Recommendation? Best "Budget" Kitchen Knives / Set Suggestions Please.

W

Witterings

Joined
Mar 13, 2012
Messages
73
We cook to eat rather than being keen cooks / amateur chefs and all the knives we've bought apart from bread knife and carving knife have but supermarket specials as opposed to anything with a well known brand name.
When I use the term "Budget" ... buying cheap is a false economy and not something I believe in but as these are functional I don't need the best of the best, just something good that will hopefully keep an edge for a reasonable period of time ... if comparing it to cars I'm looking for the Seat as opposed to the Audi / Mercedes-Benz if that makes sense.

Open to either buying individual knives and a block as most sets seem to have a bread knife and carving knife included which we don't need but if it's a set without those would consider as well.

Any suggestions of good makes and ranges that may be suitable much appreciated.
 
Buy a used set or build your own of Cutco off eBay . Made in the USA and you can immediately send them into factory for sharpening for the cost of shipping. I send mine in once a year and they at times will replace at no cost. Pic is of my “galley + 6” set I piecemealed. High quality and great ergonomic handles.
 

Attachments

  • IMG_0679.jpeg
    IMG_0679.jpeg
    441.8 KB · Views: 14
I've never needed more then two knives in a block set.

One being the chef and the other a bread knife. Using the bread knife to cut the sausage that comes in a plastic wrap log.

F. Dick, Victorinox, or Mora. The lower cost knives are stamped. With higher end being forged. Which I doubt you'll notice the difference.

And on the block itself. I personally have never seen a well used knife block that wasn't filthy and greasy. There's no way to clean inside the slots. And I'm guessing that's why some folks prefer a magnetic knife rack.
 
Last edited:
Cheers guys .... certainly as I've been googling best budget knives Victorinox keep coming up sp will definitely take a look at them, is there any particular range I should be considering?

Any ideas what I'd need as well, I'm thinking paring knife and a chefs knife, if I was going to get another 2/3 (bearing in mind I have carving and bread knives), what else would you get.

Took note of the comment about knife blocks as well, will take look at magnetic instead :thumbsup:
 
Besides your main knife, you formally use to prepare food, and a bread knife.

The third knife is where you can go wild. Known as the, "Utility knife". Cutting meat up to store it in freezer bags. Quick and thick slicing. Onion, fruits, potatoes. Cutting the food up after it's cooked to portion out. Like ribs or roast. Big cuts of meat.

I use a Mora 2000. (Morakniv). It's on permanent kitchen duty.


 
Last edited:
Witterings said:
Cheers guys .... certainly as I've been googling best budget knives Victorinox keep coming up sp will definitely take a look at them, is there any particular range I should be considering?

Any ideas what I'd need as well, I'm thinking paring knife and a chefs knife, if I was going to get another 2/3 (bearing in mind I have carving and bread knives), what else would you get.

Took note of the comment about knife blocks as well, will take look at magnetic instead :thumbsup:
Click to expand...

The paring knife is the one I end up using the most.
 
There are many different "flavors" of knives available that depend on your prepping needs, cutting habits, and personal preferences. Choosing a knife is a very personal thing.

Suggest you visit restaurant supply for Mercer, Dexter Russell, and Victorinox, Williams Sonoma, Sur La Table for Wusthof, Zwilling, Shun, and Global, and a special knife place for Japanese enthusiast knives. It will help you get a clearer idea of what works for you. Then, you can try Amazon, EBAY, and AliExpress for online possibilities and special deals if the local prices seem too high.

A one stop low cost alternative you may not have tried yet is a Chinese vegetable cleaver--found at your local Chinese grocery store. Models will also be available at restaurant supply.

You might not need anything else.
 
Witterings said:
We cook to eat rather than being keen cooks / amateur chefs and all the knives we've bought apart from bread knife and carving knife have but supermarket specials as opposed to anything with a well known brand name.
When I use the term "Budget" ... buying cheap is a false economy and not something I believe in but as these are functional I don't need the best of the best, just something good that will hopefully keep an edge for a reasonable period of time ... if comparing it to cars I'm looking for the Seat as opposed to the Audi / Mercedes-Benz if that makes sense.

Open to either buying individual knives and a block as most sets seem to have a bread knife and carving knife included which we don't need but if it's a set without those would consider as well.

Any suggestions of good makes and ranges that may be suitable much appreciated.
Click to expand...
One more vote for Victorinox. Easily sharpened, easily cleaned & sanitized, etc.
 
Definitely going to go for the Victorinox as they seem to be the more economical end of decent knives / workhorse which is what I need.

The do a small 8cm paring and 10cm Utility, maybe a small serrated as well and a 20cm Chefs knife .... should do me well for starters and can add to it down the road ... quite fancy a Santoku or Chinese vegetable cleaver at some stage.

They don't seeem to have a lot in the way of utility knives, I have a 12cm at the moment and if it wasn't such a rubbish knife (blunt in 2 seconds) it'd probably be my go to for a lot of everyday.
I did see they do a 12cm Boning / Sticking knife https://www.nisbets.co.uk/victorino...m/c673?cm_sp=Peerius-_-productRecsTop-_-title
is there any reason I can't use that / it won't serve well as a general utility knife?

Just as a sideline question, they have codes such as this 5660312 ... I belive the 12 on the end stands for 12cm balde, does anyone know what the rest of the numbers represent?
 
Just to muddle things up more, there's an Italian company called Due Buoi. They don't get a lot of press over here, but a friend of mine, a very accomplished cook, loved them.
 
Aardvark said:
Just to muddle things up more, there's an Italian company called Due Buoi. They don't get a lot of press over here, but a friend of mine, a very accomplished cook, loved them.
Click to expand...

I heard of the company but for different products years back ... they're switchblades are absolutely beautiful, a complete work of art.
 
Opinel (fixed kitchen knives), Victorinox, ...

Won't keep an edge for too long but super easy to sharpen
 
IMO, the biggest problem with Victorinox in the USA is price. It sells best on the retail market to a home cook for big bucks. At restaurant supply, it gets beat out by Dexter Russell and Mercer. If it cost $20, I'd consider it a good buy. I have a clone of a Victorinox serrated paring knife I've used for 8 years that cost no more than $5.

If you jump on a Victorinox, take some time to learn about the knife in practical tasks--try out different strokes. Mastering a new knife can take at least a few months. Only after you master one knife should you try breaking in another.
 
I usually don;t recommend "sets". But if I had to, and wanted it to be "budget", I would recommemd the Tojiro DP set, laminated VG10 and they do the HT right. I have seen and fixed plenty of VG10 kitchen knives for chips, but never with a Tojiro. My DP Nakiri is still in use after some 25 years. You can find the set online for about $179. Well worth that price IMO.
Vy9MFN.png
 
A buddy of mine was shopping for better knives the other day and I told him to look at Wusthof Epicure. We’ve been using Wusthof classics for ten years, and recently added a few Epicure. They’re forged. Same blade steel as the classics. Nice looking block set on Amazon right now for $265. Chef, bread, utility, and pairing knife, plus shears, block, and honing steel. If I was starting over today I’d probably go Epicure, I like their blade shapes, and the bolsters don’t get in the way of the food.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top