Let me endorse and qualify what Mitch said: Victorinox knives are terrific and can be great values, and you should definitely look into them (they are omnipresent in the marketplace).
BUT DO NOT BUY BY BRAND NAMES PLEASE! All of the major (and many of the minor) knife makers offer terrific knives. Buy what feels best in your hand, has a blade that will hold an edge, and that is in your price range. I can’t stress this enough. If you love the feel, the reviews say it is top notch, and it is in your price range, BUY IT even if you have never heard of the brand. The fact that Daniel Boulud uses X knife or Bon Appetite picked the brand as best won’t mean squat 15 years from now, and your knives should still be great then.
Ha. Didn’t know that Victorinox bought out Forschner (and I do believe it was “Forschner”).
Seems reminiscent of the sunglasses business.
Regardless of current badge, the knife fka Forschner lacks a fancy wooden grip-they are a bit porous and rough compared to the fancier brands. The blades are not as thick and are not hand-ground and tapered at the bolster/heel. They don’t convey the sense magical balance like that of Uma swinging a Hanzo in Kill Bill. But at the end of the day all of that stuff is optional, like a sunroof and leather in a car.
Oh, I have to disagree. The thickness of the blade means a great deal to how stiff (or flexible) it is, which matters; you want flexible in a slicer, but need some stiffness in a chef’s knife. The balance of the knife is extremely important. I do agree that a plastic or composite handle is totally fine. In fact, if it is weighted correctly, it may be superior and more durable than a wooden handle
I second this. My mother in law and I got into a discussion about kitchen knives because she hated the expensive Japanese knives some of her kids had bought her. She much preferred a more western style knife with a heavy blade, thick tang, and bulkier handle. She has arthritic hands and felt it was easier to let a heavier blade do the work. By contrast, I bought my mom and dad some Globals, which are very light, have thinner blades, and hold a magnificent edge.
My wife and I own the cheapest set of knives. We had a pricey set on our wedding registry, and a family friend just ignored it and bought us a 14 piece Calphalon set. Frankly, it’s been a wonderful set to have over the last 8 years. They don’t hold an edge particularly well, but are sturdy, balanced, and do the job.
Like Neal says, feel is important. Lot of variation among “top” and even not top brands.
Ha. At the risk of sounding defensive, we’re talking at cross-purposes as they say here in the corn belt. Of course flexibility is needed to properly filet a fish and stiffness is wanted to carve a roast and most of the better knives offer that variability across their respective ranges. That said, I never mentioned stiffness/flexibility. I was referring to appearance and aesthetics in the context of one particular knife, the Forschners, and just in general. You better be nice Neal, or I will find a way to revive the thread in which you demonstrated your confusion over female anatomy!
There is a great, really great, knife thread in the epicurean exploits forum. It is way geekier than what you are looking for and (fair warning) it could cause you to spend a lot more money realizing that you needed things you never knew you needed, but it is a really good thread.
I agree with only needing a few knives. I use one of two chef’s knives most frequently, one is a Wusthof, it’s heavier for when I want the weight and I’ve had it forever. The other is a Japanese high carbon knife that has to be babied a bit, but holds a much, much sharper edge and is lighter and faster. I also use a bread slicer and a serrated utility. My wife favors a Santoku. I’m wanting to add something in a mid-size petty (think medium sized utility knife) at some point, and that is really all I need. I keep them on a magnetic rack on the wall and love this option. Everything I buy from here on out will be high carbon Japanese or locally made (also high carbon) as I have a good local option now.
Lot’s of good advice already. The comments about building a set rather than buying a fixed set is true. As is are the notes about thickness, steel quality, etc.
But let’s go with the premise that you are looking for a “matched set” that will be visually attractive in a home kitchen in addition to being a good quality product. After all, not everyone is like me who thinks that looks are the least important aspect and would be completely happy with an industrial kitchen. Some folks want a visually attractive kitchen.
Let me rank some things to consider in the order I consider them important:
Feel. Knife sets usually have the same handle design and construction. Hold the knife. If possible, use it (some stores have setups where you can try a blade - supervised, of course). If it is not REALLY comfortable in your hand then odds are that you will not use it. And a knife you don’t use is a complete waste of money. Feel includes weight. You want as heavy a blade as is really comfortable to use. This both makes working with the knife easier (you can let the knife do the majority of the work rather than needing to bear down so hard on it) and, with the exception of certain specific blade designs such as a filleting knife that need to be more flexible, means a more solid and substantial blade worthy of long term use.
Steel. Carbon steel - preferably high carbon steel - is a must. Stainless is never quite as good and seldom holds an edge as well as high carbon steel.
