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Still searching for the perfect Japanese blade? You can cut it out now. Digital Hardness Testing Machine
Food and Wine / Brian Kopinski
When it comes to kitchen knives, Japan is world-renowned. The country's knives are considered some of the best in the world, and that's all about the blade. Japanese knives typically use carbon steel, which is harder than stainless and can be made extra-sharp but is also more brittle. The blade can chip if you use the wrong one to cut the wrong thing, so there are a wide range of highly specific Japanese knives crafted for individual tasks. (There's even a Japanese butter knife that solves the problem of unspreadable cold butter.)
Knife expert Michael Behn of Moshi Moshi Knife Sharpening (who also lent his expertise when we tested the best paring knives) could wax poetic about Japanese knives for hours, and he’s a treasure trove of information. After considering the results of dozens of our own tests and considering Behn's favorites, we cut down our list of recommendations to just eight of the most commonly used styles. Read on for our best picks for razor-sharp Japanese knives any chef would be proud to own.
The super-popular Mac Knife Series Hollow Edge Chef's Knife was the overall favorite in our chef's knife test, which is no small feat. “The Mac has a very nice evenly balanced feel to it between the weight of the blade and the handle,” says Hunter Lewis, Editor-in-Chief of Food & Wine. “It feels solid and good in my hand, and it has a good weight and balance that makes it an all-purpose chef's knife for people with medium to large hands.” The Mac is designed for a multitude of purposes and makes easy work of most ingredients, thanks to the hollowed notches of the blade, which helps release stickier items. The Pakkawood handle doesn’t slip in hand, which makes all cutting with the alloy steel blade feel more secure.
Blade Length: 8 inches | Blade Material: Stainless steel | Total Length: 12.63 inches | Handle Material: Pakkawood
Food & Wine / Russell Kilgore
A gyuto is one of the most versatile knives because it can be used with vegetables, fish, and meat. It resembles a Western-style knife since it has a rounded blade that lets you rock the knife while chopping. Tojiro is an excellent and reliable brand, and the DP Gyuto Knife performed so well in our tests that it ranked well among all types of Japanese knives. “Pretty much every line cook who has bought their first Japanese knife bought a Tojiro DP Gyuto, and they're all super stoked to have it,” says Behn. “I’ve gifted many to chefs over the years.” When testing the DP, we found it cut through tomatoes like butter with no snagging of the skin or mushing the juice out. However, this thin blade isn't the best for large-scale butchery or hacking through bones. For that, you want a cleaver — or a deba like the Yoshihiro below.
Blade Length: 8.2 inches | Blade Material: Cobalt alloy steel core, stainless steel exterior | Total Length: 14 inches | Handle Material: Plastic
Food & Wine / Dera Burreson
The santoku is a great multipurpose knife for everyday use. It's a bit more hefty than a gyuto, with a pointed tip for detail work and a straight, mostly flat edge for bigger items. You can use one for chopping or slicing meat, fish, or vegetables, and Masamoto's gorgeous version ranked high in testing. The rust-resistant blade gets a beautiful whirling pattern from repeatedly folding together layers of steel, which also increases its hardness. You can trust the craftsmanship, and the knife will last you a long time.
Blade Length: 8 inches | Blade Material: Damascus steel | Handle Material: Mahogany Pakkawood
A nakiri is made just for vegetables. The rectangular knife typically has a narrow blade profile, which makes it easy to get precise, paper-thin slices. It's built for up-and-down chopping rather than a rocking motion and is less useful on fish and meat than something like a santoku. Tojiro topped the charts when we tested nakiris, and its blades come in a range of prices. They are incredibly nimble and sharp, making cutting through things without force easier — especially good characteristics when cutting hard vegetables like carrots. This mid-range model has a durable composite Micarta handle, and the Damascus blade is made using 37 layers of low-carbon and high-carbon stainless steel folded over the thick core of cobalt alloy steel.
