If you are looking to upgrade your knives from the twenty dollar set you bought in college something a bit more impressive, you may be confused where to start. Your choices range from those sets on late night infomercials to those found in high end culinary stores. Every knife company claims their knives are the sharpest, and this can become even more frustrating.

I would recommend starting off with just a decent knife set. These by far do not have to be the best on the market but a good mid range set. Chicago Cutlery puts out some very nice sets that fit this bill for example. They are easy to find at many local stores. After you get a basic set so you have steak knives, paring knives, and utility knives, you can think about what extra knives you wish to have.

When you purchase individual knives, you will be paying more for them, but they are well worth it. A high quality knife can make preparing food very enjoyable. You will find a number of options of what your knife can be made of. If you are looking for a knife with a nice edge and won’t stain, you may wish to consider high carbon stainless steel. A sharp knife that is flexible can be made from a material like titanium.  These make great filet knives. You may be shocked to find out that some knives are being made from ceramic. Ceramic knives are sharp and don’t need sharpening at all over their lifetime.  The downfall to these knives are that they are very fragile.

The first knife I would invest in is a cheifs knife.  I would look for one that has a full tang. This is the metal part that is in the handle of the knife. A full tang adds balance to the knife because it adds weight to the handle side of the knife. You will see both forged knives and stamped knives.  I would opt to pay the extra for the forged knife. Forged knives are more expensive but can be sharpened longer and are heavier knives compared to stamped knives. The handle is also a personal preference.  I don’t like wood because of the extra care it takes. You also have options such as stainless steel and composition handles.

When you are spending so much money on a single knife it is important to consider what you can do to keep them nice. Always hand wash your knives.  They should never see the inside of a dishwasher. This can cause knicks to the blade and will ultimately dull the blade much faster. Second, cut on a natural cutting board such as wood when you are cutting vegetables and synthetic for meats. Glass and marble cutting boards are to be avoided at all costs.  These boards completely destroy knife edges.









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