I accompanied two friends to Kappabashi for a tour of the local knife shops in search of a Japanese knife. Kitchen life without a Japanese knife is certainly easier, unless you are prepared to make the commitment – so where do we start-?….

First of all I am an amateur de cuisine, and I am passionate and studied in the practice of caring for my own knives. I am by no means an expert and I wouldn’t dare compare myself to any Japanese person selling or working with knives. My perspective is through trial and error and I have been living with Japanese knives for 30-years and I will say one thing. The water in Japan is more suitable for the forged Japanese knives and once you take them home to America, Europe, Canada, or other places the knife will be susceptible to rust.

The greatest challenge is the rust and rust management. I am not the type to oil my knife but I do understand why owners do. I also understand why owners use erasers on rust, and I do too. But it is not advisable and the reason is when you buy a knife it has a particular finish, a patina and these finishes cannot be replicated easily. Once the eraser touches it you run into trouble and you can damage the blade – so think twice before touching your knife on anything but a wet stone!

The high carbon knives sold in Japan are delicate and I mean sharp and delicate. It is key to care for them and even with the best of care they can get damaged and once it happens it is kind of a tragedy. Having said knives are precious, I still recommend you buy a quality knife and try it.

The best place is Kappabashi or in Kyoto in the market or visit Sekai and or a department store and you can find a decent selection of Japanese knives. Pay careful attention to how you intend to use your knife and for most home chefs I recommend an Usuba which is used for vegetables.

The Usuba is ideal for cutting vegetables and fruits which are served raw, because the thin and sharp blade produces cut surfaces with very little cell damage, and this minimizes the discoloration and change in flavor often caused by oxidation. The versatile middle section of the blade can be used for thinly slicing vegetables and also for performing the specialized Katsuramuki a “rotary peeling” technique used by professional: https://mesubim.com/2014/03/31/amazing-tsuma-part-i-video/

https://mesubim.com/2014/03/31/amazing-tsuma-part-i-video/

The relatively tall and long blade of the Usuba make it ideal for tackling large ingredients, such as cabbages, but it is not recommended for cutting vegetables or fruit with hard skins or hard stones, because they may damage the blade. The tall blade is also very useful when using the knuckles of your free hand to guide the blade during cutting, and this is useful technique to develop if you want to consistently cut vegetables at a particular thickness.

Kappabashi Tokyo
https://www.kappabashi.or.jp/en

Introduction
Now before you start reading this article, it will take a certain degree of patience and time to digest a Japanese knife, and this is not intended anyway, to diminish your interest. A Japanese knife is how a culture has developed technique by using tradition and practice and Japanese have developed a very common tool that used almost every day all over the globe by billions of people.

The first step in any knife shop it is all about the respect you show for the knife itself and this is both in how you communicate with the staff, and how you handle the knife. Rule #1 is never hold the knife’s edge upwards and run your finger along the blade. This what amateurs do and not only is it inappropriate but dangerous and can result in a severe cut!

The fact is, when you pick up a knife in any shop you can injure yourself and or a third party if you mishandle the knife. A Japanese knife is unlike any other knife and it can cut deep and without any notice the finger is severed, and the blood gushing!

Watch the video and you will see someone who is obviously trained in other kinds of Japanese traditional arts, maybe iaido: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iaido and the reason I say, that is because you can see that he is skilfully meticulously handling the knife.

You wouldn’t this type of person checking how sharp the blade is because any Japanese blade in any store is sharp enough to do it’s job. It’s the quality of any Japanese knife and if it wouldn’t be sharp enough, they would sharpen it without you even asking. And more importantly the knife on display is not the knife that you will take home, so checking the edge of the blade with your finger is nonsense, and only for amateurs –

How to handle a Japanese knife and show the appropriate respect

There are 3 main categories of steel used in kitchen knife manufacturing of knives, and every category has its pros and cons, depending on the purpose of the knife and how you intend to work.

Iron (Fe): the main element in steel.

Carbon (C): It is key element in steel as it gives steel the possibility to be hardened during the process of heat treatment. It doesn’t always reduces resistance to corrosion but can make the steel brittle which is why a Japanese knife can chip easily.

Chromium (Cr): strongly increases the corrosion resistance of steel, and to a certain level increases its hardness.

Manganese (Mn): improves the structure of steel and increases the possibility for higher hardening of steel.

