Just a note for those in the market for a Japanese knife: all of the "Japanese" knives I investigated on Amazon were actually made in China. This is not necessarily to denigrate these knives, but if you want a made in Japan knife you must look into the origin carefully.

I spent over $500 of my very small summer camp counselor check on a santoku and a nakiri. One of the best purchases of my teens. I still have them to this day and everyone who gets to use them fall in love with how they handle

So I'm a cook, and a knife enthusiast. I collect everything from bayonets to modern EDC folders, which I have over 2 dozen. As for cooking, over a decade ago I switched from German to Japanese, and never looked back. These are all beautiful pieces, but the most important aspect of any knife is the user's hand feel. Always buy from a shop that will let you handle the blade before you purchase. (Or if online, will let you return) Japanese do require more care / service, but it's well worth it. Keep in mind, you can adjust that bevel angle with the right tool, and keep a razor sharp edge. I have a slicer from Shun that is a hollow flat ground edge. I can shave with it. The santoku should be everybody's first Japanese knife, then expand. My current favorite brand is Kikuichi Cutlery. Been around since 1267. That's not a typo. My current gyuto & nakiri are from them, plus a few others. Shun is great, and I have too many😂but (at least they used to) Shun Classic can be purchased with left or right hand specific scales. I still grab them when I'm in the mood, and they are the reason I jumped from German so many years ago. Anyway, sorry for rambling...

I recently fell into the Japanese knife rabbit hole. My Victorinox knives worked well, but the Japanese knives I bought made cook prep so much more fun. I have a Santoku, a Gyuto, a Petty, a Nakiri, a Chinese Clever, and a Bunka. I use the Bunka, Petty and the Nakiri most often. None of them are the brands most recently recommended by ATC. But they all have Rockwell hardness levels of 62+ and remain very sharp after use. If you enjoy cook prep, and have some disposable income, take the journey. You might not be disappointed.

It cracks me up every time hearing "combined experience testing kitchen gear" while watching Lisa wacking a pan against a cinderblock.

I have one of the octagonal handle Nakiri by Nakiyo. I loved it so much I went for a petty and a paring knife to match. The control and lightness with those octagonal handles is just amazing. I also have an oval handle Santoku by Tojiro and it feels so amazing to cut with and no arm fatigue. Once you use Japanese steel and style, you can't go back to western style.

As a chef and knife sharpener I have to say that a good nakiri is a game changer. First time I used one it was a revelation. Great knife for prep monsters. For chefs, consider getting a good yanagiba as a carving knife, they laugh at traditional European knives. Not just for sashimi, my Japanese chef friend has a box full which he uses on anything that needs to be sliced. Last time I helped out in his restaurant he had me slicing rare sirloin with one, it was wonderful! Their is a caveat with good Japanese knives, they don't take prisoners. If you need to get your mise done really quick make sure your technique is up to it, otherwise you will be losing finger nails. In a blink.

I've switched from a western knife to a Nakiri. I prep and cook for our family nearly every day and I won't switch back. I prefer it over every knife we have for all the normal veggie tasks. I purchased a nicely made Enso Nakiri that I like. I'm sure there are better but this has held up very well for me.

we love the fabulous information that America's test kitchen shares PLUS the host are amazing ! Joe & Christina

Great video! I fell down the Japanese knife rabbit hole during the pandemic, and now have eventually purchased seven Japanese knives. I love them for their lightweight, beautiful iron patterns, and the signature on them. They are all work of art! And I feel like a chef (or a samurai) on the cherry wood cutting board I had to get to make the cut feel right.

I love my Nakiri. One thing that deserves mention is that the curve near the tip of the cutting edge is perfect for stopping just shy of the root end of an onion, keeping the onion together as you do a full dice. I use a Nakiri made in Thailand bought from my local Asian grocery store. It was $8 but arrived as sharp as my $100 Tojiro gyutou. I don't have any anxiety about damaging it either.

