was made before Henkle bought Gerber. Is by far the best knife I have ever used. Henkle downgraded the quality of the steel for the Gerber knives when they bought them, because at the time the Gerber knives were better than the high end Henkles.. lol... 
	

	
	
		
		



		
			






.

They hate sharpening my knife at the knife store, because it is essentialy made out of tool steel which is very hard. Pain in the rear to put an edge on, but once it has an edge it will hold it for a good 2 years with regualar sticking to keep it uncurled.

But a few years back I lost my right hand pinky (and Im right handed) so I lost about 15-20% of my gripping power. I discovered the OXO Pro series knives. They are precision cast - not stamped or forged. They are not as good as a forged knife, but the handles are awesome!! and they do a decent job for holding an edge. Plus at $28 or less per blade, it's hard to go wrong.


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## bman62526 (Oct 5, 2009)

Great Thread!  You see, come Christmas time - the wife kicks my ass all around the house begging for gift ideas for me...I never really come up with any.  

However, this thread just reminded me that I REALLY need a good knife or two for cutting/carving meat, and also trimming spares into SLC ribs, chopping veggies, etc.  However, I don't know squat about knives - what brands are good, what type of knife does what, etc. 

Soooo - considering that the TYPE of knife is probably more important than the brand name - what type of knife do I ask for?

Chef's knife?  What's another one?

Like I said, I'm not too technically minded when it comes to these things....I too find that a good filet knife is great for - just one example - cutting the bone out of a pork shoulder.  Therefore, I'm not interested in having a knife for every single situation imaginable - just a couple good ones.

So what two types are the best for all purpose cutting and also chopping of vegetables?

Thanks!


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## zeeker (Oct 5, 2009)

*Cutco 9-1/4" French Chef. The best ever...
*


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## jirodriguez (Oct 5, 2009)

Your 8" chef knife is your kitchen work horse, can be used for 90% of all cooking. For a 2nd choice I would get yourself either a 8" utility knife (long thin tappered blade -  kinda like a slicer), or a good slicer/carving knife.


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## scarbelly (Oct 5, 2009)

Because we teach a cooking class to 4H kids I have about 25 knives of various sizes and styles. A mix of high end Forshner and Henckels.

I am planning to retire next year and help a friend with one of those shops where you go and cook several dinners up and take them home and freeze them. When I do that I will finally get my Shun Rikon Ken Onion knife ($300) due to the amount of prep work I will be doing. I used one one time and it is the most comfortable knife I have ever held.  That is the key to buying a knife - what feels best in your hand


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## herkysprings (Oct 5, 2009)

Wusthof Grand Prix 8" - definetly my kitchen work-horse. I use an iron on it alost weekly, and sharpen once a year at least.

Basically a good 8-10" chef knife that feels good in your hands will get most jobs done. This includes holding the handle (you need the right size for your hand, and shape) and also the position of holding the knife closer to the blade.

I like the Grand Prix over classic because it has a smoother feel in my hands.

After Chef knife, and paring or utility knife, and then serraded (bread) knife is common. However because we all handle so much meat / bones, a filet knife would also do.


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## grampyskids (Oct 5, 2009)

I have a 10" Henckle and a 10 Wuestoff Chefs knife; an 8" Wuestoff and Forschner Fibrox; 8" Wuestoff Santoku; 7" Wuestoff and 6" flexible boning knives and a 3" wuestoff and Fibrox knives in my kitchen. My knives of ckoice are the Forschner Fibrox knives. The are light, sharp and slip-proof. They stay sharp and with only a couple of hits with a steel they regain their edge.


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## fired up (Oct 5, 2009)

My choice would be my Wusthoff Classic 10" extra wide chef's knife. I love the weight and feel of it and I can trim a beef tenderloin or peel an apple with it.


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## jirodriguez (Oct 5, 2009)

Most important thing is definately find a knife that feels good in your hand. A great blade does no good if it sits in the drawer, unused, because you can't stand the feel of the handle.

I like to go to some place like bed, bath, & beyond or Kitchen Kaboodle and spend an hour or so checking out how all the differant knives feel. Then once you make up your mind do comparison shopping for price :)


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## scubadoo97 (Oct 5, 2009)

If only one knife than a Japanese gyuto 240-270mm.  Now which one?  That's hard.


