Quote:
Originally Posted by pylon
I didn't realize people held so much importance on kitchen knives. I am rocking the same set I bought at Liquidation World (RIP btw) in 1996 for $50. Once every year or so, I Dremel up the edges, and good to go. They still cut chicken and tomatoes fine.... what more are they supposed to do?
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Why spend more than $200 on a car when a 1981 Toyota Tercel will get you where you need to go just fine.
Just like the knives, it may barely do the job, but it won't do it as well, or in any sort of comfort, speed or style.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rerun
Yes, I understand that there are a lot of excellent Japanese knives out there but the German Zwilling J.A. Henckels are very good too. From what I understand the Japanese knives tend to be harder HC 60+ while the German knives are softer HC 56-58. Thus the Japanese knives will stay sharper, longer but the German knives are easier to maintain without having them professionally sharpened.
Also, from what I have seen, the German knives tend to be less expensive.
I doubt I can get (I may be wrong though) a Japanese set of: 4" Paring Knife / 5" Utility Knife / 6" Slicing Knife / 8" Chef's Knife / 8" Bread Knife / 9" Sharpening Steel / Wooden Block, for $239.99.... plus I already have the matching 7" Santoku that I got for free from Safeway.
For me, it comes down to price. I'm not willing to pay $400+ for a set of 5 knives c/w sharpening steel & block, whereas $239.99 is acceptable to me, particularly when the quality is good.
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Pretty much. Harder, Japanese blade's are thin and razor sharp, they'll cut softer fruits and fish better, I like to view it as a surgeons scalpel. They're a precision tool, you're not going to be chopping down a tree with it. But it won't tolerate heavy use and it'll chip very easily.
German blades are like an axe. Thick, soft blade, you can beat on it and a quick swipe with a steel or pass on a stone will bring it back to life immediately (Very easy care) It'll cut anything you damn well please, and do it well, but might not ideal or something like a tomato.
Honestly, my favourite is probably the middle ground in a Victorinox (Switzerland). Often overlooked because they're on the cheaper side on knives, but the quality is certainly there. As the name implies, these things are like swiss army knives. Thin enough to slice with little effort, heavy enough to take advantage of the forward/cutting/pushing motion, easy to care for while still having good blade retention, and the handle's are great.
I use a mixture of Victorinox and Wusthof knives, both professionally and at home.