Setup I working with at the moment in my tiny apartment kitchen
From bottom to top: Carbon steel 150mm honesuki/boning knife, 210mm (likely VG10) gyuto, 240mm VG10 gyutou, 270mm VG10 slicer, 330mm carbon steel sakimaru takobiki & chipped kyocera ceramic santoku (not pictured) that needs repairing
Tell us about your cutting board as well?
Cheapo 3/4" 20 yr old Ikea cutting board, not sure what grain nor material. Slightly cracked, warped and charred.
I’m surprised that you aren’t using an end-grain chopping block with wood like maple though. It allows you to maintain your sharp edges much better than edge-grain which is what you’re using. You can feel that you’re cutting on a soft surface while you cut on it.
I would like to get a new end grain chopping block but hate the thickness and heft. Very unwieldy to move around in a small space. Hopefully I can find someone producing 1" thick boards.
Yes tempted to get an Edge pro sharpener many years ago, never pulled the trigger. I’m relatively comfortable with the whetstones these days so haven’t considered for a while. People who have purchased them in the past seemed pleased with it. Probably worth checking out if you expect your collection to grow over time and helps build sharpening muscle memory from what I’ve been told.
I’ve actually been giving away and donating duplicates of things. We have countless things that mean something to us, kitchens tools not being among them. To each her own.
In that case you should check out some of those natural whetstones and obsessing about polishing the edges to a mirror finish, inspecting with a loupe etc
$339??? I’ve got knives between 20 and 40+ years old that are still going strong. All my knives together didn’t cost as much as that sharpener. Whew. Talk about sticker shock.
Considering that it cost at least $10 to have somebody sharpen a knife with a whetstone and a knife needs to be sharpened about once a month, depending on usage, even if the steel’s great, getting an Edge Pro at $300+ isn’t too bad. If you own multiple knives, then the math gets even easier!
I bought a block of Henckels Five Star knives from Macy’s circa 1994. I was just getting more serious about cooking and was inspired by shows on a fairly new Food Network. I had a friend who worked at Macy’s and got me a discount. I think the whole set cost me around $200. Over the years, I added a Santoku (also Henckels), a Kyocera ceramic (lost that one in the divorce), and a 12" Serco Stainless chef’s knife (from my ex-wife’s father’s restaurant). By far, the one I have reached for the most over the years is the 8" chef’s knife. It just feels right in my hand, and I’m a pretty big guy (6’2"). The 12" has it’s uses, but it’s too big for everyday use. And then my lovely bride got me this for Christmas (not my picture… or my truffle)…
It’s just what I’ve always used, so yes. I also use the 6" utility and 8"slicer quite a bit. I think my next purchase will be a longer slicing knife. Any suggestions are welcome.
Once a month is far too often to have a knife professionally sharpened, unless you are in the industry. You will simply wear out your knife faster. You’ll turn your gyuto into a sujihiki in no time.
Frequent home sharpening in which you’re really just touching up the edges is another matter entirely. What you’re doing is great.
But professional sharpeners always reform the edge more aggressively that what you are likely doing at home. Unless you are really aggressive, 2, maybe 3 times a year is plenty.
