RATING JAPANESE KNIVES ★★★ ★★

RATINGS
GOOD: ★★★
FAIR: ★★
POOR: ★
RATING JAPANESE KNIVES
FAVORITE KNIFE
Seven magazine staffers and one kitchen
intern evaluated each knife for its performance in a variety of specific tasks as well
as for its handle and blade design. The
testers ran the gamut in terms of knife
skills—from beginner to advanced—as
well as hand size and strength. Only one
tester was left-handed. Knives are listed
in order of preference based on testers’
average overall scores for each knife.
P HOTOG R A P H Y: DA N I E L J . VA N ACK E R E
PRICE: Prices paid in Boston-area
stores, in national mail-order catalogs,
and on Web sites.
PERFORMANCE: Knives were used to
chop and dice onions, mince and slice
garlic, thinly slice and julienne carrots,
slice tomatoes, and butterfly boneless,
skinless chicken breasts. Scores from
individual tests were averaged to create an overall performance rating.
BLADE: Testers rated blades for sharpness and curvature. Blades that were
sharp and thin (but not flimsy) were
preferred. Curved blades were able to
handle a greater variety of tasks and
received higher ratings.
HANDLE: Testers rated handles for
balance and comfort. Snug grips that
didn’t become slippery when greasy
or wet were preferred, as were knives
with handles that felt balanced with
the blade.
BLADE MATERIAL/LENGTH: Most
of the knives had blades made from
high-carbon stainless steel. One had a
ceramic blade; another a blade made
from a titanium silver alloy. Testers
generally found the high-carbon stainless steel blades to be the sharpest.
Blade length was measured from
the tip to the point where the blade
meets the handle; longer blades were
preferred.
TESTERS’ COMMENTS: Observations
about design or performance in
specific tests.
$55.00
Ideal bridge between cramped, smaller santokus and larger
chef’s knife. Admired for being most sharp and responsive,
this knife was especially nimble, easy to control, and precise. As one tester gushed, “great with everything.”
$89.99
Cadillac of group, this knife felt “sturdy” and “solid.”
Curvature of blade made it good at rocking while mincing, and tip was sharp and decisive. Bulge on right side of
handle was uncomfortable for left-handed tester.
$69.99
“Super-accurate” at thin slicing and fine mincing. Straight
blade created abrupt “see-saw” effect when rocking to
mince or chop. One camp applauded light feel—“like a
smaller, quicker chef’s knife.” Others deemed it flimsy.
Sharp, but not exceptionally so.
PRICE:
PERFORMANCE:
BLADE:
HANDLE:
$78.00
Could have been perfect if not for narrow, sleek stainless
steel handle that made grip feel “all over the place.” Sharp
blade with markedly curved edge and tapered tip were
more like chef’s knife than santoku.
PRICE:
PERFORMANCE:
BLADE:
HANDLE:
$64.95
Sharp, relatively thick blade made this knife a strong,
substantial slicer, but blade’s flat curve made rocking
motion shallow and somewhat jarring. Knife generally had
awkward, less maneuverable feel.
PRICE:
PERFORMANCE:
BLADE:
HANDLE:
$27.00
Decent sharpness and maneuverability but best suited to
slicing. Stubby, cleaver-shaped blade felt somewhat “dead”
at rocking motion needed for mincing and coarse chopping. Fat handle was liked by many for its soft, grippy feel.
PRICE:
PERFORMANCE:
BLADE:
HANDLE:
$140.
4 00
40.
0
Notably sharp, short blade performed delicate knife work
respectably but, overall, “too small to be of much use.”
White ceramic blade made it tricky to see white food
(such as garlic) when working on white plastic board.
PRICE:
PERFORMANCE:
BLADE:
HANDLE:
$69.95
Blade was dull, fat, stubby, and “kind of clumsy”—more
like a cleaver. Decent rocking motion but lacked capacity for delicate and precise work. Molded stainless steel
handle too large and cumbersome.
