Recommendation? Pair of budget knives

[NoF]

I've looking to get a pair of entry level knives for the kitchen. A santoku and something used for meat/raw foods, both in stainless and around $50-ish.

For the santoku, I've looked through some of the other threads and it seems like Tojiro's DP line is pretty much the standard choice. I'm leaning heavily towards it but am open to other suggestions as well, I don't like having cutouts on the blade though.

For the meat knife, I'm much less decided. I've looked at Tojiro's DP gyuto and Shun's Sora chef knife which look similar in price/materials but am open to any other suggestions as well.

I'd appreciate any recommendations from you guys here, whether regarding the knives mentioned or what to look for a cooking knives in general.

P.S. What's the difference between the Tojiro's DP and Fujitora DP lines? They look the same to me except for the markings.

 

[Eli Chaps]

Why would the santoku not be used for meat/raw foods? It's intended to be a general purpose knife and should be viewed more like a standard cook's knife that a specialty design.

If you want something more vegetable specific, then consider a nakiri-style knife. You might find this helpful: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/dexter-russell-vegetable-cleaver-chinese-chefs-knife.1615437/

My recommendation would be to get the best possible gyuto/santoku/chef's knife you can. The style is up to you but you don't have to spend a ton of money to get good performance. Then get a good pairing knife.

 

[OldNavy]

For home use on a budget, Vic's with the Rosewood handles are a great buy. Good steel, thin
& easy to sharpen.

https://www.amazon.com/Victorinox-3...les/dp/B001LK6YXK?ref_=bl_dp_s_web_2530728011

For reference, I,ve been running these for 30+ years

 

[NoF]

Why would the santoku not be used for meat/raw foods? It's intended to be a general purpose knife and should be viewed more like a standard cook's knife that a specialty design.

If you want something more vegetable specific, then consider a nakiri-style knife. You might find this helpful: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/dexter-russell-vegetable-cleaver-chinese-chefs-knife.1615437/

My recommendation would be to get the best possible gyuto/santoku/chef's knife you can. The style is up to you but you don't have to spend a ton of money to get good performance. Then get a good pairing knife.

It's more of a personal hygenic preference than anything related to the knife itself. I like to keep separate knives and cutting boards for food that need to be cooked and food that can be eaten as is.
I preferred a santoku because of familiarity, grabbing a 2nd santoku for raw meat would totally work for me too.

Thanks for the link, I hadn't considered a nakiri before, I'll take a look through it.

 

[Bugdoc]

I think before you go any farther you need to decide whether you want a chef or santoku pattern, as you mentioned both in your OP. The cutting techniques are different for the two styles.

I grew up using Western chef knives. I have also used a santoku. I prefer the extra belly of the former, so settled on a Shun 8" chef's with Damascus blade, very similar to the Sora you mention. It has the combination of profile and a thin hard blade that I really love. I purchased a matching paring knife at the same time, and I could really work with only those two, plus an inexpensive serrated bread knife. (I replace my serrated knives when worn.) On sale the two Shun's were quite reasonable. With weekly touchups on a ceramic rod they have yet to need a sharpening yet make falling blade paper cuts effortlessly after years of daily use.

In fact, I also have an old Chinese style meat cleaver, and a Buck Empress slicing/ boning/ paring trio that get used for meat-cutting duties. (And an Opinel 10 for non-food cutting duties that is also in fact a great slicing machine, but that's another story ) That said, I could live with the two Shun's and an inexpensive serrated bread knife.

One other thought: try to go to a kitchen supply store and sample the knives cutting up foods. That's what I did at a Sur la Table demo day. There's a lot to the feel of what is arguably the most-used knife you will own.

 

[KenHash]

I've looking to get a pair of entry level knives for the kitchen. A santoku and something used for meat/raw foods, both in stainless and around $50-ish.

For the santoku, I've looked through some of the other threads and it seems like Tojiro's DP line is pretty much the standard choice. I'm leaning heavily towards it but am open to other suggestions as well, I don't like having cutouts on the blade though.

For the meat knife, I'm much less decided. I've looked at Tojiro's DP gyuto and Shun's Sora chef knife which look similar in price/materials but am open to any other suggestions as well.

I'd appreciate any recommendations from you guys here, whether regarding the knives mentioned or what to look for a cooking knives in general.

P.S. What's the difference between the Tojiro's DP and Fujitora DP lines? They look the same to me except for the markings.

Firstly, Tojiro's previous corporate name was Fujitora. They have used a number of brand names for the Japanese domestic market, like Tojuro, Togoro. Narihira, Fujitora. There may be more. But their export line are marked Tojiro. Apart from the markings, they are the same thing. Sometimes you will find their domestic market knives sold in the US through amazon or ebay.

Secondly, Tojiro offers santokus without the scallop cutouts in the blade (granton edge). As I'm sure you know Santokus don't come larger than 180/190mm so you may want to match that with a larger Gyuto (210/240/270 whatever). Blade length should be based not only on your degree of comfort and hand size, but also the size of the board(s) you will be using. There are a number of Gyutos from other makers I could suggest in a similar price range but most are Molybdenum Vanadium (basically Aus8) blades. Tojiro's DP line offers a laminated VG10 at a very affordable price.

Thirdly, western handled Japanese knives will often come in a bolstered and non-bolstered model. The bolstered one will cost a little more but it is worth it. I have had non bolstered knives ruined by water seeping under the scale from the frequent washings.