Knife is listed as one of the most common tools in the kitchen. Although its main function revolves around cutting or slicing things, knife actually comes in various types and different functions.
You surely need a different kind of knife to slice a loaf of bread, cut the meat, or mince herbs. To distinguish them, take a look at 20 types of kitchen knives below, along with their basic features and functions.
1. Butcher Knife
Butcher knife, also known as a cleaver, is not only used to crush, pound, or shred different kinds of meats. Its flat, blunt blade also comes in handy to chop vegetables and hard foods. You can even use it to crush garlic and a variety of seeds.
2. Fillet Knife
The blade of fillet knife is slim and flexible, which makes it perfect for filleting fish skin. Fillet knife is also built in a slight bendy design, so you can easily make a starting cut and slice along the skin.
3. Chef’s Knife
Chef’s knife belongs to the type of cooking knives that you can use for various purposes. This knife is useful for slicing or chopping meats, vegetables, and many other foods. It is good for dicing and mincing as well.
4. Carving Knife
You don’t need different types of kitchen knives to cut through different types of meats—hams, roasts, chickens, turkeys, etc. Instead, a carving knife is enough to do all the works.
Having long and serrated blade, this knife can fully grab the meat fibers while producing clean cuts.
5. Bread Knife
Clearly stated by the name, the main use of a bread knife is to slice a loaf of bread into thin pieces. This could be done easily without smashing or squishing the bread. Moreover, because of the knife’s serrated edge, the bread you slice will produce fewer crumbs.
6. Boning Knife
With its thin and narrow blade, a boning knife is mainly used to remove the bones in a piece of meat. Before cooking a large ham or beef roast, you need boning knife to push out the bone and separate it from the meat. The narrowing tip of the knife will make you easier to do so.
7. Cheese Knife
The thin blade of a cheese knife is useful for cutting through soft and hard cheese. This type of knife comes in a wide variety of length. However, the short ones are used more often as they look good on a cheese plate.
8. Kitchen Shears
Kitchen shears aren’t exactly knife, but their function in your cooking station is more or less similar with other types of kitchen knives. In fact, kitchen shears are not only useful for slicing or dicing different foods but can also be used to cut tin foil or paper that you need when cooking.
9. Sushi Knife
Mostly made of high-carbon steel, sushi knife features flat blade with a single beveled edge. Meanwhile, the handle has a D-cross section which is believed to make you comfortable when cutting the fish or preparing sushi for a long period of time.
10. Steak Knife
Steak knife is used more often at the dinner table instead of the kitchen. With its sharp and serrated blade, you can use this knife to cut steak or other types of meat when eating them for dinner.
11. Tomato Knife
Tomato is a kind of vegetable that can be tricky to cut or slice. Therefore, you need a specially designed knife to deal with it. The thin, sharp, and serrated features of tomato knife blade will help you cut any tomato more easily.
12. Trimming knife
The length of trimming knife blade is around 2-3 inches, making it an excellent choice to deal with smaller foods. Besides peeling or slicing, trimming knife can be used to carve some types of vegetables into decorative shapes.
13. Peeling Knife
Featuring thin, sharp blade and slightly curved tip, a peeling knife is mostly used to peel fruits and vegetables. Its special design can cover the surface area of the food while peeling it without a lot of effort.
14. Fluting Knife
When you have to slice small or delicate materials, a fluting knife is the best way to go. The light weight and straight blade of this knife allow you to peel produce with thin skins. In addition, it can easily be moved in tight spaces of fruits or vegetables.
15. Utility Knife
The blade surface of a utility knife is slightly larger than most kitchen knives. Listed under the good kitchen knives, it is valued the most for its versatility. From cutting fresh vegetables to slicing sandwiches, this type of knife can get them done.
16. Santoku Knife
Santoku is characterized by scalloped edges along the blade, which can balance the air flow between the knife and the food you’re cutting. That way, it will be easier for you to slice, dice, and mince any kind of food, especially those that have a thin surface.
17. Nakiri Knife
Nakiri knife, originally known as nakiri bocho, is characterized by a thin blade, squared end, and wide surface. This knife is more functional for slicing vegetables rather than cutting meats. It can also be used to scoop the flesh of some vegetable types.
18. Paring Knife
Paring knife has a small size with a straight and sharp blade. Such design is useful for cutting and peeling different kinds of foods, especially fruits, vegetables, and herbs. You can also use it to remove the core from a fruit.
19. Mincing Knife
In the basic kitchen knife set, mincing knife or mezzaluna is mainly used to mince fresh herbs or vegetables into small pieces. In addition to having a curved blade, some types of mincing knife have a pair of handles instead of a single handle.
This feature allows you to rock it back and forth while mincing.
20. Decorating Knife
To perform its main function, decorating knife features a thin blade in a patterned or zigzag design. The blade can create a ruffled effect when you use it to decorate fruits or vegetables.
The basic information about types of kitchen knives above can help you tell them apart based on their main characteristics. As a result, you can choose the best knife type to handle different tasks when working in your cooking station.
