Sakura Chef Knives

Posted By admin on October 15, 2010

Chef Knife Blades and Materials.

Chef Knives are divided into four main categories by the types of material used to make them.

The chef knife prices are usually consistent with the amount of work put in to produce the blade, and the material value.

Now I say usually because there are many chef knife brand names that will ad a significant amount of money to the cost of the chef knife.

The chef knife materials are:

1. Carbon Steel

2. Stainless Steel

3. Laminated

4. Ceramic

There are also two main ways for making the blade for the chef knife:

1. Forged

2. Pressed

Carbon Steel Chef Knife Blade:

Carbon Steel is an alloy of Iron and approximately 1% Carbon.

It will produce a very sharp edge that will hold for a longer time.

Most “Super Steel” Chef Knife Blades that are forged in the far east (mostly Japan) are made of Carbon Steel alloys which may include Chrome, Vanadium, Cobalt, Molybdenum and other elements.

Some names of the Chef Knife “Super Steel” materials are VG-10 which is a compound of iron, carbon, Cobalt, Vanadium, Molybdenum that is only available in Japan or ZDP-189 which is made by Hitachi Japan.

The best Chef Knives are made of Carbon Steel which is folded over itself several time, it can be from just 2 folds and up to 800 folds.

What comes out of these folded blades for chef knives are what we call today “Damascus Steel” which is a chef knife that shows the layers of steel and carbon on the blade.

Most chef knives use 16 or 33 folds, the better and more expensive ones can use 67 folds and up.

What each fold does is give the chef knife more steel fibers and that gives the chef knife flexibility and durability that no other material can give a chef knife.

Some brand names that use this type of chef knife blade technique are Spyderco, Kershaw, Sakura, Kyocera, and more.

The next segment will be about Stainless Steel Chef Knife Blades.

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Posted By admin on October 15, 2010

Sharpening a Chef Knife – Keep it Sharp and Stay Safe

Any blade, no matter how good it may be, will dull as it is used.

Using a dull chef knife is not only dangerous because the knife can slip and cut you, it is also hard to use and may be frustrating at times.

Sharpening a chef knife is easy once you get the hang of it.

With a new knife all you have to do is use a Steel Knife Sharpener stick.

As the picture shows, you have to slide the blade of your chef knife all the way to cover the blade from top to bottom and the sharpener from top to bottom.

You want to slide the blade at a 21 – 23 degree angle.

Slide one side of the Chef Knife blade ten times (no need to apply force), and then the other side of the blade ten times.

After that alternate sides every time you slide the chef knife on the stick for a further ten times.

If this is the first time you sharpen your Chef Knife, do this slowly. After a while, you will get the hang of it and the whole process should take no more then 10 – 15 seconds.

Using a Stick Steel Sharpener will work on most steel pressed Chef Knife blades for a long time.

On forged steel Chef Knives it will work for a while, and then you will have to use a Wet Stone or a professional knife sharpener.

That is because on a forged blade there are 2 types of metal: The layers (or folds) cover the blade and give it strength and flexibility, while in the middle there is a different type of metal that does the cutting itself. So while sharpening the blade what you are actually sharpening is the cutting blade. Once that gets sharpened to a point where it reaches the covering metal you will have to sharpen the outer metal to expose the cutting part.

If you are afraid to ruin your knife, you can always ask your local butcher to do it for you

In the next segment I will talk about types of Chef Knives and the metals used to make them.

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Posted By admin on October 15, 2010

Do’s and Don’ts of a Chef Knife

Your Chef Knife will be your most important tool in the kitchen, and the more you use it, the more important it will become.

Today, I keep a personal Chef Knife I use in every kitchen I cook. Be it in my home or in my parent’s home or at my workplace.

I cannot imagine cooking without it. For that reason there are some rules to keeping it in good shape.

In this segment I will give some points on keeping the chef knife in good condition, and some things you should never do with a chef knife.

The first and most important thing is keep it dry.

Keep your chef knife dry. When you finish working with it, wash it and dry it.

Do not leave it in the sink with other dishes or utensils. What happens is that most good quality chef knives are made of steel compounds that are prone to rusting. If the knife you are going to buy sais it is completely rust poof, it is either a lie, or the steel is not of the best quality for a chef knife.

On a later segment I will talk about different types of metal used for chef knives, and the advantages and disadvantages of each type of metal.

The next thing is try not to keep your knife in the drawer with the other utensils. The reason for that is the edge of the blade may dull as it rubs with other metals in the drawer. So try to keep it on a magnet line on the wall or in the box it came in or in a wood knife block.

