The Best Chef's Knife
January 05, 2019
Global is a Japanese forged steel knife brand that has a distinctive look. In the GF line, the blade and handle are forged from a single piece of metal which gives it a clean aesthetic and a comfortable weight in the hand. The handle is covered with black divots which serves as a decorative aesthetic contrast to the blade, but also provides some grippiness so you can comfortably use the blade while your hands are wet or oily.
Since discovering Global Knives I’ve slowly been replacing knives one at a time with this brand with the eventual goal of having exclusively Global Knives in my knife block.
There are 4 series of Global Knives.
- The G-Series - The G-Series is the cheaper set of knives and have hollow handles, and the blade is not forged from the same piece of metal as the handle.
- The GF-Series - The GF series are my favorite of the Global Knives- they are “drop forged”, and have weighted handles - making them suitable for heavy or professional use. Since the blade and the handle are forged from the same piece of metal, there is no joint between them and it can never get wobbly or loose over time.
Then both of these series’ have a corresponding “S” series- of smaller knives (i.e. paring or boning knives) that complement their series.
For me, the best Chef’s Knife is the Global GF-33- it is one of the larger knives at 21 cm (approximately 8.25 inches), and is suitable for carving large cuts of meat, or chopping vegetables. For smaller tasks like peeling vegetables, you may prefer a smaller knife like a paring knife.
I also recommend using a speed sharpener like the one pictured below- it’s
not available on amazon but you should be able to find it in a local knife
store. It is the best way I’ve found to keep your steel knives sharp without
having to take them to a sharpener.
Recipes that require a Chef's Knife:
Written by Will Chiong who lives and works in New York building useful things.