As a gadget guy and a cooking enthusiast, I appreciated these videos. After having a multitude of nice knives and sharpening stones, I've finally arrived with the Bob Kramer Carbon by zwilling in 8". It's got heft, extreme sharpness holding, and feels good in a large hand. For the person that has everything..this is the gift.

You have to know the hardness of the blade for a Japanese knife. Rc over of 60+ and you should avoid twisting the blade edge in hard materials (bone cutting boards) or scraping it across hard surfaces like cutting boards. The lateral forces will chip the blade edge instantly and can result in a ruined blade edge after a single use. At an Rc of 60+ don’t use honing steels and be very careful using sharpening rods or disc based sharpeners. At an Rc of 60-, you can start to treat them more like European chefs knives. Hand sharpening asymmetric knives on sharpening stones is actually easier than sharpening symmetric knifes as long as you don’t try to put on a micro bevel. Regarding microbevels, the sharpening researchers in Australia showed there was no benefit to this practice for any type of knife edge. Once you get used to the practice, it takes very little time to maintain the cutting edge of a Japanese knife. Don’t leave you knives in the sink to soak. Oxidation can also accelerate edge wear. If you can’t let go of this practice, get knives made from SG2. It’s extremely resistant to oxidation.

One of the things I really like about my tojiro gyuto is that it's easier to get a 7" knife and the tip is a little more precise than a German style western chef knife. Overall a more nimble and precise tool. I still use a western knife for heavier jobs and smashing garlic. I will also say that for me the Japanese knives with Western handles are the best combination!

was waiting for this one for so long, thank you!

Kate is an excellent presenter. The three of you I am calling "The Three Cooketeers" (apologies to Dumas). I hope she will be a regular Gear Head!

This was a fabulous presentation. Super informative and will help me upgrade my set! Thank you!!!

I've had a Victorinox paring knife that I love for 40 years! Keeps its edge almost indefinitely, and I use it almost daily for more than paring.

I have about 18 Japanese knives of different types and from different brands. I rarely use anything else.

I'm surprised there wasn't more knives made in Seki, Gifu prefecture represented. It's literally the heart and soul of knife and blade making in Japan. Maybe the testers just didn't have access to a lot of different brands. Seki has around 100 knife makers, and their blade making skills go back to like the 1300's. If you are looking to get into Japanese knives, I would highly suggest taking a closer look at knives made in Seki if you have access to them where you live. I live about 35-40 minutes drive from Seki, I've been there, I've seen the knives and blades manufactured and crafted there.

My own favorite for many years has been what I think is a Kiritsuke style, thin bladed, shorter (6-1/2" blade) stainless Japanese knife with a western handle. Similar to the Santoku, but more rocker to the blade, a little wider in girth, and a straight angled vs round angled tip. Lightweight and easy to use for just about everything, except cutting through dense, heavy bone & vegetables, where I use a big Chinese cleaver.

I have a Gyuto that I bought in Japan and a set of Henkel I bought in Germany. It's been 10 years and the Gyuto is still my sharpest and best knife.

I'm Asian but not Japanese and ended up with all 3 types throughout the past 10 years! My mom got me a nakiri for living alone during college Then I bought a santoku because I needed something more versatile Then my cousin just got me a fancy gyuto I think I like santoku shapes the best

Get a Takada and be done with it! Best kitchen knives ever made! The man is a legend.

Used the high quality German chef's knife that I got as a wedding present for 10 years before upgrading to a Gyuto. First upgrade was to the Mac Pro 8" Chef's knife with a Gyuto profile and western handle. Lighter than the Henkels with a much better blade geometry. Next upgrade was an Ikazuchi stainless clad, aogami super blue carbon steel 8" Gyuto with a Japanese handle. Even more of a food laser than the Mac. Quality carbon steel is worth the little bit of extra care required over stainless. Faster to sharpen, holds an edge longer than stainless and holds a finer edge. Love them both. They make prep work fast and enjoyable. Learning to sharpen on a whetstone was worth the small amount of time invested. A dull $200 knife is still a dull knife. Still pull out the Henkels occasionally for heavier work such as squash, pumpkin and hacking at bones.