Edge Angle. Or in easier to group terms, European or Asian. European knives have edge angles around 22-24 degrees whereas Asian knives edge angles are more in the 16-18 degree range (these are only broad terms - there are exceptions to both groups - but gives you the basic idea). I find the choice to be a personal one. I use both types depending on mood and task. And it is always possible to have a knife reground to a new angle based on your preference. Still, it is better to start off where you want to be instead of spending more to customize the set.
Construction. You want the knife to have a solid bolster (a basic search will give you tons of info on knife construction) and preferably have a full tang rather than simply a spike into the handle (back to the construction search).
Handle materials. Since this is something that will be seen whenever someone is in the kitchen, and working from the premise that looks are a matter of importance, if there are multiple sets that are essentially equal in the above criteria then let the looks be the deciding factor.
Set components I would look for:
Chef’s knife (6 inches minimum, preferably 8 inches)
Paring knife (3.5 to 4.5 inches)
Slicing/carving knife (these run 8 inches and up as you REALLY want long strokes rather than sawing motions)
Kitchen/Poultry shears (preferably ones that disassemble as this enables better cleaning)
Honing steel (you do not ‘sharpen’ with a steel, you hone to realign the edge. Learn to use a steel and use it EVERY TIME you pick up the knife. This will greatly reduce the need for actual sharpening)
Serrated knife (not a bread knife, about 4 to 6 inches) - this is your tomato, salami, etc. knife
Bread knife - larger, serrated, different design entirely than the shorter blade above
With the block this makes for 8 pieces and is pretty close to the starting point for most quality sets.
If you add steak knives (as is the norm for larger sets) your count jumps to 16. Plus such sets will come with a few more items that the average home cook will seldom use. A cleaver for example. Plus another paring knife, etc.
Moving up to these sets ups the price accordingly. Figure $800 and up (though $1000 might be closer to the average)
Andy–I picked up a VERY inexpensive bread knife at Smart & Final, and I was surprised at just how good it was. While it’s not for every use, it frankly outperforms some other knives I’ve used in the past. Pick up one and see what you think.
I just saw an article (perhaps Serious Eats?) that recommended buying inexpensive bread knives because they are so difficult to sharpen that they become for all intents and purposes disposable. What say y’all?
IMO, knives are like bikes - you can spend a WHOLE lot of money, but unless you’re a true expert, it probably won’t make that much difference to you (and even then, there’s doubt).
Got an email today from Williams Sonoma that their Wusthof knives are on sale. I really like their Ikon series:
Here is our Epicurean Exploits Official Kitchen Knife thread…
It starts out weird, because Alan had it originally titled regarding his ordered Hattori knife (a true unicorn) and after the thread took off sideways, I had him retitle it…
Warning— this thread became very expensive for me. I now use my very sharp Wusthof’s for cutting stuff like hard squash and chicken bones and separating lamb racks— they are so meh for anything else.
Second most everything that has been said here. Will add that
(for me and what I like to cut with) a very good pairing knife and a somewhat larger than that utility knife are as important than the chef’s knife that everyone will focus on. I have some very well trained and practiced friends who can use a 10 inch chef’s knife for nearly everything but I don’t (and don’t enjoy having to try).
As the aficionados (not moi) will claim,The Gude Bread Knife (or sword, as it is known) seems to be the ne plus ultra of serrated bread knives. But it is far from essential, IMHOP.
Andy
Another recommendation to go with 6 or so. Keep the other 12 in the drawer as you will rarely use them. I bought a set of Tramontina’s about 12 years ago for about $80 with a block. I keep them sharp and really like them. I sometimes think about upgrading because I clearly didn’t spend enough, but catch myself in time.
I recently (four or five months ago) added this to my collection for slicing brisket and other roasts. Slicing knives are not nearly as versatile as chef’s knives, but I like it a lot and think it’s a great value in a slicing knife https://www.amazon.com/dp/B015NFHU9K/ref=cm_cr_ryp_prd_ttl_sol_0
I would not go out of my way to save money. You wouldn’t drink swill just because it is cheaper than a good wine. I have this knife and as the many Berserkers can attest from the brisket I have sliced with it after meling out all the fat at Berserkerfests, nothing beat a great knife when cutting hot briket. NOTE that real knife crazies think this is a piece of junk, so everything is relative.
Reading through that knife thread was fascinating. Seemed a lot like wine. I’m sitting here drinking my $145 bottle of wine thinking it’s something really solid at the top end of my per-bottle budget and folks are slamming 1961 Latour thinking I’m drinking a precursor to good red wine vinegar. Even the “good” knives I’ve considered purchasing cost less than 1/3 of what the suggested low end custom chef’s knives were running. While I enjoy nice things and can appreciate good cutlery, I’ll be happy to live well below what the real knife crazies think is a level of acceptability.