I have a 5" blade Wusthof Classic Nakiri that I love. I bought it several years ago to give the Nakiri concept a try, and it has become my primary chopping/prep knife.

The thing is, I increasingly find that 5" is a little short. So I'd like to purchase a Nakiri with a longer blade. ~7" seems to be the next larger common size. (While there are a few longer Nakiris/Negikiris out there on the market with 10+ inch blades, I don't think that's necessary.)

I like the forged stainless German knives like Wusthof and Henckels, and nearly all of my kitchen knives are those brands, but with this one I'd like to invest in even the next step/tier up from that. (Yes, I know there are some really sweet customs out there, but I'm not looking to drop $400+ on "just" a kitchen knife...)

What do you recommend for a 7ish inch bladed Nakiri that's a step up from Wusthof Classic?

I'd also consider other very similar styles of straight-bladed push-cut knife, even if it's not officially a "Nakiri".

What is a “step up” to you?

Your Wüstof (I have several, very utilitarian gran prix 1s) and Henkles are made from a very common and decent German stainless steel (X50CrMoMV15).

Would you prefer plain high carbon steel? Requires a tiny bit of extra maintenance… Super easy… My favorite cutting edge.

Or would you prefer stainless clad carbon steel (Shun does this very well) or

Continue on with similar stainless steel variants?

Handle? Dishwasher? Flexibility (blade thickness and temper)

Help us help you find what you’re looking for. Fun stuff if you like details.

"Next step up" in build/steel performance/finish quality/corresponding price (unless I guess there's some brand that's a step up in quality while also being cheaper). I realize that's vague, but I don't want to lock the responses into something specific, but rather see what's offered overall.

I don't have a strong preference on blade metal or handle material. All of my current Wusthof/Henckels knives are forged stainless steel with synthetic handles, but I'm not married to those materials.

I don't believe that I've ever had a plain high carbon kitchen knife before, though I have some high carbon utility knives from places like Morakniv and ESEE/RAT.

My kitchen knives never go into the dishwasher, with the exception of a cheap no-brand stamped stainless knife I use purely for slicing open raw meat wrappers. My "real" kitchen knives are hand washed only.

quote:

Originally posted by Gustofer:
https://sigforum.com/eve/forum...0601935/m/8720055394

That thread just says it's a "6.5 inch Shun nakiri". Shun offers like eight different 6.5" Nakiris in various tiers of quality/price. Could you be more specific?

I have a Henckels (aka Zwilling) Pro and it is my favorite kitchen knife. Has the blade profile of a 10" chef's knife but the handy 6.5" length. This thing makes piles of sliced/chopped veggies quickly.

Back story on purchase: I took a knife skills class sponsored by Henckels and over 1/2 the class bought this knife. Pretty impressive considering we were trying some very expensive Miyabi Damascus knives and had a mountain of vegetables to try knives on.

I would think about what’s important to you in a knife. What do you expect from a more expensive knife?

FWIW my Wüsthof chef knives have been thrown in the dishwasher every other day for well over 25 years. The blades are a little thinner from sharpening, but it’s chromolly stainless steel. With a plastic handle. That’s the reason I own them.

If it was carbon steel, I avoid corrosive exposures incl. dishwasher.

The knife I use the most ( except for paring knife);
https://www.amazon.com/Wusthof...hopper/dp/B00CJYZ8SE

This knife has pretty much replaced my other general purpose kitchen knives, including some from Henckles, Wustoff, et. al. Had it a few years now, cannot recommend it more highly.

As far as knives in the dishwasher goes, if you really have a favorite, you will use it every day, and it makes no sense to let it languish in an appliance. You will need it again before the dishwasher runs.

quote:

Originally posted by Anush:
The knife I use the most ( except for paring knife);
https://www.amazon.com/Wusthof...hopper/dp/B00CJYZ8SE

Thanks, but that's not what I'm looking for, in several different ways.

quote:

Originally posted by architect:
This knife has pretty much replaced my other general purpose kitchen knives, including some from Henckles, Wustoff, et. al. Had it a few years now, cannot recommend it more highly.

Is that a gyoto?

It's hard to tell definitively by the photo, but is the blade straight like a Nakiri or cleaver for push-cut straight chopping, or curved like a chef's knife? It looks like the latter.

quote:

Originally posted by architect:


As far as knives in the dishwasher goes, if you really have a favorite, you will use it every day, and it makes no sense to let it languish in an appliance. You will need it again before the dishwasher runs.

Two is one, and one is none.

This is the one I have and use everyday. It has taken several years, but now my block is filled with only Shun.

https://cutleryshoppe.com/shun...iri-knife-6-5-blade/

^^^^ That's the one.

quote:

Originally posted by Tuckerrnr1:
This is the one I have and use everyday. It has taken several years, but now my block is filled with only Shun.

https://cutleryshoppe.com/shun...iri-knife-6-5-blade/

It’s interesting… Many of the expensive Japanese knives have three metal layers – a very hard inner layer sandwiched between layers that have better toughness and corrosion resistance.

And many of them have the “Damascus” treatment. But only on the outer layers where it serves no significant purpose, other than cosmetic, IMO. That’s seen in Tuckerrnr1’s image.

And that’s the reason I bought this particular 3-layer Nakiri which has no “Damascus” treatment:



Likely I’ll get flamed for this.

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:
And that’s the reason I bought this particular 3-layer Nakiri which has no “Damascus” treatment:

Could you elaborate on that particular Nakiri?

https://syosaku-japan.com/

VG10 steel

Thanks. I'm not especially impressed by the cosmetic damascus or the hammered finish on many Nakiris, neither of which are present on the Wusthof ones. So it's good to see that there are other "plain" options out there too.

I mean, looks don't mean much when it comes to a knife's usability, but everything else being equal, I'd prefer the plainer one.

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:

quote:

Originally posted by Pipe Smoker:
And that’s the reason I bought this particular 3-layer Nakiri which has no “Damascus” treatment:

Could you elaborate on that particular Nakiri?

The Syosaku Nakiri in this style doesn’t seem to be offered any longer. Syosaku offers other Nakiris (with Damascus finish), but not the plain one. Apparently Americans demand the Damascus finish. It’s the Williams Sonoma effect.

I also bought the optional “saya” for mine (a nice wood sheath):

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Pipe Smoker,

I'm a fan of the Mercer brand. While not as popular as the German brands, I find great value and great performance from their products. $ for $, a great buy.

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
Thanks. I'm not especially impressed by the cosmetic damascus or the hammered finish on many Nakiris, neither of which are present on the Wusthof ones. So it's good to see that there are other "plain" options out there too.

I mean, looks don't mean much when it comes to a knife's usability, but everything else being equal, I'd prefer the plainer one.

That is the very brand that you requested a link to. You can see the brand on the knife clearly I looked it up for you.

Easy, Signified... You misread my reply. It wasn't a complaint about your link. It was a commentary on my preference for plain nakiris, and how it was good to see more examples of plain ones, including the one shown as well as some of the other plain ones available from that same company in the link which you provided.

You might consider laying off the caffeine after 7 pm. It's making you jumpy.