Vanadium (V): the key element in increasing the hardness of steel. It increases the possibility to have a sharper blade and maintains the sharpness for a longer period of time.

Molybdenum (Mo): increases the resistance to corrosion, it is frequently present in corrosion-resistant steel, and it helps maintain the hardness and the power of steel in case of temperature changes.

Silicon (Si): increases the positive effects of carbon (C). It increases the hardness and the strength of steel.

Cobalt (Co): for higher hardness and corrosion resistance.

Tungsten (W): highly increases the wear resistance of steel.

Phosphorus (P): impurity, which is present in all types of steel in small quantities.

Sulfur (S): impurity, which is present in all types of steel in small quantities.

Steel used is primarily made of iron (Fe), carbon (C) and smaller contents of other elements but Carbon (C) is the key element in steel and without carbon, steel could not be forged or tempered and the more carbon means harder steel but also it can be more brittle.

So, when it comes using a knife, there’s always the compromise. The knife will retain a sharpness can be razor-sharp, but it must be handled in a very meticulous way. Otherwise, you risk damaging your blade.

For most newcomers who enter a Japanese shop to select a knife mostly are motivated by price and that’s very normal. It’s rare to see a foreigner, buying blue steel because the cost factor goes up to four more times in price.

In fact, when I first started buying Japanese names, I started buying ordinary ones, ordinary in the sense that a single edge, not beveled, and they all looked perfect in the store. It’s after some time of using them, you start to see the difference, and the difference is significant.

I remember looking at expensive Japanese knives that had a polished finish. A mirror finish on the blade, and I was intrigued because they looked so perfect. And the price is perfect. There’s no getting away from going into your pocket and spending well over $1000 on a knife so is it worth it?

And most people shy away from spending that kind of money which is reasonable given in the context of most peoples spending habits a knife over $1000 is extraordinary. What time when I would repeatedly go back to the store and look at knives one time I decided to see the difference, but the only way to see the difference is by buying the knife.

I purchased my blue steel knife probably 10 years ago or more, and since that time I rarely buy anything else. The main reason is because once you get used to using a knife of that quality, you realize it sharpness brings you precision. If you are the kind of person who buys quality shoes, computers, automobiles, wine, cigars, or foods you should consider a higher quality knife. It is only after using such a knife, and having experience you realize how it brings you the true benefit of the tool itself. However, you must be adequately prepared in using the knife, caring for the knife and sharpening the knife. If not, stick with a double bevelled edge and buy a simple knife up to $200.

A good knife, especially a Japanese knife, which is as long let’s say as long as 30 cm can be a lot of fun to sharpen and more fun to use. It’s only time that you have the knife in your hand and you’re using the blade itself to do the cut that you realize that the knife with a good technique brings you something that you can’t find anywhere else by using any other kind of knife.

What makes a Japanese knife so perfect-?….the forging techniques…the materials….the precision…and the high-carbon steels i.e. traditional Japanese steels. When you enter a shop you’ll see lots of shapes but before choosing a shape you should consider the materials because the metallurgical composition makes all the difference in how a knife works, wears and sharpens.

These are the basic materials used in knife forging but beware when you see a knife that could have Vanadium an unnatural material is often combined with Molybdenum and these elements make the knife harder. These metal elements are is rarely found in nature, but once isolated artificially they stabilize the free metal against further oxidation. Be aware it could be very difficult to sharpen on a stone but that depends on the knife’s thickness and in selecting any knife think carefully.

Think carefully because while in Japan you are searching a Japanese knife and so buy high-carbon steel and take the risk or save your money.I prefer high-carbon steels due to its high carbon content which are forged to a high hardness, very easy to sharpen yet as mentioned very brittle. Knives made of high-carbon steels require careful attention to wiping them dry after every use. The improper maintenance will develop corrosion/rust quite fast.

A Japanese knife can be difficult to care for as carbon knives start to visibly rust when exposed to some types of water after 10 minutes. The carbon is however important in forging a blade however there are consequences and for most chefs a mixed stainless steel blade is easier to maintain. There is always a compromise and if you have the nerves for Honyaki blades do not hesitate to purchase one as they are my favorite. However these knives are delicate and cut razor sharp so some technique and etiquette is required.

