Recommendations for Sushi Knives?
I have most of the apparatus to make sushi at home, but I am lacking the proper knives. Since I am still a novice, I’m not willing to spend a lot on the necessary knives (I am not a professional chef either), but I do believe in getting a quality product the first time.
1) Which knives are (most) essential for preparing sushi (maki & sashimi) and what are the purposes of each?
2) My regular kitchen knives are Wusthofs – can I use any of these? (maybe the cleaver or parer?)
3) Which Japanese line/manufacturer of knives are recommended?
Thank you!
Obviously you would need Japanese knives, not because they’re Japanese, but because they’re made differently from western knives, thinner, and harder steel, single bevel knives, super sharp.
There are several groups of knives used in fish prep and each category has several knives in it.
The knife or knives used specifically to slice sushi itself are Yanagiba, Takohiki (Takobiki), Fuguhiki(Fugubiki) and a few more exotic variations. More complete list of designated sushi cutters with explanations and photos here – http://www.zknives.com/knives/kitchen/misc/jpnktknvtypes.shtml?ut,2
Yanagiba is more general purpose sushi knife, Takohiki is optimized for Octopus(Tako in Japanese) and has a square tip, Fugubuki is specifically for blowfish(Fugu in Japanese), thinner than Yanagiba.
If you include fish decapitation, cleaning and filleting in the process then you will need at least one deba knife. There are over a dozen different debas. For different sizes of fish and different fish.
Salmon knife mentioned in other post is called Sakekiri (Sake is Salmon in Japanese) and used specifically for Salmon filleting, except it comes in different sizes too 
Here’s a list of the knives – http://www.zknives.com/knives/kitchen/misc/jpnktknvtypes.shtml?ut,9
And Sakekiri review – http://www.zknives.com/knives/kitchen/ktknv/watanabe/watanabeskkr150.shtml
Then there is Deba, Ryodeba, Hon Deba, Miroshi deba. All of those are explained in more detail in the Japanese Knives Styles database I provided above.
With the Japanese kitchen terminology this might help – http://www.zknives.com/knives/kitchen/misc/jpnktknvterms.shtml
As for the price and budget… Up to 200-300 you can see increased performance and edge durability in general, compared to cheaper models, Above that… It’s mainly quality, fit and finish. Although that’s also where more exotic steels start to appear and all the pampering options…
Cleaver or parer can be used for fish cleaning and filleting, but those are far less effective compard to Deba, especially for skinning.
As for the sushi itself, fish is a delicate matter, and dull knife affects the texture and changes the taste too. So, that’s why very sharp knife is extremely important. Andthat is the reason suchi knives are always single grind bevels. More on bevel grinds here – http://www.zknives.com/knives/articles/knifeedgetypes.shtml#CHISEL
Using serrated knife for sushi will definitely destroy it as a sushi…
If you already have fish cleaning knives then I’d just buy Yanagiba. The rest of the Sushi Knives are more specialized and make sense for commercial kitchens or knife collectors, or if you make a lot of that type of sushi, e.g. blowfish or octopus.
Brands – There’s several more or less budget feirnely brands, Tojiro DP line, Togiharu, Mizono, Blazen.
Custom makers like Watanabe, Takeda, Moritaka offer very good price/performance point knives too, as well as higher grade steel and knives.
Nenohi Nenox series are good knives, but they’re way overpriced for what they are. Mainly because Hattori related brand and all the exposure they got from iron chef. if Morimoto has nenohis then everyone must have them The truth is Morimoto uses those nenohis only on Iron Chef battles, in his restaurant he’s got entirely different set of the knives, at least that’s what he says in his book.
There’s a list of the dealers selling Japanese cutlery at the bottom of this page – http://www.zknives.com/knives/links/buy.shtml check them out go get the feel for the prices…
One thing to keep in mind, a lot of those knives are not stainless steel and will rust if you don’t wipe them clean before putting them down. It’s no biggie actually and the most expensive knives are those, non stainless, a.k.a. carbon steel knives.
To be technical, there is no “stainless” steel for the knives. All of them rust if proper care isn’t taken. Modern manufacturers use the term “stain resistant’ more and more often. I guess after they got too many complaints about rusting stainless knives.
Qualityhypnosis.com Unsui Japanese Sashimi Knife Yanagi bocho
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Sekiryu Yanagiba Sashimi Knife 300mm $14.24 Japanese Yanagiba sashimi knife for prepare Sashimi, Slice Raw Fish and Seafood * Molybdenum Rust-Resistant Steel Blade How to Sharpen: >Sharpening on a whetstone |
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King 1000 Grit Whetstone with Plastic Base $14.00 King whetstone 1000 grit, made in Japan. Measures 176 mmx52 mmx15mm(7″x2″x5/8″). Base measures 8 1/4″ x 2 1/4″ x 3/4″…. |
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Shun Pro Yanagiba Knife The perfect knife for the at-home sushi and sashimi chef, the Shun Pro Yanagiba Knife creates paper-thin slices perfect for these traditional Japanese creations. Yanagiba blades are perfect for slicing the most delicate cuts of fish and other meats, without creating friction damage to the food. The long, narrow blade is exceptional at slicing soft foods, while maintaining the food’s texture and i… |
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250/1000 Combination Grit Waterstone $26.99 Keep your valuable tools in peak condition! For preliminary sharpening where chips exist or bevel angle needs to be changed, use the 250/1000 waterstone…. |
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Japanese Culture, Vol. 2: Cuisine Including Tempura, Miso, Yakisoba, Sushi, Sashimi, California Roll, Wasabi, Sake, Green Tea, Chopsticks, Santoku Knives and More $16.16 Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. This is the second book in a series on Japanese culture. It includes a variety of common dishes and their ingredients with an extensive section on sushi, sashimi, and their ingredients. It also discusses foods for special occasions, beverages including sake and green t… |
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Knives and Swords (Hardcover) $31.19 Showcases more than 300 swords, knives and daggers from more than 3,000 years of history–from the finely crafted swords of the Japanese samurai to the brutal but functional bayonet of World War I infantrymen–in a book with full-color photos. |
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