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A great knife is the cornerstone on which a great meal is built. Ask three chefs what makes a great knife though and you'll likely get at least five answers. The truth is that what makes the perfect knife for you will depend on many factors, including your comfort level with knives, the size of your hands, and what sort of food you like to cook.
That said, there's a reason your basic six to eight-inch chef knife is ubiquitous: it's the most versatile knife. The chef knife is capable of dicing veggies, slicing meat, chopping herbs and nuts, and in a pinch it'll even go through small bones without too much trouble.
If you're looking to upgrade your knives, the chef knife is the place to start.
There's a bewildering range of chef knives available, from dirt cheap to very expensive specialty blades. To help you make sense of it all we sliced and diced with dozens of knives until a simple truth emerged: a poorly-made $10 blade you sharpen every day is more useful than a $200 blade that's dull. Every knife need to be sharpened, some just need it more than others. Much of the price difference in knives comes down to quality of materials, which in turn often translates to how well the blade holds its edge. Here are our picks.
We stuck mostly with 8-inch blades, the sweet spot for the classic chef's knife. Testing involved the stuff you'd do in your own kitchen—peeling, filleting, dicing, chopping, cubing, slicing and all the other standard prep work for meats and vegetables.
Generally speaking knife sets are not a good investment. You don't need a lot of knives you need a few good knives. Most people will be best served with three knives: an eight-inch chef's knife, a paring knife, and a serrated knife. That's enough to prepare just about any meal. Knife sets often cost twice as much as buying those three knives separately and don't offer anything else useful. The large wooden storage blocks also steal useful counter space. Skip the set and invest in a sharpener.
So it is with some pride that we now introduce the new Richmond Artifex II knife line. Our first offering is a very useful and universally liked 210mm gyuto. The new Artifex knives continue the tradition of using tough materials that can cope with the daily routines found in the busiest kitchens. To this end, we have continued with the proven G-10 handles but now mated to a blade made from Carpenter BD1N stainless steel.
Heat treated to HRC 63, this steel will take a nice edge and hold it exceptionally well. It is also really easy to maintain. This is perfect for the demands of pro cooks who don't have the time to constantly sharpen or wipe down their knives during their shifts. Coupled to the virtually indestructible G-10 handle scales, these knives are nearly indestructible and will provide line chefs with a comfortable, long-lasting kitchen cutter at a really attractive price.
https://www.amazon.com/Victorinox-Fibrox-Chefs-Knife-8-Inch/dp/B008M5U1C2
Tojiro’s DP and ITK series. Fujiwara is good for gyutos (chef’s knives), but their product lineup isn’t as big at Tojiro. And I’d mention the difference between western handles and wa handles
Need to open a bag of spinach? Break the seal on your sous vide salmon? Pop the cap off a beer? You're covered. We tested eight knives over three weeks, selecting the most popular models and pinging chef friends for their personal recommendations.
Like all great designs, the chef's knife is simple, and its wide-ranging utility might account for its basic shape remaining relatively unchanged over the years. There have been small innovations: new metals, better handle design, some blades roll a bit more, some are thicker, others thinner. But the standard prevails: a slim, 8-inch triangular blade with a curved cutting edge and a heel tall enough to pinch tightly. There's no best knife for everyone. The size of your hands, how you hold the knife, and what you tend to do most in the kitchen determine things like which handle type is preferable, and what weight you'll need. The less-obvious traits, like upkeep requirements and how well the knife holds an edge over time, set the great knives apart from the mediocre, and should be considered by every buyer.
NoBox markets this knife as perfect for "the backcountry chef or traveling cook", but really it's great in any kitchen, on the trail or off. One distinctly backcountry appeal is that, in a pinch, you could clean fish with this one thanks to its thinner shape. That said, it did take some time to adjust to the more curved blade so give it a chance if you decide to go this route. It's a well-balanced knife, holds it's edge well, sharpens easily, and offers a full tang (meaning it's sharp all the way to rear of the blade).
Tojiro's DP Gyutou is a solid performer at a great price. It holds a edge nearly as well as blades twice this much, and it has a wonderful, solid feeling in your hand. The blade is capable of precise and very thin slicing that I normally would turn to a carbon steel blade to achieve. The only thing to watch out for with this one is the handle height, which is a little on the low side. I rapped my knuckles more than once using this one. If you have large hands you'll be better off with something else.
Best Workhorse
The Richmond Artifex II is a small update to the original Artifex, which I have used since my days as a line cook. It holds an edge very well for a knife at this price, and makes a great first step into the world of Japanese knives. It's a bit longer than many of the blades here, but unlike a lot of Japanese knives, the Artifex II still has a western style handle. A western handle, or Wa handle, typically has two pieces with flat sides on either side of the metal, whereas a Japanese, or Ho handle, can be any shape, but tends toward round (octogon is also common). The Artifex is the closest I've seen a stainless steel knife come to the advantages of a carbon steel blade.
The Shun is a classic Japanese Damacus steel blade. The indentations help reduce friction as the knife passed through things and help prevent things from sticking to it as you chop. The Shun held its edge well, but is more complicated to sharpen. You'll want to have some high quality stones to get it razor sharp. The Damacus steel coating, which is what gives knives that distinctive ripple pattern, has a reputation for being difficult to care for, but in my experience it's no more so than carbon steel. Also note that this is Ho handle (round) and notched for right-handers. The Shun is a good quality knife, but it's also frequently on sale so don't pay more than $120 for it.
I will confess a general preference for Japanese knives. The shorter, lighter blades work well for me, but that said, I love this German-style Wüsthof chef knife. I've had it for many years and it's currently the main knife I use. It's easier to get a fine edge on this than the rest of the stainless blades I've tested, and it holds it far longer. A couple quick swipes on a honing steel and the edge is back. The Wüsthof is definitely a larger, heavier knife, but it's very comfortable to hold and will easily handle anything you throw at it.
A dull knife is not only useless, it's more dangerous because you will make up for that lack of a sharp edge with more pressure. That means, when your knife slips, you cut yourself more deeply. I have spent enough time in the ER reflecting on this to become somewhat religious about sharpening my knives.
In an ideal world there would be one sharpener to rule them all and I would just link to it here. Unfortunately, that's not how it works. Different blade materials must be sharpened differently, in particular many modern stainless steels are too hard to effectively be sharpened by traditional water stones (water stones are great for carbon steel though, I love these [Shapton stones](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Shapton+Glass+Sharpening+Stones&ref=nb_sb_noss_2){: rel=nofollow}). Strange as it sounds though, my most-used sharpener is Benchmade's [Guided Field Sharpener](https://www.benchmade.com/review/product/list/id/15441/){: rel=nofollow}. Technically it's meant for smaller blades, like pocket knives, but I use it on kitchen knives every day and it works great. If you want something bigger, I suggest diamond stones like DMT's diamond whetstone set ([Amazon $78](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003NCVFC4/){: rel=nofollow}).
For more sharpening options and some tips for how to put the best edge on your new knives, check this guide, [how to sharpen a knife the right way](https://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/how-to-sharpen-a-knife-and-hone-it-the-right-way-article), from our friends at Epicurious.
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