Noobie chef lost in a sea of choices... please help!

[Drummercook]

Hey guys. Im 16 years old and ive been exploring cooking for about a year now. I love it and its one of my favorite hobbies. IVe been using a knife that my mom got at the store a while ago. I know the difference between knives and that the three essentials are the Chef's, Paring, and Serrated knife. The problem, however, is that i dont know which ones to buy! There seems to be infinate choices and im completely lost. Could someone please help?? For instance, should i get a Chef's or Santoku knife? What length chef's knife should i get? Should i get an offset or normal serrated knife? Are there any specific brands that are good? (ive heard that Shun and Wusthof were good). Please respond by replying on the forums or sending me an instant message on my AIM accnt (Slowpenguin20). Thank you!!

 

[GB]

Welcome to the site Drummercook!

Buying a knife is sort of like buying shoes. You could spend a ton of $$$ on a great knife or shoe, but if it doesn't fit you then it is worthless. Go to a good kitchen store and test drive a few knives. Hold them in your hand and see what feels comfortable. Some will feel good and others will not.

As for Chefs vs. Santoku that is really personal preference. A chefs knife has more of a curve than a santoku which makes the chefs better at rocking back and forth to chop stuff. A santoku is more designed to slice as opposed to chop. For me if I had to pick between the two I would get a chefs, but that is me.

For your serrated knife offset is nice if you will be using it to cut fresh bread, but for most other things I think I would want a regular one. I feel I would have more control that way, but again that is just me and what you are comfortable with might be different.

 

[Drummercook]

thanks

Thanks GB, that helps a lot I think ill head out to a store to try out some knives tomorrow. Thanks again

 

[GB]

You're welcome and have fun!

 

[FryBoy]

Good knives can be a lifetime investment, so don't cheap out. OTOH, don't spend a lot of money on trendy gimmicks -- stay with the tried-and-true. I can vouch for the quality of the Wusthof classic knives. I'm using the ones we bought when we got married in 1968, and they still hold a fine edge, despite daily use. They don't have wood handles, which is one reason they're like new.

I like my chef's knives, but I can't comment on the santuko shape. I have both a 6" and an 8" Wusthof chef's knife, and I probably use the 6" more often. It's easier to maneuver with most tasks, but I prefer the 8" if I'm chopping a lot of veggies. The 8" is a little more awkward to use, but the 6" seems too small for some tasks. If I had to choose just one, I'd opt for the larger knife.

 

[GB]

My chefs knife is a 10" and my santoku is a 7". I like the large size of the chefs, but it can be a little too big at times. The 7" is great for those times that I am just cutting up some small things and the 10" would be overkill. Like FryBoy though, I would pick the larger over the smaller if I could just pick one.

I am planning (someday) to get an 8" ceramic chefs knife, but that is low on my priority list right now.

 

[Drummercook]

hm...

Thanks for all your help guys, this is really great

Ive decided that i will, in fact, go with the chef's knife, not the santoku. So now i need to decide size and brand. Lets assume money isnt an object, would a Wusthof grand prix/classic be best? and about size... should i go for a big one first, and then a small one? or should i go for one thats in-between, like a 7 inch? Thanks again for all the help!!

 

[FryBoy]

Get the 8" Wusthof Classic (not the Grand Prix) chef's knife. It's $75 at www.bestknives.com.

 

[Drummercook]

sorry, lol

sorry to ask so many questions, but why classic over grand prix? (just wondering). And if i ask to try this out at the store, will i be able to? Thanks!!!

 

[Caine]

If price were no object, and all things being equal, I would get the Friedrick Dick 10-inch x 1-3/4-inch chef's knife.

It's well made, well balanced, comfortalbe, holds its edge extremely well, and it is so much fun to see the look on people's faces when you tell them you have one!

 

[jeisner]

sorry to ask so many questions, but why classi over grand prix? (just wondering). And if i ask to try this out at the store, will i be able to? Thanks!!!

Good question ;-)

A recently bought the grand prix II 20cm chefs knife over the classic, as to me it felt much better.. but again that is personal preference..

 

[Steve A]

Just my 2¢, but I've only had three F. Dick knives I thought were worth a poop. One was the tournet knife, which is absolutely wonderful for peeling and deveining shrimp, the boning knife and the fillet knife.

Both the small and large chef knifes I found to be too thin in the blade. Perhaps that's the same reason I loved the boning and filleting knives. The steel, however, is probably the best I've ever owned. It's long, hefty and well balanced.

I'll stick with my Henckels and Wüsthoffs, thank you very much.

Ciao,

 

[GB]

I have the Grand Prix and I love them. They feel perfect in my hand.

