FIND THE RIGHT CHEF’S KNIFE FOR YOU

No kitchen should be without a true chef’s knife. But what makes a good one? Find an overview of everything you need to know about buying a kitchen knife here.

WHICH ZWILLING CHEF’S KNIFE IS RIGHT FOR ME?

Professional cooks love it: their own personal chef’s knife. You too can use a “cutie” such as this as a daily companion in everyday kitchen life. But to really get that relationship going, we’d like to help with our chef’s knife test. So let us introduce you to two of our classic kitchen knives from the PRO series.

ZWILLING PRO® chef's knife

Blade length: 20 cm
Convenient and precise cutting thanks to the length of the blade
Greater edge weight + sharp blade = less effort
Classic chef’s knife for universal use in the kitchen
Slender point for cleaning fruit and vegetables
Special steel blade
Well balanced
High blade for safe cutting
Seamless transition between blade and crop

The chef’s knife from the ZWILLING® Pro series is the ideal tool for preparing many delicious dishes. Like all knives in the series, the 20-cm long blade consists of ZWILLING’s special steel that meets specific hardness and corrosion resistance requirements. In addition, the length of the blade enables equally convenient and precise cutting of both hard and soft food. Thanks to the weight of the blade and sharp edge you have to use less force when cutting your food. The transition between blade and plastic handle is seamless - the classic look of the knife is retained thanks to the three rivets in the handle.

ZWILLING PRO® compact chef's knife

Blade length: 14 cm (6 cm smaller means 60% lighter!)
Long enough to cut large pieces
Cradle cutting on a small surface possible
No fatigue thanks to ideal weight distribution
Enjoyable cutting, even with big hands
A beginner’s knife for uncertain customers and a compact knife for
Professional work on small surfaces
Slender tip for cleaning fruit and vegetables
Blade forged from special steel
Well balanced
A high blade for safe cutting
Seamless transition between blade and crop

The practical all-rounder: with a blade length of 14 cm the compact chef’s knife is shorter and 60% lighter. Despite this it is long enough for cutting large pieces and suitable for cradle cutting on small surfaces. The optimized weight distribution prevents fatigue even when cutting for a long time. Enjoyable cutting is even possible with big hands The compact chef’s knife fills the gap between large and small knives and is multi-talented, even for beginners.

Our chef’s knife test: pros and cons

As a traditional kitchen knife, the ZWILLING PRO® chef’s knife is very versatile. With its cutting edge divided into three areas, almost any product can be prepared in the kitchen. For example, you can easily shred onions or potatoes with the front part of the edge, while the middle part serves wonderfully to chop and cradle-cut herbs. You can sever difficult-to-cut food optimally with the rear part of the cutting edge.

However, this all-purpose knife is not suitable for peeling vegetables or cutting out damaged pieces — for this a utility or paring knife is better. Do not cut bread with a chef’s knife — a firm crust can quickly create cutting resistance and blunt your knife. But for this we offer very good bread knives in our online shop.

Chef’s knife - a real all-rounder in the kitchen

On the whole, you can almost always rely on your chef’s knife. It’s not a real classic for nothing due to its versatility and universal usability in your kitchen. Ultimately it is only logical that chef’s knives are the most important tool for any cook, and there’s a reason why they are called chef’s knives.

Chef’s knives areas of application

Due to its wide blade the chef’s knife is suitable for clean, deep cuts for filleting fish and carving meat. It is also right for cradle-cutting to chop herbs and shred vegetables. The pointed shape of the chef’s knife enables especially fine cuts. At the same time the slender tip can be used for cleaning fruit and vegetables. The traditional all-rounder is a useful knife that is also often used by novice chefs.

Testing the chef’s knife — can it go in the dishwasher?

Both the classic chef’s knife and the compact chef’s knife from the ZWILLING PRO® range are suitable for the dishwasher. But only at temperatures of 55 °C and lower. Also make sure that you sort your knives separately so that they don’t hit other objects during the wash cycle. But because detergents for dishwashers contain quite aggressive chemicals, we generally recommend washing by hand with lukewarm water, a mild detergent and a scratch-free dishcloth or sponge.

For it to stay sharp

Over time your chef’s knife will lose its sharpness. A sharp knife is actually safer than a blunt one, because you have to exert less pressure when cutting. So it’s important to sharpen your chef’s knife regularly with a sharpening steel, whetstone or knife sharpener. But we can also provide you with expert help here, in the ZWILLING inspiration area! Learn how to sharpen using a sharpening steel in a step-by-step guide, and much more on this.