Wusthof Classic Chef’s Knife
Wusthof Classic Chef’s Knife
Burt Wolf, award-winning and highly-respected journalist, has tested and approves this product. Following are his comments. This is an exceptional knife one that many professionals are pleased to own. It’s 10??? gently-bowed cutting edge supplies enough razor-sharp surface to make short work of mincing herbs or julienning carrots while its heft provides ample power for quartering chickens or halving lobsters. Each piece is hand-forged in 38 manufacturing steps by skilled craftsmen. The high-carbon stainless steel blades are hardened to maintain a sharp edge. It’s visible tang, like a Formula One’s spoiler, ensures a beautiful balance.
Wusthof Classic Chef’s Knife Reviews
(1) I’ve been reading these reviews as foreplay in anticipation of buying an 8″ Wustof Classic Chef’s Knife. For more than 30 years my old Chicago Cutlery set has worked, but it’s time to step up to the real thing.
There is much good information in these user reviews, but I (no expert) detect some confusion in discussion of the need for a “sharpening steel.” If you are serious enough to own these knives, read up on knife care. A steel does not sharpen a knife, even if the product name is “sharpening steel”, e.g., Wusthof Classic Ikon Honing Steel, Black; the job of the steel is to realign the microscopic wavy edge that cuts. As a knife is used the waves flatten out (“roll”) and the knife becomes “dull”. Using the steel is not really sharpening as it is not actually giving a new edge. Steels are more effective on softer blade materials; mine seems to work with Chicago Special Steel. Other tools such as a ceramic or diamond hone remove metal to provide a fresh edge. You should use the steel frequently — possibly every time you pick up a knife — and the hone only when the steel no longer does the job.
Yes, you need one more implement to maximize the performance of your knives: a ceramic or diamond hone.
ADDED May 23, 2009
I recently purchased the 8″ cook’s knife and wish I had done so years ago. It is an excellent instrument, with more heft than I expected. I’ve order the Emeril utility knife so I can compare that variation.
(2) I’ve been a fan of Wüsthof knives since I worked my way up to sous chef while paying my way through school. All the cooks had different knife sets (one of my favorites was a LamsonSharp set, forged locally in Massachusetts) and I got to try many styles of the French and German blade shapes. I couldn’t afford good knives at the time, but after lots of testing, I found the German shape (strong curve towards the tip) the most pleasant to use; I prefer rocking slices to pulled slices (i.e., French style). Wüsthof epitomizes the German shape.
This little knife is the perfection of the traditional German shape. Incidentally, I’ve found that I use this size of knife more on a daily basis than I use my 10″ chef’s knife or my paring knife combined. It is the perfect size for the many small cutting and slicing tasks I perform on a regular basis. It is extremely well-balanced, well-forged, and aesthetically pleasing both tactilely and visually.
As a most unexpected and delightful addition to my knife set, filling a need I didn’t realize I had, this knife is highly recommended.