In my home ... I can do everything I want to do with my 165mm Kohetsu Blue #2 Santoku. The blade is thin and SS claded CS. It's easy to sharpen and keeps a great edge. It has a slight curve to the edge and rocks just fine if ya want it to. It's also less than $125 as of today. I use it every day. It's a nifty little knife and I couldn't be more happy.

My favorite Gyuto is a Kikuichi carbon steel 210 mm. It's fantastically sharp and quite easy to sharpen on a whetstone, but it hold an edge quite well so I don't need to sharpen it too often. I forced a patina on it by coating it in mustard, which left a dark and unique patina on the blade that also helps keep it from rusting (like seasoning a cast iron). I look forward to using it for many years to come.

I have a Shibata Kotetsu R2 240mm gyuto and it is the best knife I have handled. It is super sharp, stays sharp, just glides through food. It has rounded top and choil and it is so comfortable.

I try to keep a very minimalistic kitchen and used a chef's knife for pretty much everything. However, my dad bought me a Nakiri knife because I cook mostly vegetables and I have to say I love that little thing. I use it for pretty much everything unless I'm hacking through a big vegetable like butternut squash.

I have quite a few Enso knives. I love them. The prices are reasonable. They hold an edge a long time, and yet are easy to sharpen with my Chef's Choice sharpener. There's not one I am unhappy with. Nice weight, terrific handles.

Great job, everybody. I love my Shun knives and a beautiful El Cheapo Nakiri I picked up from Amazon for about $35.00. I'm a big Gearheads fan and I look forward to seeing more of Kate on your team.

I'll say that i got a Wusthoff classic santuko probably 25 years ago, and it has really held up well. Tons of commercial use and many years of home use, and a good amount of sharpening. The edge has held really well due to the quality of the steel.

Love my Santoku & Nakiri knives. I use my Nakiri mostly when I'm slicing vegetables for the grill. FYI.....the octagonal handle on Japanese kitchen knives is a WA handle. I'm in the process of making myself and my daughter a set of Japanese style kitchen knives out of gang saw blades & large sawmill band saw blades.

Quite a few years ago I was gifted a set of 3 Global gyoto, utility, and paring knives as my first foray into quality Japanese kitchen knives and they quickly became my favorite workhorses, especially after only using essentially bargain bin kitchen knives. A couple years ago I invested in a Takamura Chromax gyoto and I couldn't be happier, especially for the sub $200 price. I expect my kitchen is going to be full of Japanese style knives I fully intend to pass on as heirlooms.

Another great video from American Test Kitchen. Long time viewer and we'll definitely look for the kitchen gear book. Thanks so very much

Great presentation, as always! Thanks ATK

I own a mix of Japanese and French knives and love them SO MUCH.

Love this video! I need to get one of those Nakiri

There are three Santoku knives in my block. Shun, Tojiro and Mac. They are sharp and hold an edge. Picking a favorite is difficult so I grab the one that is closest at hand. With patience these great knives can be had for less than a 100 bucks.

I have and love my Masamoto VG knives: 240mm Gyuto, 180mm Santoku, 150mm and 120mm Petty, 240mm Sujihiki (slicer) and a MAC Ceramic Honing Rod. I use my Gyoto the most, it is super versatile. If I could redo my choices, I would swap out the larger Petty for a 145mm Honesuki (boning) knife.

I have a traditional profile 8" Western carbon steel chef knife that is unmarked but that i bought used specifically because of the thin spine. It slices like a dream which is helped by the carbon steel being very easy to get scary razor sharp.

I have a Mercer Genesis 8 and love how durable the thing is. I also have a USA made hand forged Nakiri. It’s almost just as sharp. I like the Mercer because of its weight.

I was surprised to see that the Miyabi Black knives were not on your list - they're amazing.

