Tojiro knives epitomize everything I like in a knife — sharp, comfortable and good looking. Not to mention inexpensive. The DP series includes some amazing bargains — you can find a 9″ Chef’s knife for around $50.

The blade edges are made from a high-carbon steel and Molybdenum blend, providing a sharp cutting surface that will hold its edge. Like their more expensive competitors from Shun, their blades are “wrapped” in softer, stain-resistant steel to protect the blade. The Shun’s blades are made of a higher-quality steel, but these Tojiro knives should still be remarkably sharp.

These are Japanese knives that need to be cared for as such — no throwing them in the dishwasher and they need to be stored properly. But throw them a little love and they will pay you back many times over.

So what’s not to like? Tojiro knives are a bit hard to find, and they’re not available in a set. If not for those caveats, they easily could’ve been one of the recommended sets in our recent Best Kitchen Knives for Any Budget.

You may find them out of stock, or prices may vary when you’re ready to buy. But hunt around just a bit and you’ll find this killer bargain of a knife.

More Info on Tojiro DP Knives:

• Click here to find Tojiro DP Chef’s Knives on eBay
• Click here to find Tojiro DP Paring Knives on eBay
• Click here to find all Tojiro DP Knives on eBay

Looks can be deceiving. At first glance, looks like there’s nothing special about this knife.

What sets it apart from the rest?

For one thing, it’s got a textured Thermorun handle that’s lightweight, rock-hard, protective, and weatherproof.

It’s got an extremely sharp convex blade with a small top swage that scarcely dips to the tip, constructed from VG10 steel. VG10 (aka V Gold 10) is a high quality steel commonly found in elite Japanese chef knives.

It’s also an ideal size for a small utility knife, at 8.38 inches overall with a 3.82 inch blade.

This survival knife is small and great to take with you on your person when you hike or travel (unless of course you’re a jetsetter, in which case your knife will be much safer at home these days.)

More Info on this Fallkniven F1 Knife:

• Click here to find this knife on Amazon.com

In the market for new kitchen knives? Salivating over some high-end knives but have a limited budget? Confused over the vast array of options available? This article will help set you straight.

I’m going to reveal three tips you can use to guide you in your search for great knives. Those tips will save you a bundle but, more importantly, will help you find great knives. If you’ve never used a razor-sharp and feather-light Japanese Chef’s knife, you’re in for a real treat.

Next I’ll reveal my recommendations - knives at each price level. Of course, choosing knives is a personal decision. You’ll want to consider your style of cooking, how often you cook and the tasks you frequently perform. But you really can’t go wrong with these recommendations. They’re great values, great quality and will be right at home in your kitchen no matter who you are.
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OnlyKnives’ Best $50 Kitchen Knives

This is a great choice for anyone looking to start a knife set on a limited budget.

You get three “essential” knives — a Chef’s knife, a slicing knife and a paring knife. Limiting the number of knives in a set helps you to save money while focusing on the quality of the knives rather than the quantity.

And these are quality knives indeed. Cooks Illustrated has given them their kudos numerous times in the past. Professional chefs rave about their ruggedness and sharp edge.

These are German style knives — somewhat handle-heavy, with a sharp, stainless and durable blade. Though it may not be as sharp as some of the Japanese sets you can find, it’s definitely a well-regarded knife.

The blade steel is x50CrMo — a high-carbon, Chromium, Molybdenum blend. Out of the box, the knives are sharpened to a Rockwell hardness of 55, which should serve you quite well.

The blade is full-tang, covered by the POM handles that are designed to minimize fatigue.

There are several ways to supplement this knife set, of course. A bread knife or a medium-sized utility knife would be a great addition.

But compare this set to a much more expensive one from Wusthof and see that it matches up quite well — a quality reputation, a high-carbon steel made in Solingen, Germany and sharp out of the box.

If you do have just a bit more money to spend and want a larger set of knives, the Forschner 8-piece set features the same great knives and throws in a few extra pieces.

More Info on this Forschner Knife Set:

• Click here to find this knife set on Amazon.com

In the market for a new knife set? Not so fast! Once you’ve decided to only buy essential knives, you may find yourself wondering why you need a knife set at all. What about just buying a few good knives and filling in the rest as you need them?
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OnlyKnives’ Best $500 Kitchen Knives

Shun knives are by no means budget knives. Some consider them synonymous with “expensive”. But limit yourself to a small set of essential knives and you’ll actually find them worth every penny.

Why? Because Shun has also become synonymous with “quality”. All three of the major US cutlery retailers — Williams Sonoma, Sur La Table and Crate and Barrel — have pushed out high-end German knives to make room for them. Throw in endorsements from Bobby Flay, Alton Brown and Sarah Moulton and you know they must be something special.

And special they are. The blades are made from razor-sharp VG-10 steel, found only in high-end Japanese knives. They are wrapped on each side by sixteen layers of high-carbon stainless steel. This produces a beautiful Damascus-style blade that features sharpness, edge retention and stain-resistance.

