Story by Manos Angelakis
Photos courtesy of the manufacturer
Kitchen Knives
Knives are a very important element of a good kitchen's panoply.
Through the years we have accumulated a number of kitchen knives, cleavers, scissors and other implements we can’t do without.
One of my favorites has been an 8” Sabatier chef's knife that I bought 40 years ago in a set that included a boning knife and a 6” utility blade. It is made of high carbon steel and has served us wonderfully. However, it requires sharpening with a whetstone, a time consuming exercise, plus after all these years the blade, because it is not stainless, is very discolored and at the tip even though I clean and dry it as soon as I finish working, there is considerable more discoloration than the rest of the blade and the copper rivets are showing verdigris no matter how much I clean them.
The utility knife died long time ago, when I took it to a “professional” knife sharpening place and they had an “accident” that broke the blade near the handle. They replaced it with what initially looked like a nice blade, but it is now really showing its age and the much lower quality; it is discolored and needs constant re-sharpening.
My best buy was my cleaver; 25 years later is still shiny, sharp and does a wonderful job. I use it mostly when chopping meat or when I want oriental-style cut vegetables. The wide heavy blade is excellent to smash and chop garlic too.
I keep all the above in a wooden block, plus a Yanagi sushi knife I bought in Kyoto.
I recently received a Cutluxe 8” Chef’s knife from their Artisan series and we have been putting it through its paces.
It is made of German high carbon stainless steel. It is a full tang blade with a pakkawood handle, triple riveted. I like the wood handle for its sure grip; if you’re doing a lot of knife work it is easy to handle and non slip; also the weighted back provides a much better balance. The Sabatier knives have a composite handle that can get slippery and is also starting to crack near the first rivet -- but that is after 40 years of practically daily use. The balance of the Cutluxe knife is much better than the Sabatier that is front heavy and the weight is a little heftier because the blade is a bit thicker, taller and heavier than the Sabatier, therefore you have good knuckle clearance when chopping.
We only have the knife for a couple weeks, but it seems to hold its edge much better than the older high carbon blades; the high carbon blades required honing with the whetstone every few days and sharpening with a steel every month.
For further info see: htpps://www.cutluxe.com or you can also purchase those knives at Amazon.com
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