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## nickelmore (Oct 6, 2009)

I do know that there are really good knives out there, but I thought the best knifes were the old time forged steel used and abused knives you find at garage sales and good will stores for .25cents  the really good ones usually can be had for $1.00.

I know it may not make sense, but I pick these kind of knives up and have them sharpend and end up with more than I need, I keep the ones I really like and trade off the others.


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## jspryor (Oct 6, 2009)

Don't laugh but these are two of the best knives I have ever purchased:

http://www.samsclub.com/shopping/nav...=5&item=419467

Used Chicago Cutlery and Wustof as well...but you can't beat the value.


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## mballi3011 (Oct 6, 2009)

Has anyone tried those ceramic blades. I have one and it's very sharp but as usual. I didn't pay attention to the warning label like the one that says don't use this knife for deboning some venison for jerky. I put a nick in it base of the blade. So no real harm but they are a good knife and I hear that there harder than regular knifes. They say that they are harder then steel but just under diamond.


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## pops6927 (Oct 6, 2009)

A good 6" boning knife; have several by Chicago Cutlery, SaniSafe, Dexter, (and a couple old Dexter Carbon Steel knives.. pitted and rusty but take a great edge!), etc., and a 12" Forschner Victorinox cimeter; most you can see in my pic below.


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## chisoxjim (Oct 6, 2009)

for me, a quality chefs knife 8"+. My chefs knife is a 9" Wusthof Culinair, and I love it. Not a cheap knife, I think over $125 when I bought it a few years ago. I agree with others shop around, see how a knife feels in your hands, and go for it. Not an item to skimp $$$ wise on imho.


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## helljack6 (Oct 6, 2009)

Any knife is going to be either crap or superior. The reason why is because of how the edge is ground and how much if any relief immediately behind the edge face is ground in. Typically you can take any knife regardless of brand or manufacturer, turn a hollow grind 1/8 of an inch from the edge face and then sharpen that last 1/32 of the blade AFTER the hollow grind and you will have a cutting edge that regardless of the make, brand, model or manufacturer of the knife, is going to give you a superior cut. At what specific angle you sharpen the last 1/32 of the edge face at is going to determine exactly how precisely the knife cuts. If it's intended to cut medium to large cuts of meat, you'll want a 19-22 degree per side leading 1/32 edge face for strength and durability, the hollow grind directly behind the edge face will provide the strength and the angle will ensure lasting performance with a minimal touch up required with a quality butcher's steel. For smaller, softer pieces of meats, 15-19 degree per side leading edge will give you that razor sharp sense that will pop hairs off your arm like nobody's business. There are kits available that will allow you to do this with the exception of produce a hollow grind, which of all the edge faces, is the most superior due to the strength in the design. I use a combination of a homemade slow grinder wheel to produce the hollow grind, Gatco Sharpening Kit to keep and maintain the angles, and Spyderco Ceramic hones 4000 and 10k grit for producing superior quality edges that endure and last through everything I put them through. I can put the same type of edge on the $1.50 knife that I can put on the $250 knife and both will be top performers in anyone's book.

It's not the knife, but how it's sharpened and to what total leading edge face angel side to side that it's sharpened to. Any leading edge face that's less than 50 degrees total is going to be a sharp edge.


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## navyjeremy (Oct 6, 2009)

This is the knife that I got at Christmas last year and I love it.  No complaints at all.  Not heavy but not light.  The good thing about buying from Korin is that if you buy a knife from them you can send it in and have it put on Japanese wetstones.

http://korin.com/Tojiro-DP-Gyutou?sc=7&category=17368


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## scubadoo97 (Oct 6, 2009)

Absolutely, sharpening and geometry are essential to performance.  The type of steel is also an integral part since some softer steels will not hold the edge as long as others.  

Navyjeremy, that was my first Japanese knife.  In the 240mm size.  Still use it almost every day.


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## rivet (Oct 6, 2009)

This is a great post and everyone can appreciate the input these members have made towards sharing info on this thread. Good job folks!

I've tried ceramic blades Mark, and for the reason you stated- the nick- and subsequent weakening of the blade, I stay away from them. That said, I will  add that it is more from being a traditionalist than anything else. ceramic blades just don't have the tradition, history nor legend that steel does.

The "best" blade is a combination of many ingredients that went into making the steel, and finally the use you are going to put it to. There is no "right" answer, only preference.


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## rickw (Oct 6, 2009)

Absolutely, well said.


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