Kitchen Knives For Daughter

[jyl]

Daughter is moving out of the dorms and into her first college apartment this fall. We need to equip her kitchen. Unlike most college kids, she is very into cooking. She's worked summers in a family camp kitchen for four years. This summer she is head of kitchen, works 10-12 hours a day, she and her crew make three meals a day for 140 campers and staff. She sharpens her knives on a stone, is starting a cookbook collection, and likes to cook and experiment. So I need to send her with equipment to do more than boil ramen.

Right now I am trying to figure out the knife situation. I figure she should start with three knives: a large, wide chef knife (10", she likes big knives); a mid-size, wide knife like a Santoku (6-8", for general purposes); a slicer or yanagiba (14", she likes to make sushi).

Quality, level, budget? Well, there is a bunch of other things to buy, so there is a budget. So I'm not inclined to pay for fancy or flash, celebrity signatures, elaborate decoration. And she will very possibly use these knives at her job in future summers, so they need to stand up to heavy work. I think good kitchen knives last a lifetime. I'm still using the same knives I bought 25 years ago, and my father-in-law's knives from when he was a butcher 50 years ago. So I'll get her good knives that she can use all her life. Budget, say, max $150 per knife, but I'd be very pleased to save some money.

What would you get, given those requirements and constraints?

[VincentVega]

America's Test Kitchen put together a set thats hard to beat. Not fancy but good quality and a great price for performance. You can spend a ton more and not get much better functionality. I would save the top shelf japanese carbon for down the road if she's into it. Otherwise this is hard to beat

Test Kitchen à la carte Knife Set (7 pieces)
Set contains:
• Wüsthof Classic 3 1/2-inch Paring Knife: $39.95
• Victorinox Fibrox 8-inch Chef's Knife: $29.95
• Wüsthof Classic 10-inch Bread Knife: $109.95
• Victorinox Fibrox Granton Edge 12-inch Slicing/Carving Knife: $49.95
• Victorinox Fibrox 6-inch Straight Boning Knife: Flexible: $19.95
• Kershaw 1120M TaskMaster Kitchen Shears: $49.95
• Bodum Bistro Universal Knife Block: $44.95

[HardDrive]

Your daughter is a capable adult. Let her buy her own knives.

[jyl]

I really like the Victorinox Fibrox knives, but for a chef knife she prefers a heavier, thicker blade like a Wusthof. She doesn't like Global knives. At camp she uses the basic institutional Dexter knives.

[Hydrocket]

My wife likes Mac knives.

[wdfifteen]

Give her a budget and let her pick what suits here. Kitchen tools are too personal for someone else to pick them for you. With her experience I'm sure she knows what she likes by now.

[jyl]

Talked to her. No on Fibrox. Yes on traditional full tang, square handle, heavy blade Western chefs knives. Also wants a santoku. And a long slicer.

I guess she needs a bread knife and a boning knife too, and she wants a cleaver, but those types of knives are fairly cheap.

She likes vintage. I directed her to this seller
Electronics, Cars, Fashion, Collectibles, Coupons and More | eBay

[aigel]

I am a Wusthoff fan. Their santoku is nice too. I'd have her look at those in the "classic" edition. I have a pretty extensive set. I think the santoku is the knife I use most. For butchering I liket he mid size chef knife that came in the set.

G

[1990C4S]

Ikea has some decent knives.

[javadog]

I have a lot of knives and use them daily. For her, consider going with Cutco. A lot of bang for the buck, free sharpening for life, dishwasher safe. Sizes and types:

8-10" chef's knife
6" serrated knife
paring knife
serrated paring knife
bread knife

That's all she really needs. A boning knife, filet knife, cleaver just don't get used much and there's nothing much I can't do with the 5 knives listed.

Skip the Japanese style stuff and the weird, modern crap.

JR

[VincentVega]

Wustof classic stuff is nice but the steel isnt the best and will require sharpening frequently. I use one of thier 10" chefs knives 90% of the time. I dont like the weight of the fibrox either but its a battle ax that just works. Sharpen it all the time but it works and I dont have to worry about what it cuts or cuts on. Move to a nice carbon blade and ~$200 is the starting point and then you have to get the correct cutting board then several stones to sharpen. Nothing like working with a razor shape carbon blade but it's a time and $$ investment that goes way beyond the knife.

[berettafan]

we have a set of henckels from years ago and while the weight and balance feel good I have to say my $20 dexter sanisafe filet knife cuts better than any of them.

not that a filet is the only knife you need but it's caused me to question the value of the high dollar sets.

[LWJ]

I have used that eBay seller. I like old carbon steel and he has a bunch. Sounds like a very cool kid. Paint the handles orange so that the knives don't walk away?

[Cajundaddy]

Yes, give her a budget and let her pick out what she wants. It may be very different than what you and I want. I like to cook and need 4 knives, my wife likes 6 knives. Different strokes. Good that she has chosen to prepare her own food and is off the fast food wagon.

[vash]

first kitchen!!

i say give her some cash and let her shop for herself. i could do it all with a chef's knife, a paring knife and a bread knife.

[craigster59]

If she's that into cooking I'm sure she has a good idea of what she wants for knives. That said, if you want to buy them for her I've found good deals on knives at Home Goods. lots of Henckles and Wusthof (look for the German made) and other brands.

Follow it up with a Kapoosh knife block and you're done.
http://www.amazon.com/Kapoosh-Knife-Block-Light-Woodgrain/dp/B000Q4I9LM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1439480273&sr=8-2&keywords=kapoosh+universal+knife+block

[jyl]

Originally Posted by vash

first kitchen!!

i say give her some cash and let her shop for herself. i could do it all with a chef's knife, a paring knife and a bread knife.

Moving into apartment. A "student apartment". These things are popping up all over Eugene OR. Pretty luxurious, nothing like the crapulous student apartments I remember. Not cheap either, but lots cheaper than the dorms. Plus she really want to be able to cook.

Sounds like I should give her a budget and let her have at it - that seems to be the majority opinion?

[jyl]

Originally Posted by LWJ

I have used that eBay seller. I like old carbon steel and he has a bunch. Sounds like a very cool kid. Paint the handles orange so that the knives don't walk away?

She told me she won't be bringing her personal knives to work. So I was mistaken on that.

[javadog]

Originally Posted by jyl

Sounds like I should give her a budget and let her have at it - that seems to be the majority opinion?

That depends on your daughter. Is she the type that will obsess over a choice between two knives? Does she have enough experience with using knives that she understands the fine points and has a clear preference? Does she enjoy unwrapping gifts of substance, as opposed to counting the cash that falls out of a card?

You know her better than we do.

JR

[Rich76_911s]

Is she living by herself?

She may be responsible and treat good knives as they are supposed to be treated, but her roomates likely would not fall into that category.

A friend of mine who was a chef in NYC gave me one of these and it is the best thing I've ever used:
Togiharu Inox | KORIN