Home Kitchen Knives

There are many kinds of knives used in home cooking in Japan. Good home cooking knives are important, as unless you're a chef you'll likely use one of them the most! Here we'll introduce you to some of the ones we make and sell at Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide: Santoku, Gyuto, Nakiri, Petty, and Funayuki knives.

Santoku Knife: Japanese All-Purpose Knife

While most professional chefs have a collection of kitchen knives for each purpose, home cooks look to maximize use, practicality, and space. This is when the Japanese-style all-purpose knife comes into its own. The Santoku is the most popular kitchen knife in homes across Japan. It is perfectly designed to cut meat, vegetables, and fish and is the most gifted knife type. Across Japan, you will find Santoku being passed down through the generations.

GO TO SANTOKU PAGE

Gyuto Chef Knife: A narrow blade that can cut into food smoothly

A Japanese take on the classic chef's knife with a thinner and narrower blade profile, the Gyuto is a powerful kitchen tool, able to cut meat and vegetables with ease. The most popular blade length is 210mm and unlike European chef's knives, it features a more subtle and flat curve to the blade edge, encouraging smoother cuts.

GO TO GYUTO CHEF KNIFE PAGE

Nakiri Knife: The Vegetable Chopper

Nakiri means "cutting vegetables" in Japanese. It is a traditional-style Japanese knife with a straight edge, eliminating the gap between the cutting board and the knife. This promotes straighter and cleaner cutting of vegetables compared to the curved blades of Santoku and Gyuto knives. Typically, Nakiri knives are between 160-180mm.

GO TO NAKIRI PAGE

Nakiri vs Santoku vs Gyuto Chef Knife

Petty Knife: Easy to handle small knife

It is a small knife that is mainly used for cutting fruits and vegetables. 

GO TO PETTY PAGE

Funayuki Knife: Good for filleting small fish

Funayuki means "boating" in Japanese. This kind of knife has a shape that looks like a Deba knife but is much thinner. Fishermen use it as an all-purpose knife to cook simple dishes on their boats. It is a single-bevel knife with a little curve at the back, which creates space between the food and the blade to prevent the food from sticking.

Suitable for cutting fish and meat, it has a length of 150-180mm.

GO TO FUNAYUKI PAGE