Another thing you should do is when you use your chef knife, always work on a wood or silicone surface. Never on plastic, glass, metal, or rock (Granite or porcelain and so on) surface.

Since the wood surface is softer then the steel blade of the knife, it will help keep it sharp for a longer period of time.

The main function of a cutting board is to keep the knife safe, not to keep the workspace clean.

Keep in mind that any use of a chef knife will dull the edge of the blade.

Re-sharpening a knife is an easy job once you have mastered it and getting the chef knife back its original sharp edge is quite a simple task.

In the next segment I will explain how to sharpen your chef knife.

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Posted By admin on October 15, 2010

The Anatomy of a Chef Knife

Contrary to what most cooks think, a Chef Knife is not just a big knife with a big blade.A good Chef Knife is a precision tool which allows you to do almost any job in the kitchen.

In this article I will break down the anatomy of the Sakura 8″ Chef Knife.
It is the knife I use. Probably one of the best I ever had.

It is a Japanese 8″ Chef knife. Hand forged in VG-10 Carbon Steel metal. Folded 67 times.

A: The Chef Knife Tip: Right at the end of the blade. It is used to cut through onions, shallots, and other vegetables to make cuts for cubes or strips. May also be used to cut strips through meat or boning.

Most chefs will tell you never to use the knife tip for anything else, but it will easily open plastic or paper bags.

B: The Chef Knife Cutting Edge: Used for long slice cuts through meat fruit or vegetables. It is the third most used part of the knife.

C: The Chef Knife Heel: These are the last two inches closest to the Bolster. It is the most used part of the chef knife. Used for dicing or slicing in a forward wave motion, and hard cutting of bones or tendons.

Also it is the right place for holding between your forefinger and thumb for best grip of the chef knife.

D: The Chef Knife Back: Mainly the part of the blade that will give you the power to use the knife. It is between 2.5 and 3 inches wide in a quality chef knife.

Can be used for breaking ice, or forced blows.

E: The Chef Knife Bolster: It is the metal part between the blade and the handle.
It usually extends all the way down to the bottom of the blade.

This allows for two uses: It will protect your fingers from sliding under the blade. But more importantly, it is a heavy chunk of metal the gives balance to the whole chef knife making it effortlessly usable for long periods of time.

F: The Chef Knife Tang: The Tang is the back end of the blade. Is a good chef knife it extends all the way to the back of the handle giving the chef knife strength and stability.

G: The Rivet: A metal pin forged into the Handle and through the Tang to hold them together.

H: The Chef Knife Butt: The back end of the chef knife. Helps grip the knife comfortably, but can also, in good quality chef knives, be used as a hammer.

This was a quick break down of the anatomy of a chef knife.

On the next entry I will explain the care and handling of the knife.

The Do’s and Don’ts.

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Posted By admin on October 15, 2010

What is the best chef knife?

How about “What is a Chef Knife”?

There are 7 main kitchen knives that chefs use.

Each knife is used for a different purpose.

Here is a list the different ktchen chef knives, and the use of each one.

- Kitchen Bread Knife – obviously to cut bread, but also good for layers of cake.

It is a long knife, usually 8″ or more. The edge must be serrated for easy slicing.

- Kitchen Boning Chef Knife – A mid-long thin knife for cutting meat.

Usually 6″ long. A straight edge blade (for gliding through the meat). The blade must be flexible and about 0.5″ wide, for easy use around bones.

- Kitchen Carving Chef knife – used for cutting through dough, boneless meat, and cooked vegetables.

Usually will be 8″ long. The width of the blade should be about 0.8″.

Will also have a straight blade.

- Kitchen Santoku Chef Knife – This is a late addition to the chef’s knife arsenal.

Originally from Japan, it is used to cut vegetables.

- Kitchen Paring Knife – Used for thin slicing of fish vegetables or fruit.

Should be between 5 and 6 inches. Usually will be 5.25″ long.

Very thin blade and very flexible.

- Kitchen Utility Knife – a short and very strong knife, about 3.5″ inches long.

Used for all sorts of small jobs with food and also very good for household uses.

- And Now: The king of Kitchen knives: The Chef Knife

The Chef Knife has usually an 8″ blade. It is a strong and somewhat flexible. Always with a very sharp straight edge.

A good cook, or chef will usually do most of his work using the Kitchen Chef Knife.

It is the knife that he will never let anyone else touch.

He will make sure to keep it sharpened, clean and ready for use.

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