My workhorse knives are a 240 mm Masahiro Virgin Carbon Steel gyuto, 150 mm Masahiro VC Steel petty, and 180 mm version of the 210 mm Kanetsugu best buy in the review. The Masahiros stay sharp and are easy to maintain on whetstones. They develop a nice patina and resist rusting, though I do wipe them down periodically during prep. If you do a lot of whole chicken prep, a honesuki makes quick work of the birds. Since it lacks a bolster, you need to be careful with the heel of the honesuki. My Kanehide was so sharp that I did not notice a cut when the heel touched the back of my hand.

I use my Shiro kamo, Yoshikane, and shun. Fantastic knives!

These videos should come with a rabbit hole / slippery slope warning! I'm actually very supportive of folks diving into cooking adjacent hobbies that might encourage them to cook more. As hobbies go, kitchen knife experimentation/collecting is actually very reasonable: genuinely enjoyable, develops a legitimately useful skill and leads to more home cooking-which is likely to both save money & improve nutrition in the long run. All while costing significantly less than taking up woodworking or hunting or golf. That said, it *_is_* a hobby. Which is to say optional and completely unnecessary. After spending hundreds over the years to try out a wide range of knives & knife types, each tending to be more specialized and pricier than the last; I now do nearly all my cooking with a 8" CCK sangdao that I picked up at the Asian market on a whim for $50. I don't worry about marring its finish while sharpening it in a hurry or damaging its fine edge by using it on a sub-optimal cutting surface. I don't need to fret about wiping it regularly to protect it from acidic foods.* I just grab it and use it like tool and if something should go wrong (though to date nothing ever has) I can just replace it without much pain. Performance wise, I've never felt I was missing much. I *_wanted_* my pricey acquisitions to be obviously superior, but they just aren't. There are real differences, but they're small … on the level of feelings or minor differences in comfort that only come into play with very extended use.† There's absolutely no difference in how fast I can prep a meal or how well that meal turns out! --- * Another nice thing about my cheap knife: I can wrap it in a towel and take it to a friend's house without feeling self-conscious. Nobody looks at my well worn slab of a knife wrapped in an old tea towel and thinks "geez, that guy is putting on airs". Plus it's an unusual type of knife (here anyway), so I don't think anyone gets the impression that I thought their knives would be insufficient. I just brought mine cause I like to use a different kind of knife! And should the worst happen & someone chucks it in the sink or (gasp) into the dishwasher I can genuinely just shrug and say it isn't a big deal! † A notable exception to that actually cuts the other way: the very real pain of actually trying to sharpen some fancy Japanese knives. That harder steel may retain an edge for a bit longer, but it also makes sharpening significantly more time consuming. This can be alleviated somewhat by investing some in sharpening equipment (ie diamond plates), but that's an additional level of hassle/research/expense to be considered.

This is so timely, with Christmas just around the corner. My husband is really getting into cooking now that we are retired. Lisa, great content and presentation as usual. Kate is terrific! So professional, like Lisa.

Have a japanese Gyuto and a Petty at home, with a Bunka on the way. Absolutely love my Japanese knives, they stay incredibly sharp for such a long time and they just look and feel great in hand. Would recommend to step up your knife game! But do your research on the steel the blade is made from and how to take care of it.

I've got a miyabi artisan 8" and I love it. Was a birthday present from a friend.

Thank you for another great video!

I use only two knifes in the kitchen for the last 20 years: A paring knife (Brieto) and my trusty razor sharp Usuba. Never needed anything else.

For professional work I use a 9ish inch Misono swedish carbon and a Tojiro santoku and for home cooking I use a Masamoto 8 inch. The carbon steel is a little bit of a pain to take care of but worth it.

i bought for myself a mid-range kai gyutoh and petty knife for playing with food at home. my mother who has been using chinese cleaver-style knives for as long as i can remember recently got curious of my knives and started using them. she told me she likes that the knives are light and very sharp, and since then she's been using them daily for our home dinner prep. the cleaver now pretty much only sees action when there are bones to be chopped through. basically tells you all you need to know about the merits of japanese knives!

I love my Korin 14cm petty knife and use it almost every day

that mercer gyuto in the beginning is a beast. 10/10

I love my Henckels Santoku. I really want to add a Nakiri to my set.

