Best Kitchen Knives for Versatility (2024)

The New York Times recently named the MAC MTH-80 as the best overall chef's knife.

The blade is harder, a little bit lighter, and more nimble, like a Japanese-style knife.

It's lightweight, but it feels sturdy and balanced in your hand.

The handle is more like that of a Western-style knife.

It fits very comfortably in my hand.

If you want to preserve the knife for a longer time, don't put it in the dishwasher.

If you're going to sharpen the knife, note that Japanese knives are sharpened at a 10 to 15-degree angle.

You should not put this in the dishwasher.

If you're going to sharpen the knife, note that Japanese knives are sharpened at a 10 to 15-degree angle.

The hollow edge of this santoku knife is a game changer, meticulously crafted with evenly spaced vertical indentations that create small air pockets between the blade and the food.

Crafted from high-carbon, stain-resistant steel, these knives from The Wüsthof Gourmet line are laser-stamped for precision and sharpness.

The gourmet uses a very, very soft metal, which I would say has a hardness of 58. As a result, when comparing the two, this one is going to dull much faster.

The blade is made with Wüsthof's Precision Edge Technology (PEtec) to create an extraordinarily sharp blade.

The blade retains its edge 30% longer than other blades and is stain-resistant.

The contoured shape and perfect balance provide ergonomic comfort during use.

The Full Tang is triple-riveted to the handle, providing exceptional durability.

It is forged from a single piece of high-carbon stainless steel.

The full tang is triple-riveted to the handle, providing exceptional durability.

This knife can also be used with an electric sharpener to extend the blade's lifespan.

The blade retains its edge 30% longer than other blades and is stain-resistant.

The blade is made of high-carbon stainless steel.

It is now sharpened to a 14.5-degree angle using their PE tech technology.

This blade material dulls very quickly.

The handle has three rivets, and the entire blade is a single solid piece of metal.

The black handle is made of POM material.

Initially, it feels a little heavy in the hand, but it's well-balanced and very comfortable to use.

It is a fully forged, full tang blade.

It comes with a lifetime warranty.

This is a very tough knife. I have had no issues with it bending or chipping.

The POM material is very easy to clean and doesn't retain food fibers.

After two weeks of use, this knife needs to be resharpened.

Without this, the bolster can get in the way, and you'll find yourself grinding into the stone rather than actually sharpening the edge.

The sharpness out of the box is comparable to the Global and sharper than the Zwilling chef's knife.

The blades are meticulously crafted to provide effortless slicing, dicing, and mincing.

You don't have to worry about chipping your blade; you most likely bent it.

Wusthof Classic and Gourmet blades are made from the same German steel, but Classic blades are forged.

Wusthof Classic blades are hardened to 58 on the Rockwell scale.

The bolster is the thick part of the blade that provides a smooth transition from the blade to the handle.

It has a full bolster and a fully forged palm resin handle that is triple riveted.

But it's just an average handle that feels very similar to the Renaissance in terms of design.

In my opinion, the Icon and the Messer Meister have much more comfortable handles.

However, the aspect I like most about these knives is their durability.

I recommend using a honing steel to hone it daily, and then strop it weekly.

If you're planning to do a lot of sharpening yourself, this bolster here is probably going to cause you some issues.

I recommend using a honing steel to hone it daily, then stropping it weekly, and sharpening it up to a 1k finish every three weeks or so.

This bolster is likely to cause you some issues when sharpening because it's quite easy to create a recurve here.

You can sharpen it by grinding it flat on a stone, and then you can round it out on a belt.

The blade of this knife is made from durable VGMAX steel with a Rockwell hardness of 60 to 61.

It offers an exceedingly sharp cutting-edge innovation and ancient blade-making traditions.

This technique ensures not only top performance but also incredible edge retention.

The handle of this knife is made of Pakka wood.

It also features durable hardwood infused with resin to make it stronger, denser, and water-resistant.

The handle nestles comfortably in the hand, while the embossed end cap adds balance and beauty.

Now, I've had this for eight years already, and you can see that. Here's a look at the handles so you can see that as well. It still looks good after eight years.

Though the knife is dishwasher safe, it is recommended that hand washing and air drying will better preserve it.