When the kitchen is equipped modern technology, which helps save time, and is equipped with convenient and useful kitchen utensils, then routine cooking turns into an exciting and enjoyable process. One indispensable kitchen “gadget” in our kitchen is the Santoku knife.
A little history
Santoku is a Japanese type of knife, although in the Land of the Rising Sun it was formed from a French carving knife. He has interesting story appearance. Among the products of Japanese cuisine, greens and grains predominate, so a vegetable knife, which is convenient for chopping and chopping, was popular. A chef's knife is also indispensable in the kitchen for cutting meat and fish fillets. Japanese dishes combine both meat and vegetables, which is why it became necessary to use a utility knife in the kitchen. Such a universal cutting tool to this day is the santoku. Top chefs call him the king of Japanese cuisine.
The name of this knife literally means “three uses” or in other words “three good things”. Indeed, this knife is good for cutting, chopping and crumbling. Moreover, you don’t need to learn how to use a santoku; as soon as this knife is in your hands, it becomes intuitively clear how to use it, and your first attempts at slicing will certainly be crowned with success.
What is a Santoku knife?
What is santoku used for? This question is easier to answer after studying the characteristics and distinctive features of this tool. The difference between this knife is its wide, thick blade, combined with a relatively thin handle. It is this thin handle that allows the cook to perform various manipulations with the knife. At long work with a knife, due to the shift of the center of gravity of the blade forward, it takes the cook much more less strength and the hand practically never gets tired. Initially, only one-sided sharpening of the knife was used, but now knives with double-sided sharpening are becoming increasingly popular.
The standard knife length is 188 mm. But in Lately Manufacturers can deviate from the proposed standards while maintaining its features and advantages. An excellent example is Mora knives.
Differences between Santoku and Chef's Knife
Some inexperienced housewives believe that a chef's knife and a santoku are one and the same. In fact, these tools have many differences that affect their applicability and ease of use.
As mentioned, the original Santoku knife is 188mm long, while the standard chef knife length is 330mm. In terms of blade width, the chef's knife is inferior to the santok. The rise of the cutting edge of a santoku is steep, while that of a chef's knife is smoother. Distinctive feature Santoku is the tip of the blade reduced to the bottom. The chef's knife has a sharpened blade. The Santoku is heavier in weight than a chef's knife; this characteristic can be considered both an advantage and a disadvantage of this cutting tool. If the knife is very heavy, fatigue may occur when working with it for a long time, but some chefs believe that for convenience you need to feel the knife in your hand.
Why do you need a santoku knife in the kitchen?
If you are interested in cooking or are simply involved in everyday cooking, you will be pleased with such a purchase as a Santoku knife. It will become an indispensable find for any housewife. Hard potatoes and soft trout fillets are equally easy to cut with this knife. You can use this tool if you need to cut vegetables into even thin slices, cubes or chop greens for salad; it will also help you when cutting fish or chopping meat fillet into minced meat.
An important factor is also the compactness of this knife. Small size allows you to conveniently store it in a regular nightstand for kitchen utensils without using additional containers.
Video test of Santoku knives
It is one of the most versatile Japanese knives. When compared with Western knives, is most similar to a chef's knife, although it is lighter and smaller. translated as “three virtues”, the Japanese mean its universality. good for cutting vegetables and meat.
The main difference between and a chef's knife is that the blade is curved differently than a Western chef's knife, resulting in a different cutting technique.
It has a relatively straight blade, lowered at the tip. The tip itself has an angle of 60 degrees. Some knives, especially those made outside of Japan, have indentations along the cutting edge. They are designed to make food stick less to the knife.
The notches serve air cushions" Cut slices do not stick to this knifehas a thin, lightweight blade in Japan with traditional single-sided sharpening, and in the West with double-sided sharpening. The shape of the blade (“sheep’s hoof”) allows 100% use of the cutting edge. The length of the blade ranges from 12 cm to 20 cm, depending on the purpose and habits of the owner. These knives usually have ideal balancing (the ratio of the weight of the handle and the blade).
