SHAN ZU

Beginning its life as a humble Kickstarter project, SHAN ZU are has quickly grown into an impressive kitchenware company that takes pride in our products and our customer service. It was founded with the idea of bringing top-quality equipment to consumers at a fraction of the price of competitors. And today, There are many reasons to choose a SHAN ZU kitchen knife. Some of the most important reasons include the following:

1.Best Quality

-SHAN ZU kitchen knives are made with high-quality materials, ensuring that they are durable and long-lasting.

2.Wonderful Sharpness

-SHAN ZU kitchen knives are precision-crafted, ensuring that they are able to provide a high level of accuracy and precision when cutting.

3.Easy With Safe

-SHAN ZU kitchen knives are designed for the modern kitchen and are perfect for any cutting task, from chopping vegetables to slicing meats. Shanzu kitchen knives are also designed with a comfortable grip, ensuring that they are easy and safe to use.

Are SHAN ZU Kitchen Knives A Good Quality Compared With Other Brands?

It’s tempting to think that because shanzu’s knives are offered at a lower price, but with high-quality. It is well known that, they compare favorably with other major knife brands like Wusthof, Shun, and Zwilling Henckels.

That’s mainly as a result of the high-quality materials that SHAN ZU uses. Their carbon steel is the same quality as that used for knives that can sell for twice as much. And the attention to detail in SHAN ZU’s knife design far exceeds that of knives sold at the same price.

What is the Damascus Steel?

The origin of the name "Damascus Steel" is contentious: two Islamic scholars Al-Kindi and Al-Biruni (from circa 800-873 CE) both wrote about swords and steels for swords based on the appearance, geographical location of where they were produced or forged, or the name of the blacksmith. And there is a mention from both scholars of 'damscene' or 'damascus' when describing the swords to some extent.

Drawing upon these references, there are three possible sources from where the term Damascus originates from in the context of steel:

Al-Kindi called swords forged in Damascus in Siberia as 'Damascene', but it is important to note that these swords were not described as having a wavy pattern appearance on the surface of the steel.Al-Biruni refers to a sword-smith called Damasqui who made swords of crucible steel.In Arabic, the word 'damas' means 'watered', and Damascus blades are often described as having a water-pattern on their surface.

The most common explanation is that steel is named after the capital city of Syria, Damascus, the largest of the cities in the ancient Levant. It may either refer to swords made or sold in Damascus directly, or it may just refer to the aspect of the typical patterns, by comparison with Damask fabrics which are also named for Damascus. 

What is the German Steel?

German knives are usually made with stainless steel, which has a Rockwell scale rating of 56-58. Stainless steel contains chromium. This is what lowers the Rockwell scale rating. The benefit is a knife blade that resists corrosion and rust.

Cooks generally agree that German-style, stainless steel knife blades are hardier than Japanese-style blades. There’s less concern about chipping or breaking the blade of a German-style knife. Its durability means you can use it for more cutting and chopping tasks.

The softer characteristic of the steel still provides a sharp edge, but stainless steel will require you to hone and sharpen it more often. The softer steel also makes the blade easier to sharpen the blade — even though a stainless steel blade means that a German knife will lose its sharp edge quicker than its Japanese counterpart, which is made of high-carbon steel.

After a few weeks of use, new knives will become dull, forcing you to apply more pressure to make cuts. That added resistance doesn't just mangle meats and veggies; it's a potential hazard for your fingers.

Disclaimer time: I'm stating the obvious, but knives can hurt you. Even if you don't plan on servicing your own blades, handle them with care. The smallest of paring knives can cause a big injury in a flash. Always exercise extreme caution and be mindful when using these sharp implements -- for your sake and of those around you. I'll also focus on steel knives since ceramic blades typically require professional servicing.     

Next, you need a sharpener. But only the right kind will do.

When your knife’s blade has taken a beating and needs more help, it’s time to step things up and get out the sharpener, which should only be used a handful of times a year.

Electric sharpeners may seem like the superior choice, but they’re probably the worst tool for sharpening a knife. I learned this in culinary school, when a fellow student pulled one from his tool kit and our French chef instructor swiftly swatted it across the kitchen. Electric sharpeners strip too much metal from the knife, destroying the blade and weakening it over time. (Which is a shame if you spent a lot of money on your beloved knives.)

Handheld sharpeners are OK, but they’re not the best.

What you really want is a whetstone (also known as a sharpening stone or water stone), which is the preferred tool for sharpening knives because it gives you, the cook, complete control. Sharpening stones are basically long, rectangular blocks of composite stone, typically with a coarse grit on one side and a fine grit on the other. As seen below, the side with the lower number is used for sharpening, and the side with the higher number is used for polishing:

How to sharpen your knives using a whetstone

Start by soaking the stone for 10 minutes to 20 minutes in water, which will help lubricate the knife as you sharpen. Place the stone on a towel or mat with the coarse side up. Next, a very important step: Establish the knife’s angle, which is usually between 20 degrees and 25 degrees for European-style knives, and as steep as 15 degrees for Japanese-style knives. Hold the knife firmly at the appropriate angle and slide it across the stone, pulling it toward you, starting from the heel and working toward the tip. Do about 10 to 20 strokes per side, then repeat on the fine grit side. Wipe the knife clean and it’s ready to use. Test it on a tomato to see how sharp it is, and you’ll be amazed.

