A Practical Guide to Kitchen Knives

cookinggear

If you spend any amount of time cooking, your knives matter more than almost anything else in the kitchen. More than the stove, more than the pans, definitely more than that immersion circulator collecting dust in the back of your cabinet.

Here’s what I’ve learned after years of using, abusing, and occasionally obsessing over kitchen knives.

You Only Need Three

Seriously. Three knives will handle 95% of everything you’ll ever need to do in a kitchen:

  1. Chef’s knife (8-10 inches) — your workhorse for almost everything
  2. Paring knife — for detail work, peeling, and anything too small for the chef’s knife
  3. Serrated bread knife — because you can’t cut bread with a straight edge without making a mess

That’s it. Everything else is a luxury. A nice luxury, sometimes, but a luxury.

What About a Santoku?

A santoku is a fine knife. If you prefer the feel of a shorter, flatter blade, get one instead of a chef’s knife. But you don’t need both. Pick whichever feels better in your hand and commit.

What to Spend

The sweet spot for a chef’s knife is somewhere between $50 and $150. Below that, you’re getting steel that won’t hold an edge. Above that, you’re paying for aesthetics or diminishing returns.

Some reliable options:

  • Victorinox Fibrox Pro (~$35) — the best budget knife, full stop
  • Tojiro DP (~$50) — Japanese steel, incredible value
  • MAC MTH-80 (~$120) — my daily driver, perfectly balanced

The best knife is the one you actually use and maintain. A $40 knife that’s sharp will outperform a $200 knife that’s dull every single time.

Keeping Them Sharp

A sharp knife is a safe knife. It sounds counterintuitive, but dull knives slip and require more force — that’s how people get cut.

Here’s the minimum maintenance routine:

  • Hone before every use with a ceramic or steel honing rod
  • Sharpen every few months with a whetstone (1000/6000 grit combo is all you need)
  • Never put them in the dishwasher — hand wash, dry immediately

The honing rod doesn’t sharpen the blade — it realigns the edge. Think of it like straightening bent grass versus cutting it. Five passes on each side, at about a 15-20 degree angle, and you’re good.

Learning to Use a Whetstone

If you’ve never used a whetstone before, it’s simpler than it looks:

  1. Soak the stone for 10-15 minutes
  2. Hold the knife at a consistent angle (roughly 15 degrees for Japanese knives, 20 for Western)
  3. Sweep the blade across the stone in smooth, even strokes
  4. Start with the coarse side (1000), finish on the fine side (6000)
  5. Test by slicing a piece of paper — it should cut cleanly

The key word is consistent. The angle doesn’t need to be perfect, it just needs to be the same on every stroke.

Storage

A magnetic knife strip on the wall is the best way to store knives. It keeps the edges from touching anything, looks good, and frees up counter space.

If you’re using a knife block, make sure the knives go in spine-first so the edge doesn’t drag against the wood every time you pull one out.

Never throw knives loose in a drawer. It’s bad for the knives and bad for your fingers.

That’s really all there is to it. Get three good knives, learn to keep them sharp, and store them properly. You’ll be better equipped than most professional kitchens.