The top knives are:

There are three main top-grade high-carbon Japanese steels: Shirogami or White Steel (#1, #2), Aogami or Blue Steel (#1, #2), and Aogami Super or Blue Super Steel. Yasugi steel is high-grade cutting steel with high purity. Yasugi Hagane is a Japanese steel material sometimes used in the production of kitchen knives and blades. This steel material is called “Yasugi Hagane” because it is produced in Yasugi City (present-day Yasugi Town) in Shimane Prefecture.

Honyaki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honyaki

Its these knives that are top and are forged solely from one material: high-carbon steel called “Hagane” and generally the Hagane is White steel Shirogami or Blue steel Aogami. The structure method used to make Honyaki knives is similar to that used to make traditional Japanese swords, which is a very difficult and long process. Remember, the knives are forged to allows the knife to be sharpened more easily and absorb shock and that’s what many homes chef search, and we refer to it as Jigane.

Jigane in Japanese, refers to the ground iron of a Japanese sword. It is the base material of the sword, which is revealed as a result of the “Orimodoshi Tanren” a process of repeated folding and forging. The pattern that appears on the surface of the ground iron as a result of this process is called “Jihada”.

The method of forging a Japanese sword varies depending on the era and the school of the swordsmith, and therefore, the appearance of the Jihada also varies. This makes the Jihada one of the key points in appreciating Japanese swords.

The Jihada can be broadly classified into Itame (板目), Mokume (杢目), Masame (柾目), and Ayasugi (綾杉). However, it is common for these patterns to appear in a combined state.

• Itame (板目): This pattern resembles the grain of wood planks.
• Mokume (杢目): This pattern resembles the grain of burl wood.
• Masame (柾目): This pattern appears as straight lines, resembling the grain of straight-grained wood.
• Ayasugi (綾杉): This pattern resembles the grain of cedar wood, appearing in a wave-like pattern.

Knife Anatomy

The knife’s anatomy is important to understand when cleaning or sharpening or cutting and the photo below is important in understanding how a knife is made and in understanding the imprtance of each part.

Kireha is the primary angle of the blade, located between the cutting edge and the point of transition into the plane of the blade called the shonogi line. The kireha is the part of the blade that performs the cutting action and is carefully designed to ensure sharpness and precision. The grinding angle configurations of this part of the blade determine how the blade tapers towards the cutting edge, which affects its sharpness, durability and cutting performance. 

Shinogi is the distinct ridge or line where the Hira breaks into the Kireha, or, in other words, where the straight sides of the blade – the Hira – and the primary edge of the blade – the Kireha – meet. The Shinogi is a structural and aesthetic element in the design of the blade. The break of the planes makes it possible to combine different blade finishes, and for example, a Kuro-uchi finish on the upper part of the blade and a Kasumi finish on the lower part of the blade. Kurouchi roughly translates at ‘blacksmith’s finish’, and retains some of the residue of the forging process.

For cutting, chopping and other cutting techniques, a sharpened cutting edge is used which runs the full length of the blade from heel to tip. This is the part of the blade that is the first to pierce through the ingredient, followed by the primary angle of the blade kireha. Having knowledge of the geometry and construction of the blade is crucial to understanding Japanese knives.

Hira is the flat surface of the blade that extends from the Shinogi line to the spine of the knife. The texture and shape of this part of the knife can determine to what extent food sticks to the blade. To minimize this, Japanese blades can have added hammer marks Tsuchime finish of the blade, which provide air pockets to reduce friction between the blade and the food. This flat part of the knife can be used for tasks such as crushing garlic, but be careful – the blade can become bent if the technique is not done correctly! Such tasks require great care and a gentle touch; the part of the blade used to crush the garlic must be carefully supported by the hand, and the handle must always be kept off the board or you’ll mishit and the knife will jog.

The Mune spine is the upper, uncut top edge of the blade where the handle continues into the blade. It gives stability and balance to the knife and is often used as a reference point in some cutting techniques. In forged Japanese knives, the spine gradually narrows towards the tip, which is called the distal taper. The thickness of the spine can vary considerably depending on the type and shape of blade and its structure. Whether we are talking about a single bevel or a double bevel blade, the spine is usually thicker than the rest of the blade.