PRICE:
PERFORMANCE:
BLADE:
HANDLE:
$127.50
“Feather-light,” flimsy, short, and, ironically—given steep
price—cheap in feel was overall consensus. Difficult to
control and shallow, abrupt rocking motion were common complaints.
PRICE:
PERFORMANCE:
BLADE:
HANDLE:
$35.36
Most testers found teeny “hobbit” size uncomfortable and
difficult to control. Not enough clearance under handle,
so even those with small hands banged their knuckles
when blade came in full contact with cutting board.
PRICE:
B L A D E M AT E R I A L / L E N GT H :
PERFORMANCE:
BLADE:
High-carbon stainless
steel/61⁄ 2 inches
HANDLE:
★★★
★★★
★★★
RECOMMENDED
Kershaw Shun Classic
PRICE:
PERFORMANCE:
Santoku model DM-0702
B L A D E M AT E R I A L / L E N GT H :
BLADE:
HANDLE:
High-carbon stainless
steel/61⁄ 2 inches
Wüsthof
üsthof Grand Prix
PRICE:
PERFORMANCE:
Oriental Cook’s
B L A D E M AT E R I A L / L E N GT H :
BLADE:
HANDLE:
High-carbon stainless
steel/62⁄ 3 inches
Global Oriental Cook
B L A D E M AT E R I A L / L E N GT H :
High-carbon stainless
steel/7 inches
Zwilling Henckels Four
Star Santoku
B L A D E M AT E R I A L / L E N GT H :
High-carbon stainless
steel/7 inches
Oxo Good Grips MV55-
PRO Santoku
B L A D E M AT E R I A L / L E N GT H :
High-carbon stainless
steel/61⁄ 2 inches
★★★
★★★
★★★
★★
★★★
★★★
★★★
★★★
★
★★★
★★
★★★
★★
★★
★★
NOT RECOMMENDED
Kyocera Ming Tsai
Santoku
B L A D E M AT E R I A L / L E N GT H :
Ceramic/6 inches
Füri Pro East/West
B L A D E M AT E R I A L / L E N GT H :
High-carbon stainless
steel/7 inches
Boker Cera-Titan I
Santoku
B L A D E M AT E R I A L / L E N GT H :
Titanium silver alloy/61⁄2 inches
Forschner Santoku
B L A D E M AT E R I A L / L E N GT H :
High-carbon stainless
steel/6 inches
dull. The blade was also unnervingly thin and
extremely flexible. There was little trend in terms
of the best handles. Unobtrusive designs that
allotted a clean, comfortable grip were preferred.
For most of the testers, the slick look of stainless
handles, featured on the Füri and Global, translated to a slick grip as well.
And the Winner Is . . .
TESTERS’ COMMENTS
MAC Superior Santoku
While testers liked most of the santokus, only
two—the MAC and the Kershaw Shun—were
consistently preferred over the Forschner chef’s
★★
★★
★★
★★
★
★
★★
★★
★
★
★
★
knife in the tests. But given how much we like the
Forschner (and the fact that many chef’s knives are
inferior to this brand), the santokus certainly held
their own. But you could argue that our tests were
rigged in favor of the santokus. In preliminary
testing, we tried to halve acorn squashes, and only
a couple of the santokus could manage this basic
task. The blades were simply too thin and too
short. We also avoided cutting up a whole chicken
because manufacturers warned that santoku blades
were too thin to cut through bone. A chef’s knife
can handle both of these chores easily.
JULY
&
AUGUST
29
2004
Is the era of the chef’s knife at an end? No. The
chef’s knife is more versatile than the santoku.
If you are going to have only one type of knife
in your kitchen, it should be a chef’s knife. That
said, our testers felt that the santoku is indeed
better at precision slicing: The blade is shorter,
thinner, and easier to manage. Stick with the
chef’s knife for more substantial tasks.
We heartily recommend the MAC Superior
Santoku knife—it performed well and was one of
the cheapest models tested. But use this santoku to
complement—not to replace—your chef’s knife.