Types of Japanese Kitchen Knives

There are many varieties of Japanese knives . Most of them are designed through the Japanese traditional techniques of blacksmithing. A wide range of them are made from Hagan or stainless steel, the material used to make Japanese swords.

Due to their similarities in features and functions, it is difficult to tell differences that exist between Japanese knives. Their names and special designs make it difficult for most of us to tell them apart. In the guide below, we have provided you with some of the common types of Japanese knives to help you understand them better

The Deba Knife

The Deba kitchen knife is made with a thick and heavy material. This ensures that the knife is extremely long lasting. The thick design also ensures that the knife can withstand tough kitchen recipes such as filleting and cutting fish.

The knife is ideal for butchering poultry, cutting meat and other simple kitchen jobs such as cutting vegetables. Though its blade is tough and hard, it is not recommendable to use it to cut strong bones. This might decrease the durability of your knife.

The Deba knife features a long blade, usually 165 to 200mm in size. Though it is made with a single grid, there are some versions such as Ryodeba that features double grinds.

Most of Deba designers use the Japanese style of handle making. However, due to advancement in technology, some have tuned into making Yo-deba, a Deba knife made with western types of handles.

The Nakiri Kitchen Knife

The Nakiri traditional kitchen knife enhances full and rhythmic vegetable chopping. It is made from VG-Max stainless steel material that enhances its durability. The material also makes it resistant to rust.

The knife features a blade with a length of 5 to 7 inches. The blade size makes the knife ideal for dicing, slicing and chopping vegetables. The blade has a double bevel edge. This ensures fast falling of food as you glide the blade through your vegetables. Furthermore, the blade features a square tip. This makes the knife safe for kitchen use.

The Nakiri kitchen knife enhances straight up and down cutting motions. You don’t have problems struggling with horizontal pulling or pushing.  It up and down cutting enables you to cut thin slices since its edges cut through your food with even and clean cuts.

Due to its straight design, the Nakiri is ideal brunoise, julienne and allumette knife cuts on your vegetables. Moreover, the knife is perfect for cutting fruits and foods such as squash and pumpkins that have hard skins.

Gyoto Knife

The Gyuto Japanese knife is made with similar standards as those of a western European French Knife. It is a Japanese version of French knife.

The knife is designed with a standard length of 5 to 15 inches. This makes it ideal for multi-purpose kitchen jobs such as chopping meat, vegetables and hard fruits. However, it is not recommendable to use the knife to cut hard bones.

The Gyuto features a very hard blade me from steel. Thee steel material makes the knife long lasting and resistant to rusting. However, the blade is a bit thinner than western European blades.

Usuba Kitchen knife

The Usuba is a legendary Japanese knife ideal for cutting vegetables. It is ma with a single edge that helps keep it exceptionally sharp.  The single edge also enables the knife to maintain its sharpness for a long time.

The knife has a wide and sturdy blade that enhances its cutting properties. The wide blade enables you to use the knife to butcher poultry and slice vegetables

The blade of the Usuba knife is made from carbon steel that makes it resistant to stains and rust. The material also enhances its durability.

It features a tightly riveted handle into which the blade is fixed. The handle is attached to a collar that resembles a buffalo horn. Most designers of this knife carve the handle from Magnolia wood.

The Santoku Knife

The Santoku is a multi- purpose kitchen knife that resembles cooking knife. However, they slightly differ in length, thickness and agility. Thee knife combines the properties of both thee Gyuto and Nakiri kitchen knives.

The kitchen knife features a blade that is 5 to 7 inches long. The blade has a flat edge and a tip that looks like a sheep foot. The tip features an angled point that goes up to about 60 degrees. The slight angle enables slide cutting. It also enhances push cutting, enabling you to cut in a straight up and down style. Some versions of this knife such as the Kamagata have curved tip. Other versions such as the Osaka have rounded tips.

The Santoku is made with the western style of double edging. It is also designed with a uniform thickness from all through its blade length. For perfect food release, the blade is either flat or mad with granton divots.

The knife is perfect for various cutting jobs. It is lightweight and easy to use. However, it is not ideal for slicing meat due to its short blade.

The Bunka Kitchen Knife

THE Bunka is a multi- purpose kitchen knife that is capable of handling a wide variety of kitchen jobs. It is the perfect choice for making thin and fine slices of recipes such as celery, carrots, shallots, garlic and herbs.

The knife features a medium sized blade that has a length of 5 to 8 inches.  The size of its blades enables the knife to enhance perfect knuckle clearance when you are push cutting or chopping. The blade has a tall profile from its heel to the spine. This makes the knife ideal for scooping jobs.

The Bunka ids made with a flat cutting edge that has a doubled bevel. The edge is perfect for push chopping and cutting. The edge extends into a curved tip that enhances rock chopping. The tip resembles a sheep foot. It enhances perfect control when you are cutting fish or meat. The tip also enables you to use your knife for tough jobs such as paring and trimming.