The Rockwell Hardness rating of these knives is 61 — one of the highest values you’ll find in a kitchen knife. This allows the blade to be among the sharpest kitchen blades available on the market.

The handles are black pakkawood, a resin-infused hardwood that, coupled with the handle’s D-shape, provides a non-slip grip. Add in the standard “lightweight” Japanese feel and you have knives that won’t produce fatigue.

Shun’s seven piece set includes all of our recommended “essential” blades: an 8″ inch chef’s knife, a 9″ serrated slicing/bread knife, a 3.5″ paring knife and a 6″ utility knife. It adds a sharpening steel for honing your edges, kitchen shears and an bamboo block with 11 horizontal slots. Since these knives are so good looking, you might want to consider getting a magnetic strip to display them instead of the block.

The six-piece set is the same as the seven, minus the bread knife. It’s also $100 cheaper. The eight-piece set is the same as the seven, but adds another, smaller chef’s knife. It’s also $100 more expensive. The seven-piece set seems to be the sweet spot, but your needs and budget may say otherwise.

More Info on Shun Classic Knife Sets:

• Click here to find the seven-piece knife set on Amazon.com
• Find the six-piece set on Amazon.com
• Find the eight-piece set on Amazon.com

For years, the only name in Kitchen knives were Wusthof and Henckels. Consumers were told that the best knife was one that could withstand the rigors of the kitchen. It had to be heavy, had to have a thick bar in the middle of it to protect the cook’s fingers, and it had to be dishwasher safe. And since they were the only game in town, nobody thought twice about it.

This went on for quite some time. These German knifemakers produced a quality product that consumers liked, so there was no real reason to change things.

So when an upstart Japanese knifemaker named Yoshinkin came along offering their quirky Global knives, the Germans paid them no mind. But there was one small problem — people LOVED Global Knives. They were razor-sharp, light and had no bulky bolster in the middle of the knife to get in the way of cutting and re-sharpening.
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It’s natural to assume that the more pieces a knife set has, the “better” it is. And additional pieces are often discounted when added to a set. “Why get the small set when you can get the large one for just a few bucks more?” the thinking goes.

There are a few problems with this logic. First and foremost, most hobbyist chefs do not need all of the knives included in a large set. Having four different paring knives might be useful if you’re a professional cook and need to have the perfect tool for every task but, for the rest of us, it’s overkill.

The other problem with buying a set loaded up with extra pieces is that those extra pieces are often just “filler”. Adding 7 steak knives to a set is a popular way to bulk it up, as is adding a kitchen shears, sharpening steel and knife block.

You may want some of those items but, if you’re trying to get the best bang for the buck, focus on getting the best “essential” blades. You can always add those extra pieces later. Those extra pieces are likely to be quite inexpensive when not purchased as part of a set.
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Many hobbyist cooks underestimate the value of a knife’s sharpness. When they first bring a new knife home, they’re thrilled with how well it feels and how well it cuts.

Six months later, they’ve forgotten that feeling altogether and have moved on to more exciting gadgets. A year after that and the knife is now dull as a doornail. The cook wonders why the knives didn’t hold up so well and goes off in search of newer, better knives.

But wait just a minute there! A little maintenance can go a long way toward preserving that “new” feel. Do it right and you can extend the life of your knives indefinitely. Learn about maintenance before you buy knives and you can save yourself a ton of money.

If you want great performance from your knives, look for knives that are sharp and will remain sharp with proper maintenance instead of ones that are “maintenance free.”

Don’t know how to maintain knives? Read on….
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Ever make cookies? Ever wonder why there are so many different recipes? Ever get the ingredients just a bit wrong and wind up with a totally different cookie?

If you have, you’ve got an inkling of what it’s like to make a knife blade. It’s an intricate process that involves various techniques including cutting, forging, heating, cooling, mixing, grinding, buffing and crushing!

Blade Hardness

The most important thing to know about a kitchen blade is its “hardness”. Hardness in kitchen knives is a good thing — the harder a blade, the sharper an edge it can tolerate. Just like with cookies, though, too much of a good thing can be overkill. Blades that are too hard can be brittle and prone to breaking or even shattering. Ceramic blades have become less popular in recent years due to their brittleness. Drop a ceramic knife on the floor and you’re out your $300.

Hardness is measured on the Rockwell Hardness Scale (HRC). Measurements are typically in the 55-60 range. Some of the sharpest Japanese knives are hardened to an HRC of more than 60, while Wusthof and Henckels knives are typically closer to 55. It might not sound like much, but a few points on the Rockwell scale can make a big difference.

Blade hardness is probably the biggest difference between Japanese and German knives. Japanese knives are hard, sharp surgical instruments. They are razor-sharp but require careful handling. German knives are duller but require less maintenance. See The Rise and Fall of The Great Knife-Makers for more on this distinction.
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