Japanese knife guides
Buying a Japanese knife shouldn't take a PhD. These are honest, plain-English guides to choosing the right blade, understanding the steel, and keeping your edge sharp for years.
Gyuto vs Santoku: which should you choose?
The two most popular Japanese kitchen knives, compared side by side — shape, cutting motion, and who each one suits.
SteelVG10 vs Aogami vs Shirogami: which steel?
Stainless vs carbon, edge retention vs ease of care — how to pick the right steel for you.
CareHow to care for a carbon-steel knife
Patina, rust prevention, drying and storage — keep a reactive blade healthy for decades.
ChoosingThe best Japanese knife for beginners
One knife, one size, one steel — a no-regret first purchase and why.
ChoosingJapanese vs German knives: which should you buy?
Hardness, weight, edge angle and care — the sharp, precise Japanese blade vs the tough, forgiving German one.
ChoosingAre Japanese knives worth it? An honest answer
What the price actually buys, the honest trade-offs, and who should — and shouldn't — buy one.
SteelSG2 / R2 powder steel, explained
The modern powder stainless that holds an edge like carbon but shrugs off rust — and how it compares to VG10.
SharpeningHow to sharpen a Japanese knife on a whetstone
Angles, grits and a simple routine to keep a Japanese edge scary-sharp.
SharpeningHoning vs sharpening: what's the difference?
One realigns the edge, the other makes a new one — and why a hard Japanese knife needs a gentler routine.
BevelSingle bevel vs double bevel, explained
Why traditional Japanese knives are ground on one side — and which you actually want.
ChoosingWa handle vs yo handle: which to choose?
The light, blade-forward wooden wa handle vs the heavier riveted Western yo handle — balance, durability and feel.
ReferenceJapanese knife glossary: terms & anatomy
Every term you'll meet — anatomy, types, steels, construction, sharpening and handles — defined and linked.
ChoosingWhy are Japanese knives so sharp?
The four real reasons — harder steel, thinner blades, a more acute edge angle and a fine finish — and the trade-off.
CareAre Japanese knives dishwasher safe?
No, and here's why — heat, detergent, chips and handle damage — plus the 20-second hand-wash that keeps them perfect.
TypeThe usuba: the traditional vegetable knife
The single-bevel professional vegetable knife, katsuramuki, and how it differs from a double-bevel nakiri.
TypeThe honesuki: Japan's boning knife
The stiff, triangular boning knife for breaking down poultry — and how it differs from a Western boning knife and a deba.
TypeThe kiritsuke: the angled-tip knife
The traditional single-bevel kiritsuke vs the modern double-bevel kiritsuke-gyuto, and how it compares to a gyuto.
SteelAogami Super (Blue Super) steel, explained
The carbon steel with the best edge retention of the Hitachi blues — and how it compares to Aogami #2 and white steel.
SteelStainless-clad vs full carbon knives
How san-mai cladding gives a carbon edge with an easy-care stainless body, and when full carbon is worth the extra care.
CareHow to remove rust from a knife (safely)
Telling rust from patina, a gentle baking-soda method, stubborn spots, and how to stop it coming back.
SteelShirogami 1, 2 & 3 (white steel), explained
What white carbon steel is, what the numbers mean, and how #1, #2 and #3 differ in keenness, toughness and sharpening.
SteelKnife hardness (HRC), explained
What HRC means, why Japanese knives run harder than Western ones, and why harder isn't simply better.
CareHow to fix a chipped knife edge
Grinding a chip out on a whetstone, re-forming the edge, when to see a pro, and how to prevent chips.
CareHow to store Japanese knives
Saya, magnetic strips, blocks and docks — what protects the edge, what to avoid, and how to choose.
ChoosingJapanese knife size guide (mm to inches)
What blade lengths mean, typical sizes by type, and how to match a knife to your board and hands.
SteelGinsan (Silver 3) steel, explained
The stainless that sharpens and cuts like white carbon steel but resists rust — and how it compares to VG10.
SharpeningHow to flatten a whetstone
Why stones dish and ruin your edge, what to flatten with, and the foolproof pencil-grid method.
CareThe best cutting board for Japanese knives
The best surfaces (end-grain wood, soft poly, hinoki), what to avoid (glass, stone, bamboo), and board care.
SharpeningStropping a Japanese knife, explained
What stropping does, why it's the gentle way to maintain a hard edge, and how to strop spine-first.
UsingCan you cut bone with a gyuto?
No — why a thin, hard gyuto chips on bone, what to use instead, and how to handle joints and small bones.
ChoosingLeft-handed Japanese knives
Why double-bevel knives work for lefties, why single-bevel knives are handed, and how to buy left-handed.
ChoosingOne good knife vs a set: which is better?
Why one excellent knife beats a block set, what a set really costs, and how to build a kit gradually.
ChoosingParing knife vs petty (utility knife)
Size, in-hand vs board use, plain edge vs serrated, and which small knife makes the better second blade.
CraftHonyaki vs kasumi, explained
The single-steel, differentially-hardened honyaki with its hamon vs the forge-welded two-metal kasumi.
CraftSan mai & damascus construction
What three-layer and patterned damascus cladding really are, and why the core steel is what matters.
CraftKurouchi, nashiji & tsuchime finishes
The black-forge, pear-skin, hammered and polished blade finishes — looks, food release, and care.
SteelPatina & reactivity on carbon knives
Why patina is good and protective, how to build one, what reactivity means, and how it differs from rust.
ChoosingThe best Japanese knife for small hands
The right length, weight, handle and balance — and which types suit smaller hands best.
UsingHow to slice sashimi (in one clean pull)
The right knife, the right fish, and the single-pull hikizukuri technique for a glossy cut face.
UsingHow to make sushi at home
The shari ratio that actually matters, what gear you really need, and how to cut neta and maki cleanly.
UsingNakiri vegetable cuts: julienne & brunoise
The push-cut chop, and how to cut a clean julienne and brunoise with a tall, flat vegetable knife.
CraftWhat 'hand-forged' really means
An honest look at hand-forged and handmade claims — and how to judge a knife by what actually matters.
TypeThe nakiri: Japan's vegetable knife
Tall, flat and squared-off — the double-bevel vegetable specialist, and how it differs from a santoku and usuba.
TypeThe petty: the little utility knife
Part paring knife, part mini chef's knife — the nimble second knife for peeling, trimming and detail work.
TypeThe bunka: the k-tip all-rounder
A santoku with an angular k-tip — the flat, everyday all-rounder with a precise point, and how it compares to a santoku and gyuto.
TypeThe Japanese bread knife (pankiri)
Why a serrated pankiri cuts crusty bread without crushing it, why your gyuto shouldn't, and what size and teeth to buy.
TypeThe sujihiki: Japan's slicing knife
The long, thin double-bevel slicer for carving meat and portioning fish — the easy, versatile cousin of the yanagiba.
TypeThe yanagiba: Japan's sashimi knife
The long, single-bevel slicer for raw fish — how it cuts sashimi in one clean pull, and how it compares to a sujihiki.
TypeThe deba: Japan's fish knife
The thick, heavy single-bevel knife for breaking down whole fish — what it does, and how it differs from a gyuto.