 

[Drummercook]

so..

so then the choice between Grand Prix and Classic is just a matter of preference? Alright, cool.

Again, sorry to ask so many questions, but... Now theres still the Paring and Serrated knives . Any ideas on them?

And one more thing... Would you reccomend any (for lack of knowledge of a better word) Knife holders? The wooden things with the slots in em, you know what i mean . And when i get to the store, will they let me try out these knives if i ask them?

Thank you SOOO much guys, i had no idea id get so much feedback

 

[jkath]

drummer, never apologize for asking questions! You know, the only bad questions are the ones that are never asked! I love your enthusiasm! I'm hoping both of my boys will be as eager as you in the kitchen.

I love my wooden knife holder thingy. (is there a word? I'm sure there is, but...) It works great, and since I know where each knife is housed, I can grab it without having to go through all of the others. I have a set of henckels, myself. I love them and have 2 favorites. One is huge and chops everything under the sun. The other is a small very serrated one that is perfect for fruits and veggies. Really, it is a personal preference.
I wish you the best on your knife quest!

 

[FryBoy]

I prefer the Classic's look, with its rivets through the handle, and I like the balance and the way it feels in my hand. The molded handle the Grand Prix makes it look to me like the Ginsu knife I got free at the home show -- which, BTW, is great for slicing bagels!

I do use the technique of pinching the blade between my thumb and index finger (other three fingers wrapped around the handle), especially for chopping. I find that gives me greater control of the knife. If you prefer always to wrap all your fingers around the handle, then you might like the feel of Grand Prix better -- it's a personal thing.

Anyway, I've had great luck with Wusthof's Classic knives for nearly 40 years of daily use, and the handles are like new, not loose, not chipped or cracked (I have the hard plastic handles, not the wood handles, which I doubt would have lasted as long). I therefore would chose that over the newer Grand Prix models, but I'm sure both are fine.

I suggest you go to a GOOD kitchen store, Williams Sonoma or something of that level, and ask if they will let you experiment, chopping onions and parsley, for example. See which you like best (don't listen the the sales person too much) -- then order it on line to save $$$.

Let us know what you decide and how you like it.

 

[FryBoy]

I love my wooden knife holder thingy. (is there a word? I'm sure there is, but...)

It's called a knife block. If you can afford a set, you can get great deals that include such a "thingy." Here are a couple of good examples from www.bestknives.com:

Click here to enlarge​

[FONT=arial, helvetica]This set contains: Paring knife (#4066-9) Bread knife (#4149) Sharpening steel (#4463-23) Carving knife (#4522-20) Chef's knife (#4582-20)
WT-9832

Retail price: $320.00

Our price: $224.95

[/FONT]

Click here to enlarge​

[FONT=arial, helvetica]

This set contains: - Paring knife, 3" (#4000) - Paring knife, 5" (#4066-12) - Bread knife 8" (#4149) - Carving knife 8" (#4522-20) - Chef's knife 8" (#4582-20) - Sharpening steel (#4463-23) - Kitchen scissor (#5558) The handy knife block provides protection for your blades as well as a visual compliment to your kitchen decor. are made of select beechwood for 7 pieces Forged knives with ergonomic handles. The WÜSTHOF name, TRIDENT-Logo and city of Solingen as place-of-manufacturing proudly etched onto every blade. All items are gift packed.​

WT-9835

Retail price: $410.00

Our price: $269.95

[/FONT]

 

[Drummercook]

Alright, im heading out to the kitchen store right now to check out knives (i figure ill stock up my kitchen equipment one category at a time). Thanks SOOOOOO much for all the help!!! This is great!! Ill tell you how it goes. Thanks a ton guys!!

 

[GB]

Another option for knife storage is a magnetic holder. This is my favorite method, but unfortunately I have no place in either of my kitchens right now to use one. Basically is is a long strong magnetic strip that screws into the wall. The metal knives (you can't use it with ceramic knives) stick to the magnet and are easily accessible. This is the best way, IMO, because the wood blocks and trap moisture and dust and other things inside and they cant be cleaned.

 

[Drummercook]

woot

Im back well, ive made my purchases. I actually went with a Wusthof 7 inch Santoku knife, a 9 inch Wusthof serrated knife, and a... um... "longer of the two choices" (i cant remember) Wusthof paring knife. . I chose the santoku over the chef's because it just felt better in my hand at the store. It feels very light and like i can chop quickly with it (is that good?). I guess it felt very... i dunno, balanced? I think that later in my cooking career i'll purchase a long (10") chef's knife, but for now, i think i can handle most things with the Santoku. Im SOOO excited and i cant thank you all enough for your help!!!! These forums are great and ill definately continue to post here. Well, im gonna go chop an onion! Thanks guys!!!!!!