Get the right tools for your kitchen, add a little trial and error, and you’ll be able to make any recipe you want.

But the right knife for your kitchen will depend on a few things, like your style of cooking, level of experience, and budget for kitchen tools.

In this section, I’ll touch on some of the most important personal considerations you should keep in mind before finding the best kitchen knives for you, including the most important questions to ask before buying a knife.

How Do You Cook?

Beginners to home cooking will have the easiest time choosing a kitchen knife. If you haven’t developed a particular style and don’t yet cook from a specific cuisine, a basic set of knives is the way to go. Give yourself a chef’s knife and a paring knife to start with, and you’ll be set to cook 90% of recipes and learn the basic knife cuts.

If you already have a preference for either Western or Eastern cuisines, though, your choice of kitchen knives should reflect that. For example: The ultra-thin blades of Japanese knives make them better suited to making precise cuts on delicate fish. But a heavier-handled German knife will give you more weight for breaking down chicken, pork, and beef.

Lastly, how good are your knife skills? The design of a given blade will make it better at certain types of knife cuts. If you’re already practiced with the Western-style rocking motion, stick with a Western blade. But if you’re open to learning a new skill, the Japanese-style push and pull cut can give impressively clean results.

Sets Vs. Individual Knives

Go to any home goods store, and you’re likely to see a fancy display of shiny new knives. Most often sold together with a block for storage, these knife sets may lead you to think: Wouldn’t it be easier to just get everything at once? Well, yes and no.

Oftentimes, knife sets from less-recognized brands are just a way to sell you a bunch of knives you don’t need. They’ll include redundancies, like three sizes of utility knives, to make the set look more impressive. These types of sets should be avoided at all costs.

But here’s the final consideration: Do you need all of those knives? For most people, the answer is no. If your kitchen knife collection is just getting started, it’s usually better to invest in a single, top-quality knife at a time. That said, if you already know that you love a certain brand’s knives, a knife set can offer significant savings.

Forged Vs. Stamped

What’s the most important quality in a kitchen knife? In my experience, it’s the construction of the blade. Without a well-made blade, no other detail can make a kitchen knife worth using.

So what qualifies as a well-made blade? If you’re looking for the best kitchen knife, not just one that will work for a while, you need a forged blade. 

Forged blades are carefully handcrafted from a single piece of steel, folded, and tempered in a painstaking process. As a result, they’re sharper, more durable, and keep an edge longer. Because they take more time and attention to make, they’re also pricier.

A stamped blade, in contrast, is punched out of a piece of steel. Because it hasn’t been folded, tempered, and processed, a stamped blade will never be as high quality as a forged blade. They’re much less expensive, but in my experience, stamped blades cause more trouble than they’re worth.

A Sharp Knife Is A Safe Knife

The sharper a knife is, the safer it is to use. For beginners, that may seem counterintuitive. Wouldn’t a dull knife have less chance of cutting you?

Not at all. The majority of knife accidents in the kitchen come from dull and poorly cared for knives. Because you’ll have to apply more pressure for each cut, the chance of slipping and cutting yourself rises starkly.

Contrast that with a razor-sharp knife. That same cut that a dull blade struggled through? A freshly sharpened knife will slice through smoothly, without resistance.

How do you know if your knife is sharp? Try folding a piece of paper in half, standing it up on your counter, and cutting it from top to bottom. If your knife struggles through that — or can’t even start the cut — it definitely needs to be sharpened.

If your knife can’t pass the paper test, you’ll need to decide whether to sharpen it yourself or take it to a professional. You can learn how to sharpen kitchen knives from our guide, or find a knife sharpening service in your area. They’ll usually charge about $2 per inch of blade that needs sharpening.

Care And Maintenance

Taking care of your knives really comes down to two things: Keeping them clean and dry, and storing them safely.

First, no quality knife should ever be put in a dishwasher. The high temperatures can damage both the blade and the handle, and reduce the longevity of the knife. Hand wash only, please. And while you’re at it, always dry your knife with a towel promptly after washing it. That will prevent any possibility of corrosion or staining.

You’ll also want to invest in some sort of knife storage solution for your kitchen. That could be individual sheaths, a knife block, a magnetic rack, in-drawer storage, or a knife bag. 

Cutting Boards

Last but not least: You’ll need something to cut on! Quality knives need wooden cutting boards to accompany them. Avoid glass, ceramic, or granite cutting boards — they’ll all quickly dull or damage your knife’s edge.

From slicing a pork loin to dicing a pineapple, knowing how to work with the essential kitchen knives is critical to success in the kitchen. Equipping yourself with the proper knives is key, says Brendan McDermott, chef-instructor and resident knife skills expert at New York's Institute of Culinary Education.