I have used the same german chef knife since 1995. Over the years, I have purchased quite a few knives with different blade styles and materials, but I find myself reaching for the old standby. The classic western blade shape is stilll, IMHO, the best combination of versatility, performance and durability. Now if you like collecting beatiful knives and have a ton of money or time to keep them sharp. Go for it. They really are cool.

I bought a cheap nikiri on Amazon and liked it so much I bought a bunch of other blade designs. I've been using it for years, my favorite blade in the kitchen for 90% of my cutting.

Got one. Love it !

Oddly I had a Cutco Nakiri twenty years ago and it was my favorite vegetable knife. It was lost during one of our trips so recently I bought a Japanese knife and an Ontario knife of similar proportions. Yeah they're good.

We have Shun's including the 10" premier chef's knife along with a 26 piece Wusthoff Classic Ikon set. But my wife always goes to her Wusthof gourmet santuko for day to day cooking.

Love my Shun gyuto knife.

The most of knife you introduced were a little bit expensive side. Many restaurant use them. In japan most of knife below 100 at home. Also you may explain the reasons of price differency. Depend of what kind of steel or stemless.steel are using. That makes sharpness and rusting condition. Otherwise, excelent video well Expain.

I have many German and Japanese knives. My go to knife for 20 years is the MAC Superior MTH-80 8 1/4" gyuto. Thin, light, super sharp, and easy to sharpen. I have tried nakiri and santoku styles but i find them frustratingly too short. A word of caution about Japanese "stainless steel" knives. There are better called "stain resistant". Many will develop pits if left damp with salty ingredients overnight. Always hand wash and dry any knife when you are finished cooking. German and and Victorinox knives are more resistant to pitting.

In the various kitchen knife sets I've seen here in Europe, they seem to use the Santoku as a small chef's knife to go with a larger chef's knife. Then some sort of paring knife, or utility knife as well. Maybe even a peeling knife to go with the Santoku and chef knife.

Love the info! More KATE Please!! 😍

I have a few gyuto style knives. I've been using one going on over a decade and I have absolutely no plans on going back to a western style chef's knife.

I have a cheap Shun and love it!

Love both my Japanese and my old German knife. They are good for different things. The lighter Japanese knife was a gift a few years ago - I know its Ikeda and is more expensive than the knives you tested - thing is, after 3+ years: the blade is as sharp as day one. I love using both but secretly prefer my Ikeda....I don't chop pumpkins or frozen foods.....with either.....never occurred to me.

Although I do believe the knives they recommend are amazing and great, my biggest tip is not to go and get those just because they recommended them, I suggest (if you have the ability too) go to a knife store and grab and feel and act like your cutting food with as many as you can. When I got my first two knives I went in thinking I knew exactly what I wanted, and it wasn’t till I got to hold the knives when I realized what fit my hand and my body best. So yeah awesome video btw !

210 centimeter Gyuto! That's one helluva knife. I assume you meant 21 centimeters or 210 millimeters :)

I have a fairly large collection of Japanese kitchen knives, both western style and traditional, covering most styles and steels. My only comment was one made during the Gyuto review, under no circumstances should one use a pull thought sharpener on a Japanese knife. The other point is that one can easily spend a lot more than $200 on an individual knife, and half the fun for me in adding to my collection was conversing and buying direct from makers and merchants in Japan. Lastly if well taken care of they will last a lifetime

I really enjoy Japanese knives because of the balancing, weight and grip techniques they favour. I find a knife with one of the octagonalish traditional handles to be much more comfortable and better balanced for a pinch grip which is how I feel I get the best control with my knife. The thinner spines also generally feel nicer to use. Still think there’s a strong place for western knives in the kitchen though, and I think a kitchen should always have a good western chefs knife that’s very low maintenance with a sturdy handle, forgiving material hardnsss (or lack thereof) and modern construction that isn’t affected by water.

