JAPANESE KNIVES 101

Want to know more before you buy? Here's a primer.

Steel: The steel alloys used in Japanese knives range from VG10 (a high carbon "super steel" that's less brittle than many); powder steel or high speed steel (extremely hard, used for dentist drills, needs to be "babied"); carbon steel (easy to sharpen but turns black over time and will rust); blue steel or Ao-ko (carbon steel combined with chromium and tungsten), rust resistant and #2 blue steel is most durable.

Rockwell Hardness Scale: This is the scale used to determine the hardness of steel. A good European knife blade has a hardness of about 56-57, while Japanese blades range from 62-65. Blades at the high end hold an edge longer but are harder to sharpen and more fragile.

Japanese knife styles: The Santoku is the all-purpose Japanese chef's knife. The Guyoto ("cow sword") is a longer, slicing knife. Small knives are called petty/utility or paring knives. The Nakiri is a large, square-bladed knife for chopping vegetables/onions. The traditional Japanese blades (bevelled on one side only) include Usuba (flat like Nakiri for vegetables); Yanagiba (long, narrow slicer for sashimi); Kaisaiki (a shorter Yanagiba); and Deba ("short, fat tooth" shape for fish filleting and cutting meat).

Japanese Knive Makers: Kevin Kent imports knives from 25 Japanese knife makers. He recommends the surgically-sharp Artisan to chefs, but he's also keen on the hand-forged and hammered super hard (63:65) knives from Takeda Shosui-san and the Moritaka knives, made by the same family for 31 generations, since 1293. A collectible knife in his shop is a numbered edition from master Keijiro Doi, a 300 mm Yanagiba Suisin Hayate with ebony and water buffalo horn handle ($912).