Kitchen knives

[jeninok]

We have a really crappy set of knives that I am going to be getting rid of, this leaves me with one PC chef's knife, and one Cutco serrated knife that is still sharp as heck after more than 10 years.   Those two knives are all I ever use at this point anyway, so I don't want another full set, just a few steak knives, a replacement for the PC knife, and one more large serrated knife so I don't have to stop and wash mid cooking quite so often.

 

 

I really really like that Cutco knife, but I don't love the idea of tracking down a rep and having to sit through a presentation and having pressure to buy more than I need.  I like the PC one, but not enough to buy more of them, it isn't nearly as nice as the Cutco as far as metal used, construction, or feel.

 

 

So, suggestions?  I would like to not spend a fortune, but I do want a few good knives!

 

 

[zoobie]

Do you have any local cooking specialty stores (Sur la Table, Williams-Sonoma, local places)? Go try a few brands and see what feels good in your hands. A friend loves her Global knives but I hate them. I prefer the feel of Wusthof, and I use this Santoku for most tasks:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00005MEGX

 

My husband calls it the Knife of Death and tries to use a Victorinox serrated knife for everything. They come individually or in a set of 6. They're labeled steak knives, but I use them for tomatoes and lots of little things. My kids like them too.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0001V3TR4/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?qid=1376915458&sr=8-2&pi=SL75

Victorinox has a Santoku and other, larger knives as well.

 

These get great reviews and are cheap and fun:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/s/ref=is_s_?ie=UTF8&k=Komachi&i=aps

I need a new bread knife and may order a bright one. :)

[school17777]

I really like my Cutco set.  You can order Cutco directly without a sales rep.  Or, soon Cutco will have kiosks in malls for Christmas.  The benefit of the reps is that they show you what knives to use for what. 

 

 

eta:  My favorite two Cutco knives are the paring knife and the cheese knife.  Between those two, they meet most of my knife needs.  I do use my other knifes, but those are the two that I use the most.

[jeninok]

Those Komachi knives are super fun! I might have to get one to try. We do have a Williams Sonoma but I never go in there, and my husband works for a retailer that is in the process of re-doing their housewares offerings, so I might be able to get the same thing there for a better price.

 

My mom has a couple Wusthoff knives, they are sharp, but I don't love them.

[Mommee & Baba]

I went with a nice set of Chicago cutlery. Works awesome!! Plus they are affordable.

[PrincessMommy]

I went with a nice set of Chicago cutlery. Works awesome!! Plus they are affordable.

 

I have a few Cutco knives that I use for food prep. and cheese cutting.  For steak knives I've also been very happy with Chicago Cutlery.  I've gotten the ones with the wooden handles (hated them) and the ones with the black handles (love those).   From the look of it I think mine are Metropolitans.  I need to get another set because they keep disappearing with the college kids. :)

[jeninok]

http://www.cutco.com/products/product.jsp?itemGroup=1729

This is the one that I have and love, I use it for everything but dicing. It is probably 10 years old and still cuts through tomatoes, and hunks of meat equally well, with very little effort.

 

Since I didn't realize you could order without a rep I am going to probably try to figure out how to get a few more of their knives that way.   

 

I do think I will get one of those Komachi knives, just because they are super fun!

[gardenmom5]

for good inexpensive knives we have a set of Chicago cutlery. they don't hold the edge very long before needing to be sharpened again. we sharpen them ourselves. (we have one cutco he bought from a friend who was selling them.)  we also have a couple henkels.  

 

last year dh bought himself a set of wusthof for his birthday - and if you have the money for just one knife you will use a lot, it's worth it.  the differences are more in the handles than the blade.  I couldn't believe the difference, so much better than even the Henkel.   think hot knife through butter.  and that was a tomato - notoriously hard to cut without pressing down.  it was a dream.  I've had several bread knives, but I love theirs.

 

dh kept all the old knives, but we use the wusthofs the most.

[sassenach]

New knives are on my Christmas wish list. I'm watching this thread!

[Wildiris]

I spent some $ on knives a few years ago. Two German brands:  F. Dick & Messermeister Meridian elite . This was one of the best kitchen investments I made. My brother taught me how to hone my knives to keep an edge. Keeping a knife edge is essential to learn. I will never need to buy another set of kitchen knives again. 

[G5052]

Either Wusthof or J.A. Henkels.  

 

The Henkels fit my hand better, but I have a few Wusthof knives too.

 

Sharpening is key to really enjoying your knives on an ongoing basis.  DH does mine once a month on the electric sharpener, and I run them through a handheld sharpener several times a week.

 

 

[Jann in TX]

I get my Cutco knives on Ebay...

 

Their steak knives are AWESOME-- and we use them for a lot more than steak!

 

[cjzimmer1]

I had a good quality set of Chicago Cutlery that we received as a wedding present.  I always thought they were good knives, especially compared to the stuff my mom has.  But over the years, Cutco has been mentioned here so many times that when I actually saw them for sale at a Home show I went and talked to the rep.  I bought a cheese knive (that I use for lots more than just cheese) and I fell in love with it.  I've since bought the 4" blade (paring knife I think), the bread knife and a smaller chef knife (again I don't know the exact name).  With those 4 knives I have all my needs covered.  My "good" chicago Cutlery sits in the block nearly untouched as I reach for my Cutco over and over again.  As a bonus I can stick my Cutco in the dishwasher and don't have to mess with hand washing or deteriorating handles.