You should look at some of the more specailized knives. I like a yanagiba for slicing fish. It is one of the preferred shapes for sashimi. Yanagiba (yanagi is willow and the name comes from the shapes resembelance to a willow leaf). Yanagiba are always single bevel. It's also great for slicing salmon fillets into steaks and they are great for removing the skin from a fillet. Another important single bevel shape is the deba. These are heavy knives used for butchering fish. They come in a wide range of sizes, which is good because fish come in a wide range of sizes too.

Kiwi brand nikiri are all I use. For under 20 bucks

I love the Nakuri style knife for most vegetable prep.

For a $50 knife, you're also taking a big step down with AUS-8 steel. While the Masamoto and Hitohiro are VG10, which is good, I think the Tojiro DP line is just as good for about half the price. I know it's risky to suggest a knife that could potentially rust to an American audience, but Aogami or Shirogami steel knives is where it's at. The incredibly hardness and insane sharpness is breathtaking. There are still some good 8" Gyutos out there for under $200 using those steels.

Interestingly, my go-to over the last few years has been a German-made knife with a Japanese design - I love my Wusthof Santoku

My daily drivers are the 7" Zwilling Pro Chef's knife and the Miyabi Nakiri. I do have a Aritsugu Kyoto gyuto and santoku. Not sure why I don't use them as much as I do.

I don't know if my Global G2 should be called a gyuto or simply a chef's knife, but I found it great to work with, yet I found the G2 has a curve similar to that of a sabatier chef's knife but without a bolster. Besides, my Victorinox santoku is another knife I have in my kitchen. Both these knives are light and fit my relatively small, knife holding hand.

I started out sweating over developing rust or a patina on my Japanese carbon steel knives. I rinsed and dried it after each vegetable. Then I relaxed. Only clean off when finished preparing. If I do develop a little rust, a little Bartender Friend will clean it.

Great to see ATK do a presentation on Japanese knives! I prefer the Kiritsuke, Bunka, and Nakiri knives, then the Santoku and Gyuto. I also use a Deba knife for fish and heavy winder squash, along with Petty and occasionally, Yanagiba, and Honesuki knives as well. My collection is 95% from Japan, mostly hand fordged as I transitioned away from heavy, dull German knives. German makes are dull in comparison to Japanese blades.... I do keep a Victorinox for rock and roll chop since , as you all pointed out, the Japanese knife is a slicer. Of the European knives, Victorinox is the best...I do hand sharpen on whet stones myself, and I love carbon steel - Aogami #2 and Aogami super over Shirogami.... Either is preferred for me over SS, and of the SS from Japan, I love SG2- aka R-2 steel, which is sharper and holds edge way better than VG 10(the most common used Japanese SS on the market)..... Most of my knives are hand made from "Chef Knives to Go". Mark Richmond owns the company and is very helpful...Also, a needed thing to know is - to learn how to use single bevel v.s. double bevel, and some well know knife smiths do very thin blades.... I highly recommend that ATK bring on an expert that knows all the ins and outs of Japanese knives for a deep dive. It is wise to do research into Japanese knives and the different types, including steels and western v.s. traditional handles, before purchase. That avoids a bad purchase since all designs are specific for different food and cuts.

I will never understand their "value alternatives " You have 200+ dollar knives...."but hey, that 50 dollar one works as well" For me "value" means I'm getting the best for the buck, not simply cheap. Imo, the Miyabi evolution line is probably THE BEST value proposition out there. Made from one best blade steels on the market, 61 hrc, beautiful Katana edge finish, European style handle, and an 8 inch chefs knife or Santoku runs about 130. Quality that's on par or better than the 200+ knives...for half the price...that's a real VALUE

To manage a 210 cm blade would have humbled even the most badass knights templar.

About one year ago I changed from a traditional European chefs knife to a 65 layer Damast steel Miyabi Santoku knife. It's really a dream. Light weight and sharp like hell. The only downside I found is that sharpening needs a lot of time with a wet stone and you should try to gain experience with a cheap knife before you try to sharpen the expensive knife.