Often executed deliberately roughly, as if emphasizing handmade masters In these knives, the steel of the blade is especially valued, and not the beauty of the handle or other elements. The blade, as a rule, is simply driven into the handle and does not have a connecting bolster. When it comes to blade material, there are many variations of steel used for this type of knife. Can be used as single layer steel various brands, and san mai (three-layer steel), as well as a combination of hard of stainless steel based on a package made of multilayer mild steel (Damascus).
How to use
The cutting edge does not bend, so cutting movements must be vertical. This can lead to some confusion for the cook, who is accustomed to lowering the heel of the chef’s knife first, and then smoothly moving towards the tip with a “swing” motion. It may seem tedious to lift the blade up/down for each cut, but the blade is very sharp and much lighter than a traditional chef's knife. This gives quick and effective result. When working with Santoku, up and down movements are used.
Types of work with a Santoku knife
Designed for all types of chopping and slicing vegetables and meat. The short blade gives the cook greater precision in his work. Straight cutting edge is good for cleaning cutting board.
Santoku care
Like other knives, they should be washed by hand, preferably immediately after finishing work. It is especially important to observe this condition for knives made of high-carbon steel, since under the influence detergents and water, the carbon in knives is destroyed, and the knife becomes brittle. Due to the thin blade, should not be used on hard surfaces such as glass or marble. Ideal boards for working with a knife are wood or plastic. Sharpening such a knife should be done on a stone (in the case of one-sided classic sharpening) or with a standard sharpener, taking into account the sharpening angle (15 degrees). Perfect sharpening
Not long ago, the market for cooking equipment has changed dramatically. If earlier professional equipment, special devices and the equipment was only available to chefs and restaurant owners, today you can easily purchase anything. But there is also some absurdity in this: buying something is not a problem, but using it correctly is a completely different question. For example, you are ours and purchased a recently fashionable Santoku knife, but do you know for sure what it is for?
Japanese santoku knife
We all know that it is the eastern inhabitants who often fall into the category of long-livers. It has been said more than once that much is hidden in the lifestyle and nutrition itself, or rather the diet. So here we go kitchen tools has also passed its way to the present day, undergoing changes precisely in terms of products.
Since the basis of the Japanese diet is vegetables and rice, and the Japanese santoku knife itself is related to the French carving knife, the result was excellent. The knife easily copes with slicing, crumbling and chopping food. Even the name itself means “three good things.” That's exactly what you get: the ability to chop food in three ways.
The knife can handle vegetables, meat and fish quite well. Moreover, many note an unusual feeling in their hands: for all its weight and bulkiness, the knife turns out to be very comfortable, as if the hand itself understands exactly how to use it.
Santoku or chef's knife?
To answer this question, you first need to understand what a santoku knife is used for. His distinctive feature is unusual combination a fairly wide blade and a very small handle. It should also be noted that the knife is thought out in terms of weight: the center of gravity is shifted to the end of the tip, which allows you to wield the knife much faster. The cook needs to use much less effort to cut or mince the ingredients. The second highlight is the one-sided sharpening. Although, recently models with traditional double-sided sharpening have appeared.
As a result, we get that the main thing a santoku knife is used for is slicing or chopping food into large quantities and quite quickly. For obvious reasons, the question naturally arises: wouldn’t it be easier to take a regular one? chef's knife.
The main thing in using a Santoku knife is its versatility, because not every knife can cope with three types of products at once. As for the differences between this knife and a chef’s knife, there are several of them. Firstly, it is much shorter (the chef’s length is as much as 330 mm) and its blade is only 188 mm. Santoku is also much wider and has a characteristic steep rise of the cutting edge. As a result we have more weight, which can be considered both an advantage and a disadvantage.
Purpose of a santoku knife
We figured out what a santoku knife is for, but does an ordinary housewife need it? After all, this is precisely the paradox modern market: we can purchase any kitchen novelty, but as a result it just decorates our closet.
Here we have opposing opinions. It all depends on your attitude towards such new products in principle. On the one hand, the knife can handle both cutting boiled meat into thin slices and chopping potatoes. Quite rarely, a knife helps to chop greens really finely, and even more so to turn fish fillets into minced meat. Santoku is a master in this matter.
This is the main advantage of your purchase: the knife is truly universal, but even an ordinary housewife can handle it without any culinary courses. And the dimensions are quite compact, which allows you to store the knife along with the others in a kitchen drawer.