Hand-forged knives with a distal taper which is tapering refers to a blade’s cross-section thinning from its base to its tip. They have a thicker back, are more comfortable for the user, as the hand is better supported and the fingers are resting on a wider surface of the back when gripping. The geometry, rounded edges and finish details of the spine contribute to greater comfort during use and prevent blistering during intensive use of the knife.

The Kissaki, the tip of the blade is the larger front part of the knife, which includes the knife point, and the knife point is the part of the knife where the cutting edge and the spine join. The blade tip and the point are used for fine and precise cuts. Not all Japanese knives have a pointed tip and those from Kansai are rounded and are used similarly yet not quite the same.

When using petty knives, “Petty” is the Japanese word for a paring or utility knife, and it comes from the French word “petite”. It’s perfect for hand peeling fruits and veggies, the thin and precise tip is used for trimming. The knife point of the blade is also used for precision tasks such as boning chicken and filleting all small fish, and the tip of the knife offers many uses.

The Sori, the belly is the working surface of the knife. It is usually under more stress when rounded, which is generally the case in Western knives; the belly of traditional Japanese blades tends to be flatter. The roundness of the belly varies greatly depending on the type of blade and what its primary purpose is.

Hamoto, is the heel is the widest part of the blade and closest to the handle. It is used for tasks that require more force. I use it for precise cutting to undertake a cut when I want to be sure it is executed. Sometimes if I cut lemon skin I use the heel and I get the force in small type cuts.

https://mesubim.com/2020/08/31/cutting-duxelles/

In certain cutting techniques, this part of the blade follows the movement of the belly and completes the cut. The heel is usually flatter than the rest of the blade and, in the case of blades with more curvature, can be used for quick cuts with a back-and-forth motion, such as cutting small vegetables into thin slices.

There is a lot of variety in terms of function and thickness of the blade among different blade types – in the case of deba knives (fish) this part is used to cut the bones of fish. In santoku knife is an all purpose knife and many chefs use them and they are handy and often easy to maintain. The only drawback is maintaining their sharpness.

The term choil refers to the curve extending from the handle to the tip of the blade heel. This is the area where the finger can grip when holding the knife by the handle. The choil is crucial for comfort and control during cutting and plays an extremely important role in the grip, comfort and control of the knife.

*Choil

Top Japanese blade makers take extra care to ensure that this part of the blade is perfectly polished and smoothed to give a more comfortable grip, as, in terms of use, the choil is considered an important part of the knife.

Machi 
It is the lower part of the blade, positioned at the handle. In the region of Kanto, Japan, when attaching the handle, the machi is usually set a few millimetres away from the handle (the ‘machi gap‘), but in the region of Kansai the machi is set close to the handle.

Tang
The tang nagako is the part of the blade that is set into the handle. It is the extension of the spine of the blade, which is inserted into the handle. In Japanese knives, the tang is smaller and thinner than in the case of Western knives. This impacts the balance of the knife in Japanese handles and positions the centre of balance towards the tip of the knife, especially when combined with a light wooden handle. The different tangs are one of the crucial differences between a Japanese-type knife and a Western-type knife. 

The handle holder surrounds the steel tang of the blade. During handle fitting, the tang is heated and inserted into a piece of wood that shrinks at contact with the heated steel. Sometimes glue is added, too.

Ejiri
This is the end or bottom of the knife handle. In some extremely long yanagi knives, the knife butt is additionally reinforced and works as a counterbalance to the heavy blade. This allows the centre of gravity between the blade and the handle to remain in the right place for efficient and comfortable use, despite the length and weight of the blade.

Kakumaki 
It is the ring at the top of a wooden Japanese handle, where the wooden part of the handle meets the blade. It has several important functions: It contributes to the functionality by ensuring the structural integrity of the handle as it holds the handle together and increases the overall durability of the knife.

Working with a J-Knife

The set up is key to working safely and avoiding any accidents. The knife must always be perpendicular to the cutting board and wiped and placed in the knife position after every cut!

Wipe
When you wipe your knife after every cut; take the towel and fold it between your thumb and fingers creating a sitting place for the blade and start at the knife’s Ago and close your fingers and thumb to hold the knife keeping your fingers always behind the blade’s leading edge – and pull the knife from the ago to the tip and finish with the knife exiting the towel – and start again if a second passing is required.

You must discipline yourself to cut-wipe and place the knife back to the original position. The knife blade always faces away from the chef when placed on the counter. Furthermore, the wiping of the blade and your hand and finger position is critical to your safety (see below). Be very careful about the placement of your fingers or you risk a sudden and unexpected cut.

