Blade Shapes of Kitchen Knives

At first glance, the wide variety of lengths, widths and shapes of kitchen knife blades might seem a little confusing.  Since all knives are ultimately made for cutting, they are distinguished by their specific intended purpose.  The advantages of the different shapes for different applications are fairly clear and easy to understand, so that the overwhelming number of choices can be narrowed down.  The following list of knife descriptions will help you find the right tools for your kitchen and the meaning of the blade shapes of kitchen knives.

The Peeling Knife – Short and narrow

The paring knife is a small solid foundation for any kitchen knife set.  The blade is narrow so that it can follow the outer circumference of a small potato as well as the inner circumference of an apple core.  Paring knives are most often used without a board, they are simply held above a pot or bowl.  But you can also use them with your cutting board to quickly cut a single onion used in a meal for one or two people or the ingredients of a quick lunch salad.

The Vegetable Knife – The straight peeling knife

The length of a peeling knife blade is comparable to that of the paring knife, though the edge is straight with a sheepfoot tip.  This makes for better utilization of the full cutting length, because the blade is pulling itself into the cut.  The straight edge is also better suited for cleaning and scraping root vegetables, because the blade has more contact with the surface and is easier to control.

The Larding Knife / Office Knife (Medium Pointed)

The strengths of this slim, versatile knife lie in the spiking of meat with garlic or bacon. It is also frequently used for general peeling and cutting work on onions, herbs, fruit or vegetables and for preparing cold plates.

The Tomato Knife

The tomato knife is the specialist for tough skin or firm skin. In addition to tomatoes, it is also ideal for aubergines, pods or fruits such as plums, peaches or nectarines. The fine serrated edge effortlessly cuts through the tough skin of the tomato and cuts the flesh into fine slices or bite-sized portions.

The Carving Knife – Long and narrow

The carving knife has a long narrow blade capable of cutting paper-thin slices of roast beef, pot roast or ham.  The blade is narrow to provide a smaller surface for the meat to stick to.  The first choice for foods with a juicy and dense texture..

The Steak Knife

Steak knives are set on the table.  Unlike regular tableware knives, a steak knife is sharp enough to cut meat into clean bites without ripping or tearing it.  Depending on your personal preference, we offer steak knives with a smooth cutting edge for the purists, or with a serrated edge.

The Utility Knives – The golden mean

The utility knife combines the best of all worlds.  It can be used in hand and on the cutting board.  The medium-size blade offers a reasonable compromise for easy straight and curved cuts.  An aesthetically pleasing all-purpose knife can also serve as a very nice table or steak knife.

The Fillet Knife – Extremely Flexible

The fillet knife is an extreme form of the carving knife.  Its main purpose is the preparation of fish.  The fine tip can be used for opening fresh fish.  The slender blade offers raw or smoked salmon practically no surface for adhesion.  The flexible blade can be flattened onto the cutting board in order to separate the fish skin from the fillet just above the board.  A light knife for light cooking.

The Bread Knife – The Saw

Professional chefs refer to the bread knife as “the saw.”  However, they are not just cutting bread with this knife, but all foods that are not strongly textured, e.g., cabbage.  Pastry chefs use their bread knives to separate cake layers.  The wide blade makes it easy to control in soft materials.  Another advantage is the knife’s excellent edge retention.  When used correctly, a knife is not dulled in contact with the material but with the cutting board.  With a serrated edge, only the tips touch the cutting board, protecting the real edge behind them.

The Cheese Knife

Special blade shapes are suitable for the perfect cutting of cheese. Especially soft cheeses (for example Camembert or Gorgonzola) like to stick to the blades and make a straight cut difficult. Large recesses prevent sticking and make cutting the cheese child’s play.

The Chef’s Knife

The Chef’s Knife is the knife you buy when you can only have one knife.  It is a workhorse, built for fast-paced kitchen battles.  You use it to cook for your extended family, whole circle of friends or for an entire banquet.  It is also the perfect knife for all passionate home chefs who like convenient cooking tools.  The wide blade can be passed along the knuckles of your retracted fingers, which enables you to make swift cuts without risking injury.  The food is pushed forward with the thumb.  The classic long and pointy European chef’s knives cut with pressure.  With this technique, you really just use the back half of the blade. The front half is used to guide the knife on the board.  You develop a fluid, even and easy motion and cutting rhythm.  You can also use the spine to push the cut food off the board into the pot.

The Santoku

The Santoku knife, or just Santoku for short, serves the same purpose as the European Chef’s Knife.  The literal translation emphasizes this: San = three and Toku = virtues.  The three virtues are fish, meat and vegetables.  The Santoku became popular after World War II, when the Japanese economic boom meant that meat began to appear on menus next to fish.  A Japanese blade shape was combined with a symmetrical European blade grind.  One striking feature is the shorter length with the sheepfoot tip.  It is proper to use the Santoku for pulling cuts, following Japanese tradition.  The front part of European kitchen knives used to guide the knife on the cutting board is not necessary for a Santoku.

The Small Chef’s Knife

Like the Santoku, the small chef’s knife is popular because of its shorter, easily controlled blade and universal applications. Thanks to the sturdy, wide blade, you can use the small kitchen knife for many tricky cutting tasks..

The Boning Knife

The boning knife is the specialist for removing bones, tendons and fat and for skinning meat or poultry. The narrow, relatively short and sharp blade allows precise piercing and a very precise cut along the bone.