Any housewife should have knives in the kitchen for all occasions. What is santoku needed for? And how to use it?
What kind of knife is this?
Santoku is a Japanese universal kitchen knife. During its development, a French cutting knife was taken as a basis, but later this unique modification was adapted to all the needs of traditional Japanese cuisine, and the santoku became a universal and almost irreplaceable product.
Distinctive features of the product
Santoku is similar to a traditional chef's knife, but still has some features:
- Small and light handle. This not only provides a more reliable and comfortable grip on the knife, but also makes cutting as comfortable and fast as possible. The fact is that the design is perfectly balanced, and the center of gravity shifts precisely to the wide and heavier blade, which allows it to move quickly, without the cook making any effort. special effort and does not put pressure on the knife.
- The blade has an asymmetrical sharpening, and the sharpest part is its tip. The butt is quite wide (about two millimeters), it has a rounding at the end, which makes it, firstly, more convenient, and secondly, safer. In addition, this configuration reduces the gap between the blade and the surface of the table or board when lowering the knife from the heel (base) to the cutting part, and this also provides comfort.
- The length of the blade can vary from 12 to 20 centimeters, the average value is 18 (and the standard is 18.8 cm), and this is slightly less than the parameters of a traditional chef's knife. The profile angle is about 16-18 degrees (for most other products it is 20-25 degrees).
How to use Santoku?
What is a santoku knife used for? Its name from Japanese language literally translates as “three good things,” and this means that the product is designed to perform three main tasks in the kitchen, namely to help crumble, cut and chop. With the help of Santoku, you can cut both vegetables and meat or fish, as well as chop herbs, grains and other products, if necessary. But bones and other hard food components cannot be cut with such a knife; this can lead to damage and grinding of the blade.
The cutting technique is quite simple; any novice cook can master it. The Santoku is designed for either single, downward movements when chopping vegetables or fruits, or transitions when pressing on the board from the base of the blade to the tip, which allows you to chop foods with a loose or soft texture, such as meat or fish. But cutting by swinging is limited, which is due to the sharp sharpening. But in any case, you can chop food either into cubes or into thin slices.
Advantages
Pros of a Santoku knife:
- It is not the longest, so even inexperienced housewives and novice cooks can use it.
- Minimum effort for efficient cutting. The product is balanced in such a way that the cook does not have to press on it to chop even hard foods.
- A very comfortable relatively small handle that even a person with a small palm can hold.
- This product can be considered universal, because with its help you can grind any food, including meat, vegetables, fish, fruits, herbs, cereals, and so on. Moreover, all food is cut equally quickly and easily.
- This knife has a blade no more than 20 centimeters long, making it safe, especially compared to a traditional chef's knife, which is about 30 centimeters long.
- Compact sizes. Such a product can be stored not only in a special stand, but also in a regular kitchen cabinet, because the knife will definitely fit in the drawer.
As for the disadvantages, these include, firstly, the rounded butt. And therefore, for example, using santoku to remove the cores of fruits or to carry out curly complex cutting it won't work. Secondly, such a knife is relatively heavy, but it is the increased weight of the blade that is designed to provide more comfortable cutting and even pieces at the output.
How to make a choice?
When choosing a Santoku knife, be guided by the following criteria:
- The material from which the blade is made. As a rule, knives are made of durable, high-quality stainless steel, and Santoku is no exception. The more reliable such material is, the longer the product will last and the more comfortable cutting it will provide.
- Be sure to check out the handle. It should be such that holding the knife in your hands is as comfortable as possible. Perfect option– this is a wooden handle: it does not slip in your hands, is light in weight, pleasant to the touch, quite durable and environmentally friendly. In addition, your palms will certainly not sweat. And if the wood is treated with special impregnations, it will be resistant to moisture and fungi. Most cheap material– plastic. But it is fragile, short-lived and causes increased sweating during prolonged cutting. Metal is more durable, but not very pleasant to the touch and increases the weight of the product, which can cause some discomfort. It is also worth considering the attachment of the handle to the blade. It is best to choose models in which the handle is attached to a steel rod, which is an extension of the blade.