Rust
I recommend you do not leave Carbon Steel knives in wet conditions or in contact with water for any significant length of time because it causes discoloration and rusting. Always work with a soft towel nearby so that you can frequently dry the knife whilst working. Additionally Carbon Steel knives that come in to contact with salty foods or liquids should be cleaned as soon as possible in order to prevent corrosion. It is normal for an oxidized to develop on knives which are used with acidic foods or foods which contain a lot of protein. To remove more serious corrosion and rust we suggest using the ‘rust eraser’ type of abrasive rubber blocks, starting with the finest abrasive version first, to minimize damaging the appearance of the knife. Be careful when using a rubber it will affect your knife’s patina and other aspects as well. Lastly, when you finish cleaning the knife you can complete it by pouring boiling water (kettle) over the blade and then wiping it dry.

Knife Position
The knife is placed on the counter and in my case I have a stainless steel counter edge so the the 90 degree is key for safety and here are the different types of counters and a flat edge and not the other types shown below and or the knife is placed on a cutting board to protect the knife and your hand from getting damaged.

The bottom of the knife is placed at the counter top and you stop at the machi as the guard to hold the knife in position. This is important to have the blade secured and you are guarded from catching the heel or any part of the blade which are razor sharp. Some people like this discoloration and it does not affect cutting performance, but it can easily be removed using cloth and some mildly abrasive cleaning powder, such as powder cleaner and using a radish. The radish works well as it absorbs the cleaners and maintains its moisture.

The will minimize the chance of damaging your hand and or the blade when cleaning it, maintain the knife flat bottom down at all times. Anytime you need to clean the top, make sure the leading edge is flat to the counters surface or cutting board.

About Cutting

The idea of cutting with a Japanese knife is totally different than using a western knife. First off your body position must be correct which means you have a good centre of gravity your feet are parallel to one another and you are ready to begin to cut. We start with holding the knife and it’s difficult to describe in words.

Step 1 – Holding

Each knife shape will have a different type of feel in your hand but a well balanced kitchen life has a centre of gravity about one third the length of the blade from the base. You can check the balance and there are different ways but in many cases in a shop you have the opportunity to test the knife but not always. In the case you cannot you can simulate a cut and hold the knife and raise the tip up and down being careful and always maintaining the knife over the area provided.

Step 2 – Holding & Cutting

You hold the knife as you would hold any nose but the technique is different because it’s not up-and-down it’s a push in a pull cut. This technique is very different because one side of a Japanese knife is flat more or less so you have more precision when you have control in the control is by maintaining imaginary line where you are pushing and pulling my feedback consistently as you would throw a punch in karate.

Step 1 Before Sharpening

Before we start sharpening there are the essentials and they are two stones one which you use as a first step is grit, and a lower number has more grit and the grit number ranges from hundreds to tens of thousands; so the higher the number the higher the final of the stone which is often used for finishing. So you would buy a stone let’s say 1000 and another stone 5000 in this would be enough but as you would become more expert you would probably want something either a natural stone or you can buy synthetics dollars which are over 10,000 grit. You need a holder which you can buy on the Internet and it looks like this:

And never buy stones are connected to a base they are not suitable for home use in my opinion. Once you have the base you can buy a stone for maintaining your stone flat or you can take the two stones and you can use them to flatten and maintain each other.

The sharpening in Japanese knife is no doubt easy once you get the hang of it and in order to do so you need proper instruction from a professional. Well not everyone has access to a professional you may find on the Internet videos showing how to sharpen in Japanese play but I prefer and recommend to buy a book in Japanese written by a professional.

Step 1 Sharpening

To sharpen you really should have some practice the same goes for cutting and you need to understand that sharpening is about body position nice position hand position and motion. You need to have those all in sync in order to have a smooth and continuous movement over the sharpening stone. You need to understand that each part of the knife is very different so you start with the angle and you go to the tip and you sharpen the knife in sections. While doing so you really need to focus on the edge leading edge of the knife in order to make sure that you are sharpening it evenly.

If you go to Kappabashi to buy a knife, you should visit Jeremy he knows what he’s doing. He speaks English in French: https://mesubim.com/2023/01/21/kama-asa-jeremy/