If you're equipping your kitchen and wondering "what kitchen knives do I need?", keep reading to discover the four essential knives every home cook should own, plus how to use them, how not to use them, and what price point yields the best-quality blade.

1. Chef's Knife

A classic chef's knife is the most important knife in your collection. McDermott recommends an 8- to 10-inch chef's knife, which he acknowledges may be slightly longer than most people are comfortable with at first. However, the longer edge makes the knife more versatile and efficient. "The more blade you have, the more knife you have to do the work for you," he explains. "And the bigger the blade you have to slice through an ingredient, the safer it is."

Chef's Knife Uses

A chef's knife is the go-to tool for more than 90 percent of daily kitchen tasks, McDermott notes, including most slicing and dicing of fruits, vegetables, meats, and fish. And while a chef's knife may be the "king of the kitchen," it should not be used to butcher or carve poultry, to remove the skin of large vegetables such as butternut squash, or, as some people have tried, to puncture a hole in cans. The broadness of a chef's knife blade makes it unwieldy for tasks better suited to a smaller knife.

How Much Should You Spend on a Chef's Knife?

If you're willing to make an investment in a knife in your arsenal, this is where to do it. Of all the knives you own, McDermott recommends spending the most on your chef's knife and suggests a price of about $100 for a high-quality chef's knife. "Remember that knives are heirlooms," he says. "And the good ones should last forever."

Choose blades that are full tang (one full piece of metal with the two handle pieces pinned to the sides) versus half-tang (a piece of metal that extends the full length of the knife, but only part of the width, or does not extend the length of the knife and is instead glued into the handle). Full-tang knives are more balanced, sturdier, and longer-lasting than half-tang models. Our test kitchen also generally prefers forged chef's knives, which are made from a single piece of forged steel, heated and pounded into the desired shape. The other option is a stamped blade, which is cut out of a large sheet of steel and is usually lighter, a quality considered undesirable in a chef's knife.

2. Paring Knife

A paring knife picks up where a chef's knife leaves off. "Because the average paring knife blade is about 3 1/2 inches long, it's a great tool for any foods that require an attention to detail," McDermott says.

Paring Knife Uses

It's best for slicing and mincing items that are too small for an 8- to 10-inch blade, such as mincing garlic, hulling strawberries, or peeling fruits and vegetables.

Avoid using paring knives to cut very hard vegetables, such as carrots, celery root, or parsnips. These smaller knives don't carry enough weight to easily slice through the foods, which may prompt you to increase the pressure or tighten your grip as you're cutting. "If you find yourself applying pressure at any point, you're doing something wrong," McDermott says. Forcing the cut is a signal that you aren't using the right blade for the job, and it can be dangerous, too, causing the knife to slip.

3. Serrated Knife

Serrated knives may be most commonly associated with slicing bread, which is why they are also called bread knives. But according to McDermott, the toothed blade can take on almost any job not suited to the straight blade of a chef's knife.

Serrated Knife Uses

A serrated knife, with an average blade length of 6 inches, is especially useful for foods with waxy surfaces, such as tomatoes, pineapples, watermelons, citrus, and peppers. They're also great for cutting cake layers. The jagged edge can grip and penetrate those slippery exteriors, while the flat blade of a chef's knife would slip and slide across the surface. Bottom line: Think beyond bread.

Serrated knives should only be used for slicing, rather than chopping, foods. Using a sawing motion with the knife allows the teeth along the blade to grip and cut through ingredients, which is also why a serrated knife should not be used to slice smaller items such as fresh herbs, garlic, or berries.

How Much Should You Spend on a Serrated Knife?

McDermott recommends spending $30 to $40 for a good-quality serrated knife. If you take good care of your serrated knife, it will stay sharp for years to come, says McDermott. And if your knife gets dull, McDermott recommends simply replacing it.

When choosing a serrated knife, pay attention to the size of the teeth: You want a knife with teeth that are not too big (which can tear up the soft interior of a loaf) or too small (not efficient for slicing.) If you'll be hacking through a lot of loaves, you might consider a knife with a slightly offset handle, which will provide more leverage and more comfortable handling. We recommend this Victorinox 10 1/4-inch Wavy Bread Knife.

4. Boning Knife

As its name implies, a boning knife is the best blade for cutting up or boning fish, meat, or poultry of any size, whether a 3-inch-long anchovy or a 150-pound side of pork. "Most knives are designed to cut straight lines," McDermott says. "But when it comes to anything with a ribcage and joints, there is no such thing as a straight line in the body, so you need a blade that can move and flex." A boning knife gives you that leeway.

A boning knife should not be used to cut through bones, but rather to cut around bones. A good boning knife will have the flexibility to deftly separate meat from bone as well as slice through joints and cartilage.

How Much Should You Spend on a Bonig Knife?

McDermott recommends spending about $30 for a good-quality boning knife and suggests investing a bit more if a boning knife will get heavy use in your kitchen.