Blade Length: 7 inches | Blade Material: Cobalt alloy steel core, stainless steel exterior | Total Length: 11.75 inches | Handle Material: Micarta
The deba has a strong, weighty blade intended for butchering fish and shellfish. It's powerful enough to cut through small bones and cartilage to remove tails and heads, but the short length and pointed tip give you precision control to cut fillets or remove skin. The same characteristics make this knife good for most other types of meat, too: It can break down a chicken, separate pork chops from a whole loin, or even debone a leg of lamb. Yoshihiro's is pretty pricey, especially for such a short knife, but we recommend you splurge on a deba — sturdiness is crucial for safety.
Blade Length: 6.5 inches | Blade Material: Carbon steel | Handle Material: Rosewood
There are numerous Japanese knives made for slicing sushi and sashimi, although most home cooks won't need more than one. We like the sujihiki for home use because it can precisely slice fish but is also long enough to make an excellent general carving knife. “If we don't mention Kikuichi, we're definitely doing something wrong here,” says Behn. “They started making knives 700 years ago. I love them so much because of that storied history. They made samurai swords until the Meiji Restoration, when samurai swords were illegal. So they just switched and started making kitchen knives. The fit and finish are always immaculate, and they are easily one of my favorite brands with so many options from $85 all the way up to $600.” (If you don’t want to spend that much, this Kai yanagiba, also good for fish work, is quite a bit less expensive.)
Blade Length: 9.5 inches | Blade Material: Alloy steel | Handle Material: Eco-wood
There are other Japanese knives made for meat, but the gokujo is very specifically for separating meat and bone — and this Shun model was our pick for best splurge in our test of boning knives. The pointed tip, strong curve, and narrow profile all make this knife highly maneuverable and great for butchery. Shun's a favorite Japanese brand thanks not only to its blades' sharpness but also their handles' comfort and the overall beauty of the handmade tools. They're not cheap, but that's for good reason.
Blade Length: 6 inches | Blade Material: Alloy steel | Handle Material: Pakkawood
The best bread knives use serrated blades to make easy work of slicing even the softest bread without squashing the crumb, and this Japanese one cuts wonderfully while looking lovely. It's up to the task of delicate milk bread and even tomatoes for summer sandwiches. After our testing, we awarded the Miyabi best in the design category because it’s just that gorgeous. Miyabi’s knives are exceptional in many ways, which is why Behn calls the brand his favorite. We like this knife for more than its looks, though. It is incredibly sharp, thanks to how it’s honed using the historic honbazuke method. Just make sure you keep it very dry before storing it so the blade doesn’t rust.
Blade Length: 9.5 inches | Blade Material: Damascus steel | Total Length: 14.41 inches | Handle Material: Micarta
The hardness of steel matters when it comes to blades, especially those made in Japan. Most knives are graded using the industry standard for hardness, known as the Rockwell Hardness Scale. The lower a blade’s Rockwell rating, the more easily it will blunt due to its soft makeup. Japanese knives generally have a rating between 55 and 62, making them harder and stronger than most Western-style knives. “I'm looking for nice hard Japanese steel and good steel, too. It’s metallurgically sound on the inside and tempered harder,” says Behn. Since Japanese steel is harder, it will break before it bends, which is why some brands are prone to chipping. The hardness does help with edge retention, another area Japanese exceed in relation to Western knives.
Most Japanese blades have a finished or unfinished wooden handle. They are traditionally octagonal, d-shaped, or oval-shaped for optimal grip. Some brands, like Global, have metal handles that are easier to maintain — unfinished wood needs to be oiled occasionally to avoid drying out. If you are butchering fatty meat, though, metal handles can become more slippery than their wooden counterparts. Another popular handle material is a composite of wood or other natural materials with resin to create a smooth, durable surface with a distinctive look. Pakkawood and Micarta are two brands of composite material you might see often.
