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Whether Japanese or German, each type of knife has been influenced by its culture. The Japanese believe in having a perfect tool for an explicit purpose, and as such have many specific knives for specific tasks. Meanwhile, Germans value versatility and durability in their culinary efforts and therefore have designed knives that are good at many different undertakings. In the end, each knife has its own strengths and weaknesses. It’s not that one style of knife is better than the other — it’s just a matter of use and preference.   The Blade’s Steel Your typical Japanese knife is known...

The bevel of a knife is one of the most important aspects that help to define its sharpness, strength, durability, and use. To put it simply, a bevel is the ground angle and shape of the blade’s edge, and depending on what it’s made of and how it’s ground, it can dictate the type of knife you have. Traditionally, the Japanese have knives that fall into two categories of bevels: a double bevel, or a single bevel. It’s common to also hear this referred to as a doubled-edged blade or a single-edged blade. Double Bevels: A double-bevel knife, or double-edged...

  Often times our customers ask us a question, “Can I use a honing rod to sharpen my Yoshihiro Knife?” The answer is No, a resounding No. Let me explain why. A honing rod is commonly used in Western kitchens, to maintain the sharpness of a knife by scraping its blade edge against the honing steel. This is because the blade steel used in Western knives is soft, making the edges curl easily and requires daily maintenance to realign. The softness of the steel derives from the alchemy developed in old-time Europe, and knives such as German inherit this feature....

What whetstones should I get?   There are many different grades of whetstones but the sheer amount of information may dissuade some people from ever sharpening knives themselves. But for the average chef we’d recommend 3 basic whetstones. The 3 types of whetstones you should have is 1000, 3000, and 8000 grit stones. Ideally, we suggest using a 1000 grit first and then finishing with the 3000 grit and then the 8000 grit finish. The 1000 grit stone is a must-have stone and if you don’t have a large budget, it would still work. However if you are only using...

SG-2 and R-2 SG-2 and R-2 SG-2 stands for Super Gold 2 and was developed by Takefu Special Steel Co. based in Echizen, Japan. Originally, Takefu Special Steel developed the Super Gold steel but further developed and enhanced their powdered steel metallurgy to develop Super Gold 2. The Super Gold series is based on a modern cutting-edge powdered steel metallurgy that allows for the production of unique materials impossible to get from melting or forming in other ways. SG-2 contains the following amounts of the elements: Carbon: 1.25 – 1.45%, Vanadium: 1.80 – 2.20%, Chromium: 14.00 – 16.00%, Molybdenum: 2.30...