- Pay attention to the blade. It must meet all the requirements for Santoku knives and have all standard parameters. But some modifications are possible. Thus, there are models on sale that have recesses in the blade. On the one hand, they prevent products from sticking during the cutting process and make the process more comfortable. But, on the other hand, softer steel is used to make such products, so the knife will be less durable and reliable.
- It is better to purchase such a product in a specialized store, and before purchasing, ask the seller for documents and certificates accompanying the product, which will confirm the authenticity and quality.
- It is better to trust trusted manufacturers, although products from popular and well-established brands are not cheap, but they serve faithfully for a long time.
If you don’t already have a beginner or an experienced chef in your arsenal Japanese knife santoku, then be sure to buy it, it will come in handy in any case!
The second type of universal kitchen knives- these are chef's knives and santoku. These are large knives, mainly shredding ones. Based on the principle of “shredding”, these include Chinese knives “tsai-dao” (“hatchets” in our understanding). These knives can only be operated while standing and using standard height kitchen surface.
Both Tsai Dao, European chef's knives and Santoku have only one grip. When the thumb and index finger wrap around the blade. Like this:
These knives have no other grips.
If you hold such a knife, for example, only by the handle, you will not be able to control the cut, the blade will move to the side. Therefore, housewives who practice a root knife do not switch to a chef. 
The advantages of chef's knives are obvious.
First. The chef's knife allows you to chop at incredible speed. To do this you need to use certain technologies. The side of the knife slides against the stop - the knuckles of the left hand. At the same time, the most important thing is to protect thumb from a cut. In Europe they explain it this way: “take what you’re cutting, as if you were putting your hand on an orange, chop it.” In America they teach a safer technology - they teach you to move your thumb to the farthest position. Of course, the division into American and European school- conditionally. But, nevertheless, the threat to the left thumb is the main one during fast shredding.
European school, the product is pressed as far as possible with the palm and fingers. The thumb is in a natural position. There is always a temptation to touch up the product with your thumb - this is where injuries begin. 
American school, the product is held with the fingertips, the thumb is removed. It's not always convenient, but it's safe. 
Second: a chef’s knife can serve as a spatula when you need to transfer the chopped food from the cutting board to a bowl.
Third. A chef's knife can work with any product: potatoes, onions, garlic, meat, fish, herbs and much more.
A chef's knife can not only chop, but also cut like a slicer (a gastronomic knife - in the Russian tradition).
Using one grip, you can use a chef's knife to different ways shredders - both chop and cut away from you, and towards you, and work with wave-like movements - this depends on the geometry of the blade. There are blades that allow you to chop - when in one blow everything that is under the knife is cut. Such a blade must have at least small area smooth, straight shape. There are knives whose blade shape suggests only wave-like movements (for example, the strange chef from Opinel). Although, 99 percent of chefs assume, of course, that you will use pulling or pressing towards the handle during the cutting or shredding process. On the knife that I revived for Elena Fedorova, I specially made a straight, even part - from the handle to the middle of the knife - this was logical when restoring the blade. I think Lena is happy.
When working with a chef, you can use different parts of the blade - closer to the handle - for hard products (for example, chop a bunch of mint with sprigs, for lemonade), closer to the tip of the blade - for example, chop garlic, or, as everyone does, with the middle of the cutting part .
Depending on what operations are most important in the kitchen, you need to choose knife balancing. For a chef, balancing is important. If you place your index finger between the handle and the blade, you may find that your knife: (1) balances at that point;
(2) falls towards the blade; 
(3) falls towards the handle. 
These are the features of balancing. A smooth, balanced knife gives a feeling of absolute, one hundred percent controllability. You have only just thought, but the hand with the knife has already done it. This balancing is liked by people who keep the chef as their “favorite knife” and do most of the operations in the kitchen with it. If the knife falls down onto the product, this increases the accuracy of the work - the knife, along with you, seems to be looking for Right place application - this is important not so much when shredding, but when slicing products. With such a knife they usually work “on their own” - they find a point and cut. For fast shredding, it is more convenient (in my opinion from European knives) a knife whose balance is shifted to the handle. When the handle is heavier, when shredding, it helps to remove the knife from the product; after pressing, the blade itself tends upward, as if rebounding. All you have to do is work from above, pressing.
