Potentially Fake Reviews

Chef's Knives

chefs knife

Steel. I'm pretty sure the metallurgy, forging, and shape of blades makes most of the difference in how well knives cut. Now that we both know everything there is to know about knives lets talk about chefs. I know a few chefs, they are better at cooking than most people due to their talent and training. Now that we know everything about knives and chefs: What makes a good chef's knife?

I'm guessing you want a versatile blade with a length somewhere between one of those tiny swiss army knives you get when you're 10 years old and a samurai sword. Based on TV cooking shows lets say an 8 inch blade. Slicing and chopping require a blade that comes to some kind of point. Serrated blades can't be sharpenned easily so we have arrived at the following:

Reviews

These reviews are conducted by searching the web, making arbitrary judgement calls, and then explaining why I rank them the way I do. No science was used in the comparison process.

  1. XYj KnifeXYj Christmas 8 Inch Chef Kitchen Knife New Year 7Cr17 Stainless Steel Flowing Sand Veins Sharp Blade Cooking Tools Gift Sale [$12.46, AliExpress]

    If the name is any indication, this knife is versitile.

  2. Victorinox Fibrox Pro Chef's Knife by VictorinoxVictorinox Fibrox Pro Chef's Knife by Victorinox [$44.36, Amazon]

    This company makes Swiss Army knives, and while it's no Wenger 16999, but people on Amazon seem to like it.

  3. Mac Knife Professional Hollow Edge Chef's Knife, 8-InchMac Knife Professional Hollow Edge Chef's Knife, 8-Inch [$144.95, Amazon]

    One of the most important ways that crappy internet review sites find out about products is to read other reviews from more reputable sites and pretend to arrive at the same conclusion. That's exactly how I found this knife. The blade artwork on the "Mac" side of the blade is lame but the Japanese characters on the other side look cool so it's a draw.

Conclusion

I wouldn't take my advice, but if you must, get the Victorinox Fibrox Pro Chef's Knife. Here's my thinking: Professionals and connoisseurs can always justify purchasing "the best." Personally I wonder whether their biases would be confirmed in a a blind test. The Judgment of Paris is a historical example with respect to wine.

AliExpress will sometimes surprise you with the quality of items you purchase. It's kind of fun since you might receive something completely different from what you ordered in the first place.

I'm sure the Mac knife is really nice. Probably better than any knife I've ever used. A prep chef once argued to me that if you only had one nice thing in your kitchen it should be a good chef's knife. I'm not so sure I could justify the additional $100 but whatever makes you happy.