Best affordable chefs knife

By Johnny Brayson and Emily Singer. Every product is carefully selected by our editors. If you buy from a link, we may earn a commission.

Learn more about it. This large, versatile knife is typically between 8 and 10 inches long, has a sharp, pointed tip and slightly curved blade and can be used to slice and chop everything from herbs and vegetables to meat and fish. Read on to find the best one for you. The way the knife feels in your hand is going to affect how often you want to use it. Japanese knives are designed for the push-pull cutting style, in which you rock the knife back and forth across your food and use the whole blade, as opposed to the more Western style of chopping while keeping the tip of the knife on the cutting board.

Best affordable chefs knife

We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Learn more. There is no kitchen knife more important than a chef's knife, unless, of course, you're an Italian nonna, in which case you can probably break down a cow with a dull paring knife. But for all the rest of us, a chef's knife is where most of the action is. It is a true workhorse, useful for nearly any task. This is the knife you use to dice onions, chop carrots, smash garlic under its side, and cut up meat. Sure, there's a whole array of specialized knives you can invest in, but in a pinch, a sharp chef's knife can do most of their jobs more than well enough, whether that's slicing delicate fish, carving a turkey , or mincing a shallot. Because of its importance in the kitchen, a chef's knife is one of the knives that most warrant a splurge. I always tell people to buy inexpensive paring knives and serrated slicers so they can allocate more toward a good chef's knife. This is also why I don't generally recommend block sets of knives: You end up overpaying for the less significant knives and underpaying for the key ones. Eliminating the duds was easy, but picking among the top performers was far more difficult.

Measure content performance. Annoying but true: It depends. Balance: Knife balance means different things to different people, and it boils down to personal preference.

We've been independently researching and testing products for over years. If you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Learn more about our review process. A good kitchen knife is key to helping you prep your food safely and quickly. The long, sharp blade of a chef's knife allows for all sorts of cutting tasks, so you can slice a steak, chop a cucumber, dice an onion or mince some herbs. This versatile style of knife comes in a variety of sizes — from six- to inch blades — so you can find the one that feels best in your hand whether you have a larger or smaller grip. When shopping, the two main types of chef's knives you'll find are German knives , which are sturdy and thick, especially at the bolster where the blade meets the handle , and Japanese knives , which are lightweight and razor-sharp with thinner blades.

We independently evaluate all recommended products and services. If you click on links we provide, we may receive compensation. Learn more. There is no kitchen knife more important than a chef's knife, unless, of course, you're an Italian nonna, in which case you can probably break down a cow with a dull paring knife. But for all the rest of us, a chef's knife is where most of the action is. It is a true workhorse, useful for nearly any task. This is the knife you use to dice onions, chop carrots, smash garlic under its side, and cut up meat. Sure, there's a whole array of specialized knives you can invest in, but in a pinch, a sharp chef's knife can do most of their jobs more than well enough, whether that's slicing delicate fish, carving a turkey , or mincing a shallot. Because of its importance in the kitchen, a chef's knife is one of the knives that most warrant a splurge. I always tell people to buy inexpensive paring knives and serrated slicers so they can allocate more toward a good chef's knife.

Best affordable chefs knife

If your knife is comfortable to grip and razor-sharp, you can chop ingredients faster and with more control and therefore more safely. After putting in over hours of research—and chopping more than 70 pounds of produce with 23 knives—we recommend the Mac MTH With its super-sharp edge, sleek, tapered shape, and comfortable handle, this knife makes everyday dicing and slicing tasks smoother and quicker. This classic German knife is a great choice if you prefer a heftier model for heavy-duty tasks. Its blade is softer than that of our top pick, so you need to sharpen it more frequently.

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Because of its importance in the kitchen, a chef's knife is one of the knives that most warrant a splurge. She conducted the most recent side-by-side chef's knife test as well as the most recent test for serrated knives and butcher knives. There are two main ways to hold a chef's knife: the handle grip and the blade grip. The experts in the Good Housekeeping Institute Kitchen Appliances and Innovation Lab test everything you'll need to whip up some of your favorite meals, including knives of all kinds. As far as Japanese chef's knives go, Shun is an industry favorite that consistently offers sharp, lightweight knives that are durable and sturdy. Alternatively, Japanese knives are lightweight with a sharp, straight blade, which makes repetitive motions like rocking and chopping difficult. It's dishwasher safe a rarity for cutlery , but we recommend hand-washing to extend its lifespan. Pros Cut thinnest slicest Comfortable to hold and use Cuts both veggies and meats well. We found that a full bolster allows for a more protected grip for novices, while a semi-bolster or no bolster provides a more controlled grip for chefs who like to pinch the heel of the blade. If you plan to use your knife frequently for prep work like slicing vegetables, chopping herbs, or mincing garlic, balance is a key factor to consider. The Mac's super-sharp blade is expertly balanced with the handle, so pressure and strain on our hands and wrists was barely noticeable.

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Just remember that for nearly every rule of thumb, there's an exception, and for most strongly held opinions, there's an equally strongly held counter-opinion. Cons Some might find the hard handle less comfortable. The Western-style knife from Shun is slightly heavier than the Classic Blonde, which is one of the reasons we didn't select it as a top choice. Equipment Knives. We performed three different tasks to gather as many insights as possible. In This Article Expand. Our tester did find the Material knife to come up short in a couple of aspects, though. Budget chef knives are often made from softer steels and may require more frequent sharpening, but when properly cared for, they can stand up to years of regular use. We still believe this model is one of the best values in kitchen cutlery. In this motion shown above , the tip of the knife mostly keeps contact with the cutting board, and you raise and lower the heel while your guiding hand pushes food underneath the blade. In our tests, the MTH always made clean cuts through fibrous carrots. For professionals and hobbyists interested in going deeper into edge geometry and whetstone sharpening, a Japanese knife can be a very compelling purchase. Similarly, you would not want to dull the blade by doing more arduous and forceful tasks like butchering through bone and joints.