Best Kitchen Knives – How-to-Buy Guide
Posted on 23. Aug, 2010 by Chef in Knives
John Graham Paulson asked:
Buying the best kitchen knives can be a difficult task to accomplish with so many different brands and makes out there. The goal of this article is to make this task simpler and provide you with the know how needed to buy the best kitchen knives for your cooking needs.
Basically, kitchen knives come in two different types
• Forged Knives
• Stamped Knives
Forged knives are the best kitchen knives of the two in terms of quality and build. This is due to manufacturing process used to make these knives. They are handmade and crafted to the highest quality with extreme detail using high temperatures and hand molding. However these sets tend to be very expensive ranging from £150-£1500. This is a pretty hefty price tag for most people however if your really passionate and love your cooking then their well worth making the investment. I personally as Professional Chef use and swear by forged knives. Once you get use to using the Rolls Royce of knife sets it’s hard to go back to your ford fiesta. (You have be warned)
It’s possible to buy a quality forged knife set for around £500 which should easily last you a lifetime provided you take good care of them. Taking care of your knives isn’t as boring and time consuming as it sounds provided you have an adequate knife sharpener. In fact one of the best ways to ensure your always working with the best kitchen knives is to simply sharpen them before you start cooking. It always surprises me how many cooks forget to do this yet it only takes 30 seconds and makes huge difference to the quality of the cooking. (Rant over)
However if you can’t afford to buy a forged knife set (I feel your pain) then stamped sets are you next port of call. These are much cheaper ranging from £15- £200 and can still do adequate job provided you pick the right ones. However I have to warn you here there a lot of low quality knives in this category that about as blunt as John Prescott. (Non UK readers Google him you’ll know what I mean) Despite this over the years I’ve managed to find a few quality stamped knife sets (not an easy task believe me!) that meet professional chef standards without burning a hole in your pocket.
To summarise there are two types of knife set forged and stamped. My advice is to buy the forged sets as they really are the best kitchen knives. Your next best option if you can’t afford them is to go for a stamped set. However be very careful and buy with caution as there are a lot of low quality sets out there.
Caffeinated Content
Buying the best kitchen knives can be a difficult task to accomplish with so many different brands and makes out there. The goal of this article is to make this task simpler and provide you with the know how needed to buy the best kitchen knives for your cooking needs.
Basically, kitchen knives come in two different types
• Forged Knives
• Stamped Knives
Forged knives are the best kitchen knives of the two in terms of quality and build. This is due to manufacturing process used to make these knives. They are handmade and crafted to the highest quality with extreme detail using high temperatures and hand molding. However these sets tend to be very expensive ranging from £150-£1500. This is a pretty hefty price tag for most people however if your really passionate and love your cooking then their well worth making the investment. I personally as Professional Chef use and swear by forged knives. Once you get use to using the Rolls Royce of knife sets it’s hard to go back to your ford fiesta. (You have be warned)
It’s possible to buy a quality forged knife set for around £500 which should easily last you a lifetime provided you take good care of them. Taking care of your knives isn’t as boring and time consuming as it sounds provided you have an adequate knife sharpener. In fact one of the best ways to ensure your always working with the best kitchen knives is to simply sharpen them before you start cooking. It always surprises me how many cooks forget to do this yet it only takes 30 seconds and makes huge difference to the quality of the cooking. (Rant over)
However if you can’t afford to buy a forged knife set (I feel your pain) then stamped sets are you next port of call. These are much cheaper ranging from £15- £200 and can still do adequate job provided you pick the right ones. However I have to warn you here there a lot of low quality knives in this category that about as blunt as John Prescott. (Non UK readers Google him you’ll know what I mean) Despite this over the years I’ve managed to find a few quality stamped knife sets (not an easy task believe me!) that meet professional chef standards without burning a hole in your pocket.
To summarise there are two types of knife set forged and stamped. My advice is to buy the forged sets as they really are the best kitchen knives. Your next best option if you can’t afford them is to go for a stamped set. However be very careful and buy with caution as there are a lot of low quality sets out there.
Caffeinated Content