An important characteristic of a chef's knife is the width of the butt. Many housewives love knives with a wide spine - such knives are heavy, solid, inertial (if you keep in mind fast movements). In addition, on wide butts there is less chance of damaging the bend of your index finger (it’s unnoticeable while you’re cooking dinner, but when you’re shredding 50 kg of cabbage for pickling, this is very important). The wider the butt, the heavier the knife (you can beat meat), the more obtuse the angle included in its design, respectively, more resistance material. If you are cutting herring for mincemeat, this does not matter. If you chop a hard product, such as radish or carrots, you will feel resistance. I love chefs with a thin spine, which is not comme il faut, especially when you communicate with lovers of Japanese forged knives (they, as a rule, do not consider me a person). But I like the ease of cutting that the thin blades provide. And if you need to chop a lot, I glue a patch on the crook of my index finger in advance). 
I will not analyze here the peculiarities of the geometry of German and French chefs, I will only say that German blades are more understandable to me than French ones, primarily in terms of steels and sharpenings. The French ones are also good, there are no words. They are more attractive, more pleasant, and easier to use. However, I can’t help but feel that any Sabatier was made in a Chinese village unknown to me.
I'll say a few more words about santoku. Many believe that this is the national Japanese analogue of the European chef's knife. This is only partially true. Santoku is not the national knife of Japan. This is a knife that the Japanese specially invented for Europeans and Americans when they were planning expansion into these markets. Despite the unconventionality of this knife, it turned out to be extremely successful. The Japanese removed the sharp tip from the European chef (why is it needed, tell me?), due to this they made the geometry of the blade not a triangle, but such a uniform stripe and added a not very elegant hook-nosed bend at the tip of the blade. The grip of this knife is no different from the usual grip of a chef. It seems like everything is as always. Yes, Japanese steels are harder, meaner, retain their edge longer, are sharpened and straightened a little differently (we’ll talk about this later). Yes, the “shovel” turns out to be more responsive. Yes, with a traditional grip we are not annoyed by the Japanese handle and frankly crappy bolsters. What's the trick? The trick is steel, of course. This was marketing not of form, but of steel. Compare Japanese santoku and santoku made, say, in France or Germany. 
There is one more feature that few people know about, but I really like it. I'm talking about this most unaesthetic hook-nosed blade tip. I use it often at work. Look: you baked the peppers. Peeled. Now you need to remove the seeds. We cut it into two parts, turn the knife over and remove them with one movement of the hooked part. Or: you need to remove the seeds from the pumpkin slices. The same. And so on) 
One more note. The Japanese, as a rule, make the handles of their knives either from magnolia (light, white, sometimes yellowish, soft wood) or from ebony (black, gray-black, dense wood). Neither can be washed in the dishwasher. Bullshit. Ebony wood from the dishwasher becomes rough and prickly. This is the first year. Then it settles down and becomes quite pleasant. Does not crack, does not change shape. Magnolia is just a song. Soapy water makes it velvety to the touch, sometimes, like wool, it becomes covered with “pellets” (you can’t see them, you feel them on your skin), but this also goes away quickly. 
So. Now - about Tsai Dao chopping hatchet knives. Tsai Dao is a delight if you know how to chop professionally. The height of the blade of these devices is two to two and a half times greater than the height of the blades of European chefs. What does this give? This gives range of motion. If you are chopping a bunch of dill, then the European chef or santoku is the way to go. If you need to chop a large product, for example half a head of cabbage, then with traditional chefs this becomes traumatic. And not for the thumbs, but for the supporting knuckles. Of course, the head of cabbage can be cut into several convenient pieces. This is a way out, but in many cases it is palliative. If for a santoku or European chef the knife stroke is about 3 cm, then for a tsai-dao it is eight centimeters. Do you feel the difference? 
Summary. Standing only. Shredder. Long, neat cuts. Spatula. Speed. At the same time, the knife is heavy, requiring strength and control, not flexible, and the edge is not used in any way. I love it, I love it. 
In America there is not only a saying, but a saying: “There is nothing in the kitchen that I cannot make my santoku.” Of course, I won’t say anything about the fact that santoku or chef, and even more so tsai-dao, you can’t peel potatoes. Root knives and varieties of large chopping knives: more in modern kitchen There are no universal knives. The rest are specialized. We'll talk about them later)