I have two Japanese Style knives in my kitchen. A 7" inch Bunka, which usually doubles for a lighter and more agile Chef's knife. the other is a 7" Nakiri, which I primarily grab for vegetable prep. It actually replaced my Chinese Vegetable cleaver, since it is so light and easy to handle. Both I got from Table to Forge, maybe a year apart from one another, and I don't think I paid more than $90 for each... I honestly think that these two knives, a good bone knife and a good bread knife should be the only knives I need in the kitchen.

Shout out to Yoshihiro and Global knives. Priced right and they’re beautiful and a joy to use

i have 70 knives - in a mix of German, Japanese, and Chinese patterns. Amongst them, 7 gyuto, all hand hammered, made in blue or white steel, ZDP-189, and HAP-40. ranging from 240 to 330 mm in length. I mostly go for the one made in zdp-189 or the clad blue steel ones. The ZDP-189 knife I have is hardened to 67 RC which keeps a sharp edge for a very long time (over 6 months in a home kitchen). My best is a Masamoto blue steel honyaki at 330mm yanagiba to make sashimi at home.

Masamoto KS - Gyuto, Masamoto KS - Hon Kanumi, Fu-Rin-Ka-Zan - Nakiri. All carbon steel or white steel.

I like the thinness of the Nikiri, mine is like cutting vegetables with a razer, when sharp it almost falls through veggies. But, very fragile.

Although I don't cook often, let's be honest. I really don't cook at all lol but I still want a Japanese knife so bad!! 😂 Those single beveled blades *chef's kiss*

Another advantage is that fruits don't brown so quickly if they are sliced with a very sharp knife. I find even cheap Japanese knives sharpen much easier than German alloys.,,

Beautiful 👌🏽👌🏽👌🏽

I have a 6" and an 8" santoku. I like them a lot. Very versatile. I just need to get a whetstone and train on it as the drag-through sharpeners set it to the wrong angle, I think, and it doesn't hold an edge long.

I have high-quality Japanese knives I acquired 30-40 years ago when they were affordable. I can't imagine paying $200 for a cutting tool! Anyone doing that has a different agenda than preparing family meals at home. For me, 90% of my cutting is done with three knives, each costing less than $30. Two I've had over 10 years and use almost daily. They get the job done!

Something that is often overlooked is sharpening these knives. Yes they are excellent and made with the best culinary steel available. However they will get dull and that will happen faster than you think. Once it’s dull it’s really no better than any other knife. However, due to the quality of the steel and the way the knife is made, these knives are easy to sharpen on Japanese Water Stones. I recommend in the future when discussing knives and possibly influencing folks into purchasing one, talk about and recommend a sharpening plan. With no plan the knives are a waste of money, with a simple plan they will last a lifetime and remain as sharp as new in the very least and in many cases, sharper. The Blacksmith’s responsible for creating these knives expect the owner to either sharpen them themselves or have them sharpened professionally, to follow a plan basically. By sharpen I don’t mean with a rod, a ceramic hone is what is necessary for these beautiful knives but it’s a maintenance tool designed to realign the edge. We hone, hone, hone, sharpen then repeat the cycle. 😊

I have gyuto, nakiri, and santoku knives by MAC. I love them all--however, I rarely use the gyuto. Unlike the santoku and nakiri knives, the gyuto is markedly longer. This is a problem if you have a small kitchen without abundant counter space for prep work.

I have a 240mm Shiro Kamo in Aogami Super and a Tsunehisa AS Sakura Santoku

Mood? Amen. That’s what may determine which Japanese knife I use in the kitchen. The Santoku is my all around favorite. The Petty and the Gyuto may be the one I choose depending on the job at hand. My Nakiri isn’t as versatile as my other Japanese knives. The Bunka? Not so much. Right now I’m thinking about giving my brother a Santuko instead of a bottle of bourbon or Scotch when I next visit him. A bottle lasts for a while but a good knife can be passed down for generations to come. Can I get an amen?

Best buy nakiri for me is from Kiwi especially the little 6.5 ones - 2 for $9.99 :) Seriously!