To a professional chef, no kitchen tool rivals a great set of knives. When learning my trade in Paris, France, I used only the finest Sabatier knives. Later in life, I was fortunate to make a Swiss Miss a Mrs. Typically frugal and practical... and from a family that has had the same Restaurant Bauernhof for centuries... so, when my prized Sabatiers were lost in transit, she replaced them with a more economical (stamped not forged) Swiss brand, R. H. Forschner by Victorinox.Suddenly, this 70 year old retired chef cut through decades of knife prejudice... the sharpness, balance, thin blade and heft brought joy to my kitchen again... and for a fraction of what I would usually pay! It has been several years since my first Forschner and it is just as good as the one I just purchased.
Last fall we visited Oberlunkhofen, Switzerland, where my mother-in-law continues as chef of the family restaurant at 82 years of age and her 86 year old sister-in-law is the waitress. Her wooden handled knives were of excellent quality but could no longer pass the NSF rules. I purchased a set of H. R. Forschners for her at a Swiss wholesale restaurant supply house... at a price higher than we could have gotten them on Amazon.com! Not only is she a cutlery pro, but she values price and practicality even in gifts. Now she thinks kindly of me as she cheerfully slices through each day.
They don't have the thick back of most quality forged knives (these are stamped). They don't have rosewood handles. They're not made to pimp up your kitchen or match your mixer. They're made for cutting things, and they do this exceptionally well.
The blades are exceptionally shiny steel, very similar to Victorinox's Swiss Army knife. Things don't stick to the blade much. Like Swiss Army Knives, they also have a comparatively thin back and very little 'wedge effect.' This means when you cut things, they don't fly across the room. You don't push. The exquisitely sharp blade just kind of slips down through, leaving even carrots right where they were.
I'd never understood how chefs managed some of the fast cutting they do: now, I get it. I've owned some pretty decent knives before, but these are something else entirely. For the price, if you're serious about sharp, you can't do better.
Buy Victorinox 8-Piece Knife Block Set Now
I purchased the 8 piece Forschner block set (plus the 7 inch Santoku), and highly recommend this set and the extra 7 inch Santoku which fits in the same block.The deciding factor for me were the comments by professional chefs and butchers on various web sites
including this one.
The problem with purchasing individual knives is that the cases are very expensive (with shipping and handling the mark up over mfg cost must be 1000%?), but you just cannot have sharp knives loose in a drawer. The block is $30+ if you compare the piece part prices, and if you have small kitchen it uses the least space, further away from kids hands, less fiddly than the knife safes as well.
As for what you get in the block set, it has just about the right combination of knives for me, the Santoku
knife fits in one empty slot as well (thanks to reviewer who commented on that). There's a steel included as well
which is essential. The boning knife is longer than the one in my old set, but I don't do use it that much. There's one spare slot for a smaller knife.
These knives are all very sharp, and I'd say the 8 inch chef's knife is the largest I would ever need,
better for heavier cutting, but also OK for fine cutting as well. The 7 inch Santoku is lighter and I like using it-I can see why it's popular, better for potatoes/vegetables but can also handle heavy cutting as well. They both are great for fine chopping using a rocking motion, and with plenty of knuckle room. With a 2 cook kitchen having the two knives in the block seems a good plan. The Santoku has slightly different handle shape than the other knives which may be for Asian style chopping (versus rocking), I'll have to experiment.
As for using in a dishwasher, one Forschner supplier recommends no, the reason being the plastic
cover on the dishwasher rack will be cut and may cause the underlying metal to corrode, not to mention
knife edge wear, and change in blade temper (although I am sceptical about this last one) . If you clean them as you go this isn't a problem.
Read Best Reviews of Victorinox 8-Piece Knife Block Set Here
What is good:Chef's knife
Bread knife
Paring knife
which you can buy all three for about $50.00
You also get a boning knife which you may or may not use a lot. You get a slicing knife that looks like a cake icer, but one side is sharp, you'd be better off getting the granton edge slicer or a serrated one. Other than that you are getting a block (buy the Kapoosh Universal knife block for $30 rated highest by Cooks Illustrated), kitchens scissors and a sharpening steel which all can be gotten for dirt cheap. You only have two open spaces on the knife block, so you can't expand much either.
Go to Cooks Illustrated and look on Amazon to see the best individual knifes and you will have exactly the knives you want for a cheaper price.
Want Victorinox 8-Piece Knife Block Set Discount?
Sure, I read about how great Forschner knives are for the money, but I considered my old Chicago Cutlery set to be good enough. How much different can one set of cutlery be than another, anyway? After all, I'm no pro chef, just a home kitchen hacker.Curiosity got the better of me, and I got the Forschner Fibrox eight piece set.
The items in the set are well chosen for the average range of kitchen tasks, although I would like a smaller flexible paring knife rather than the included four inch rabbit (?!) knife. I am mildly surprised at how well the serrated bread knife handles a block of cheddar or a tomato; it might be the favorite of the bunch. I also like the shears, and find the 10" slicer large enough to handle anything I'll ever serve. The boning knife makes taking the skin off a salmon easy. The chef's knife is big enough for me and not too large for my better half.
The Fibrox handles are comfortable, give a secure grip and fit my big paws and my wife's smaller hands. The knives all "feel good" to me, well balanced and solid. Yes, they are sharp, and the included steel hones them with little effort.
If you've read this far, you might be like I was, wondering if good knives can really be that much better than "good enough". The answer is a resounding yes. They really are a pleasure to use, and a job like cutting up a chicken for frying is now a chance for me to enjoy the quality of these knives rather than just annoying drudge work.
If you still aren't sure, order a Forschner Santoku or mini chef's knife to try for yourself, and when you do order the set it will find a home in one of the two empty slots in the block.
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