“It's almost a disservice to say any Japanese brand is low maintenance. You can't just put them gently in the sink and leave them with the water,” says Behn. Higher-carbon steel rusts more easily than stainless. Behn recommends using hot water when you clean your knives because the residual heat helps dry any residual water on the blade. He also recommends oiling your handles every six months or so. You also need to handle your Japanese knives with care: “You can't drop this knife. You can't leave it in the water; you can't twist your way through a butternut squash with this knife because it's gonna get chipped. You have to baby them a bit.” Such extra TLC is not an uncommon requirement across Japanese kitchen brands.
Japanese knives come in a different price levels but are generally on the expensive side overall. And Behn says spending more on an heirloom blade is always a good idea if you can. “If you're trying to buy a knife, you're gonna pass it down to the kids. And 350 bucks doesn't seem like a big deal for something you're going to own and use every day for 50 years. That's typically how I break it down. You're gonna use this thing every day.“
Testing Japanese knives was an expansive group effort. We employed editors and in-house culinary experts to test more 70 knives in a mix of shapes and styles. After consulting with experts and examining all of our extensive testing data, we cut the list down to a good mix of price levels and brands we consider trustworthy. With the right care, a Japanese knife should last a lifetime, and we want to ensure your money isn’t wasted on low-quality steel.
Sometimes. Japanese knives are often single-bevel, meaning they're only sharpened on one side and are specific to right- or left-handed users. This is different from most Western-style knives, which usually have a double bevel and are sharpened on both sides equally. Western-style knives (such as those made by Wüsthof) are typically made from softer metal and need to be sharpened more often.
Behn assesses when to sharpen his knives by cutting an onion. “Six months is what I personally recommend based on my onion experience,” says Behn. “I'm cutting an onion, and it slips on the paper, or there's just like juice all over the place; that's when I know something needs to change. It should not slide on the skin.”
For a nice refresh, there's nothing like having your knife professionally sharpened, but you can also do so at home. With a high-quality Japanese blade, you're probably best off using a whetstone for higher precision and control. There are also more simple and automatic knife sharpeners to try, but these generally can't handle single-bevel blades.
It depends on who you ask. Some will say the santoku, but we find the rounded tip limiting when we need a point. The gyuto is probably the most versatile as it will allow you to cut vegetables and proteins easily. Since Japanese knives are specific, even multi-purpose knives — such as the gyuto and santoku — are multi-purpose for specific categories. Still, even the most multi-purpose knives have their limitations. “You wouldn’t use a gyuto to butcher a pig,” according to Behn. “It would end up all chipped.” Still, if we had to pick, we would choose a Japanese-style chef’s knife such as the Mac Knife Series Hollow Edge Chef's Knife.
Aside from proper care and maintenance to the blade itself, Behn says cutting board material matter. “As long as you don’t have bamboo, granite, or glass. Bamboo is the tricky one. It tears up the knife due to the compounds such as silicone used to stabilize the wood." Behn recommends plastic or solid wood, like our top-tested cutting boards.
Behn narrows his choices for best Japanese knife brands to Miyabi, Shun, and Tojiro. Miyabi is the most expensive, Shun moderate, and Tojiro a great value brand low on bells and whistles. He says Tojiro is the most durable and is less about the design, although they do have high-end options. That said, minimalists may like its simplicity. “Every cook is gifted Shuns by their parents and uncles because they look fancy.” Beyond looks, they are great knives that come in a range of styles and functions. Finally, although the most expensive of the three, Miyabi, his favorite and one of ours as well, gets you a top-end knife. It constantly performs well in our tests, and we recommend the brand often.
There's no one best knife (or one best knife-making country), but many cooks believe Japanese knives are superior because they are sharper, more beautiful, and more precise. On the other hand, good ones tend to be quite expensive, and a small difference in performance may not be worth the difference in price.
Leeb Hardness Tester Jennifer Zyman is a Senior Commerce Writer for Food & Wine and a recovering restaurant critic with a culinary school degree and over 15 years of food writing experience. Her work has appeared in Atlanta Magazine, Bon Appetit, Eater Atlanta, The Kitchn, Local Palate, National Geographic, Southern Living, and Thrillist.