Field Knives in the Kitchen

[Murindo]

We have a nice set of Shun kitchen knives but I like to use field/hunting/fighting knives in the kitchen when possible. I have three such knives that are always in the knife drawer. A Bastinelli Raptor, Helle Didi Galgalu, and a Fallkniven Professional Hunter Knife. The Helle is the most useful and the only one that is free of rust spots.

 

[Smaug]

I use a field knife (folder, in my case) in the kitchen now and then, just for fun. Otherwise, they don't see nearly as much use.

Best one is the Spydiechef, by a mile. It's not as good as my 10" Forschner chef knife, but it's a lot better than a dedicated parer, that has knuckles hitting the board all the time...

 

[CWL]

I use dedicated kitchen knives because they are thinner than field knives and won't bind up in some foods, they'll also make thinner slices.
Besides, I collect kitchen cutlery as well and they are part of my collection that I get to use every day.

 

[justjed]

I consider the Becker BK-5 to be a quite decent field knife for kitchen work. SOG S1, not so much. I have an 8" Deleon bowie that kind of splits the difference. I have one art knife that's never been used, everything else fixed blade has seen at least some kitchen work. With varying levels of efficiency. Some are just better than others. It's a good way to become familiar with how a knife handles, to see how it really cuts, and to practice varied cutting techniques.

 

[marchone]

Most bushcraft designs have enough belly to be able to skin game. FWIW, I don’t like a lot of belly on my work knives. It’s not necessary in daily kitchen work and IMO only shortens the usable blade length.

I think of the trade off as similar to the Strider finger choil. Some guys like it as they choke up on a stout blade. Others think it only gives the user less cutting edge and is a useless affectation.

YMMV.

 

[GB940Rookie]

I like to peel my apples with a Bowie.

 

[Hurrul]

I like to play around in the kitchen with field knives, but it does not take long and I start missing the knuckle clearance that tall kitchen knives (larger eruro style chef knives, gyutos, santokus and other japanese kitchen patterns) have at the heel of the blade.

 

[NorthernSouthpaw]

The only time I use a field knife for food prep is when I'm actually in the field. And even then, it's only because I forgot to pack my beater chef knife, an 8" Wenger Swibo .

 

[E.D.C.]

The only reason to use a field knife in the kitchen is for a bit of fun

Kitchen knives are objectively better at every kitchen task.

 

[cbach8tw]

I like to peel my apples with a Bowie.

Looks like fun...and dangerous to me!! watch those fingers. Now if you were cutting up a big steak, now you are talking. Although I know some people bring their own steak knives to a restaurant, that may be overkill.

 

[Ben Dover]

I use my Japanese Kitchen knives in the kitchen.
Field knives are for the field.

 

[KenHash]

Have too many kitchen knives to use my field knives. Plus they are thinner and made for food prep. Still nothing wrong with using your field knives in the kitchen juts for fun....provided you wash them carefully first since they are usually used in the field.

 

[herisson]

This dedicated field knife (Camp Knife by David Mary Custom Knives) is actually a blast in the kitchen. It's like a huge Chef knife but with a special liveliness because it's ideally balanced. I love it :

There are many other outdoor knives that fit perfectly in the kitchen. I'd guess that Bastinelli would do well.

Here's another favourite (Fisherman Knife by AA Forge) :

And this one (Leukku by Ashenforge) :

This one (Gaucho Knife by Limonad) is great, too :

Sure enough, I love my japanese and chinese kitchen knives but sometimes it's just fun to use other knives than dedicated kitchen knives.
All the knives pictured above are by makers on Blade Forums' Knife Makers Market. AA Forge is on Hosted Knife Makers' forum.

 

[TRfromMT]

I converted a GSO 4 limited to a dedicated kitchen knife. One of my most used kitchen knives now. One of the issues with using a field knife in the kitchen is that the balance point is usually somewhere around the finger pocket. This can keep the edge up when you lay the knife down, and if you bump it while it's on the counter it can spin like a top. I hate spinning-top knives. Either the edge hits something it shouldn't, like my finger, or the knife is in some awkward position orientation when you pick it back up. Spinning knives = bad.

So I made the ironwood handle on this with some facets that tip the balance forward and keep the flat of the blade on the cutting board when it is laid down. No more spinning!

It also happens to be very comfortable and the facets help index it very easily for different grips. It really is one of my favorite knives overall.

 

[killgar]

Al Mar SERE Operator. Blade is 5" long, .15" thick (or should I say "thin"), and has a wide grind with a thin, razor-sharp edge.

Mine is the older version with S30V blade and removeable handles (good for cleaning).

I'm not a chef, not even a cook. I don't have or need expensive kitchen knives. In fact I barely need kitchen knives at all. On occasion I've used the Al Mar to slice tomatoes, onions, meat, etc, and it works great.

My Operator is my go-to "slicer" fixed-blade, both inside the home, and outside.

 

[herisson]

The funny thing is, these here under were my kitchen knives for many years. I only lately got into "real" kitchen knives. I loved those years but I like much more the present times. Knife wise...

 

[afishhunter]

Way back before July 7, 2018, when I still did my own cooking, I used a:
4 blade Demo Knife for the best can opener I've ever found/used.
Mora Number 1 (makes a dandy non-serrated bread knife, too)
Western L66
CS Kudu
Buck 110/ Old Timer 6OT/7OT
Buck 877
Old Hickory 7 inch "Butcher knife" (un-modified)

The only "kitchen knives" I own are a serrated bread knife I've never used, since I learned long ago how to slice fresh made bread (without crushing it) with a non-serrated knife, and a Old Hickory or Green River carbon steel 3.5 inch paring knife that sees/saw as much or more use as a patch knife when using my muzzleloading rifle or pistol, as it does/did kitchen duty.
.

 

[sgt1372]

I've got a couple of "field" knives that I keep in the kitchen drawer for no good reason other than they're easier to find there than buried somewhere in the garage.

They are there if I ever need to use them (which I haven't done yet) because I have many other knives that are more suitable for kitchen cutting/chopping chores than these are.

They both happen to be relatively cheap choppers that I'd be more likely to use in the backyard than in the kitchen.

They are the:

1) Ontario SP8 Machete

2) Sheffield MOD Survival Knife

FWIW, these are the knives that I use most -- around 95% of the time -- in the kitchen.

The Chinese cleavers don't look pretty but they are extremely sharp, easy to resharpen and can do almost everything I need to do as far as cutting/slicing/chopping are concerned. The cheap pairing knife does what the larger cleavers can't do as well.

Have 2 drawers full of other knives that I hardly ever use but, like the field knives, they are there if/when I need them.

 

[Smiling]

We have only small knives that are basic plastic handled tableware and few butter knives, we only have one large but very thin knife in the kitchen, and it's used only for meat. We don't have a cleaver.

When we had larger pieces of meat with bones and other such stuff - we used to solve that with an axe, which was dirty and going outside and doing it with a diry axe on dirty stump was also not ideal.

Today my SK5 Recon Tanto does that duty. From cutting up a chicken to chopping through pork ribs, spine and so on...
I even opened coconuts with it.

 

[bigsurbob]

Whatever EDC I've got on me makes probably 50% of my kitchen cuts.. ie: if it's just one thing, packaging, etc. Not a field knife per se. I bust out the Wusthofs, which I love, when there's a significant quantity.