Henckels CLASSIC Christopher Kimball Edition 6.5-inch Nakiri Knife

I'm a serious cook who gives my knives a serious workout. This knife passes the test! In my kitchen I am putting my knives to continuous, hard work. Be it shallots, or garlic, or breaking down a chicken; this knife handles it all! It is super important to me that my knives are full tang and high-carbon steel (no "Cutco" for me!). But I also can not afford to spend $300 on a knife! Christopher Kimball's Henckel Nakiri knife to the rescue! Seriously, this knife is a work horse. It tackles every task I put it to with proficiency, comfort, and efficiency. No need to constantly sharpen and re-sharpen, nor does it whimp out on difficult jobs. It just works. Sharpening is fairly easy with my trusty sharpener/honer/polisher. And it holds it edge for a week or more-typically. If I'm breaking down a lot of chicken, or chopping piles upon piles of carrots and horseradish then sure-it gets sharpened more often. This has become my most favorite tool in the kitchen, and is one that I have given to all of our children and is a favorite wedding gift-it's just that good! So I'd say that for the relatively low price, it holds great value. Worth a try. Definitely I'm glad to keep on in my kitchen, and carry it with me when I travel.

I needed to replace the chef's knife from my "My First Kitchen Knives Yay I'm An Adult!" set, because, as is typical, it was cheap and I deserved an upgrade. I picked this knife because a) it's a good brand, and b) after much research, I decided a Nakiri knife was best for my needs, since I cut a lot of vegetables. Adjusting to the new slicing/chopping style has been pretty easy. It's been a pretty amazing experience so far. It just sort of floats as it slices through peppers. Chopping onions is not only faster, but safer. Mincing garlic and herbs is a bit trickier, since you don't have the natural rock of the curved blade, but it's taking just a couple more seconds. I haven't tried cutting up a butternut squash yet, but it's supposed to be easier, too. The full tang riveted handle is slender enough for my hand, and choking up on the blade is pretty comfortable. Overall, I'm very happy.

I use this knife almost exclusively since buying. Fantastic for the home kitchen

The knife arrived sharp and balanced perfectly on the index finger area. Makes it feel light and maneuverable. That said, the metal edge of the choil (index finger area) and back of the blade down the handle were uncomfortably sharp-edged. A few minutes work with a chainsaw sharpening file and a honing steel smoothed it out and made the knife everything I wanted, but the customer should not have to do this. Would have given it five stars if the manufacturer had taken the extra finishing step before it arrived. Still, good knife at the price and I'm glad to have it.

Stays sharp, takes a good edge, handle isn't unwieldy, and looks better than those kiwi 6$ versions. The back spine of the knife, like every Henckels knife I've bought is super sharp. I recommend taking a stone to it to grind it down before use. The back of the knife where you hold it. That's the only downside of this knife. The very tip isn't squared off like some nakiri, it's got a little bit of a curve to it. It also wasn't sharp at the very tip when I got it, but a few times on a stone and it was working the way I like it. This is a workhorse of a knife, treat it well and it will last years of abuse in a commercial kitchen. I recommend a 15° bevel on both sides, but you do you boo. It's easy to hone if it feels a little dull. I recommend you look at the Henckels Classic line of knives over their others. The steel on the spanish made ones are pretty good for your price. It's basically a budget Zwilling with less refined edges.

Nice knife. It is a joy to use.

You probably read several reviews that the knife was not finished. That was also the case with me. The top of the blade was very rough and I needed to smooth it out. I used a honing steel and that worked pretty well, but took a while. The handle looks nice and finished, and the knife is well balanced. If the knife would have been made by Victorinox it probably would have cost about $30 to $40. With a more comfortable fibrox handle, but wouldn’t have been as pretty. However Victorinox doesn’t make a this style that I could find. I am using the knife a lot, and I was able to get it very sharp with just a leather strop.

I love the lightness, safety and cutting efficiency of this knife. I took an Dremel grinding tool and rounded over the knife blade back and top of handle transition. This made the sharp, relatively uncomfortable top edged of the knife comfortable to handle. Now, I can put my hand on the back of the blade and choke up like a batter and make more controlled little cuts. The squarish shape of the knife ends and back make picking up cuttings and cleanup really super easy. I have many other good knives but I now use this one the most and could not be happier. I used the Henkels steel to smooth and straiten the edge before use. Good value and is very safe for cooks because th sharp point of the knife is removed where it is mostly used as a pivot. This knife improved my chops per second dramatically!