This is a great vegetable cleaver. This shouldn't be confused with a meat cleaver which has a thicker blade used to chop through bone. It has a thinner blade meant to chop and slice vegetables and boneless meat. It has a double-bevel unlike many japanese knives.It as about 7" long and I think it is a great buy. I typically like to use a Chinese cleaver to chop veggies but mine is 4 inches wide and a bit unweildly for smaller jobs. The width of this one makes it much easier to manipulate for jobs that are big and small. Yet, it still feels substantial in the hand. It is easy to slice veggies and smash garlic cloves. It keeps it's edge and is durable.
This ginsu seems to be the best bang for the buck. I was glad that was able to test it and gave it great reviews. We have been very happy with it.
This is very similar in shape to a Japanese style knife called a Nakiri in Japan, and also similar to a Japanese vegetable cleaver, but smaller. This is heavier and thicker than a true nakiri, and lighter and smaller than the traditional Japanese cleaver. Some people might try it on bones and bend or chip the blade. It's not for hard stuff like that, it's for quick chopping, dicing and mincing of vegetables and boneless meat. The blade is too delicate for bones or frozen food. It is about twice as thick on the spine as the true Japanese Nakiris that I have, and weighs about twice as much.
Beware, it's not the most stainless alloy of steel. It will rust spot if you put it in a dishwasher or leave it wet for a long time. The handle will probably fade to gray also in the dishwasher, so it's not recommended. I suspect they had to balance steel hardness against rust resistance, and at this price cost had to be a factor too. Anyway I don't wash any cutlery in the dishwasher -no major maker recommends that. They suggest hand washing and immediate drying.
I still give it 5 stars because I don't think you can beat it at anywhere near this price. It's a very good knife for it's intended purpose.I had been looking for a Chinese cleaver for kitchen work, I went back Ginsu Chikara series because I have a couple other knives and enjoy them very much. This cleaver is NOT a bone cleaver, and it is not a full Chinese cleaver, but for what we prep in the kitchen it is awesome. It has all the height of a big chef's knife, but not all the length. In a small kitchen that is very important! Our counter (yep just one) can get cluttered during cooking and an 8 to 10 inch chef's knife starts poking things past the edges of the cutting board. No worries with this! And it is wide enough to scoop cut items from the board and transfer them to pot or pan, granted a true Chinese cleaver is wider si I may have to make two scoops rather than one. Long straight cuts are a breeze and there is weight and tip enough to get some detail work in as well. There are better knives on the market, but you will pay well over $100 dollars for them.I am no Todd English but after seeing him use this style knife I wanted to use one to do my chopping and mincing. You would be crazy to buy a Henkle or other high end knife without trying this first.Very good quality, I purchased after buying the 12 piece Chikara set and being very satisfied with the quality of the Chikara series. Keep in mind, this is not really a cleaver. Why they call it a cleaver, I have no idea. I knew before I bought it, but it is a nakiri, which is a knife for chopping greens and onions and such. Do not attempt to chop meat and bones with this, you will damage it. The blade is a little longer, much thinner, and has less depth than a real cleaver. I can't stress this enough.
For veggies, this is light but not too light, and well balanced, matching the quality of the rest of the Chikara set. Very sharp, good quality steel, just needing light honing before each use as you would any quality knife. Much better than the price would indicate, making it a great value for a nakiri bocho. As long as you know what you are getting, you will love it.
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