GRINDING STONE AND NAKIRI KNIVES FROM SHAN ZU

We got ourselves two new toys, a sharpening stone and a Japanese Nakiri knife from SHAN ZU.

I had been looking for a new knife for a long time. I had already decided on the type of blade, it should be a Japanese Nakiri chef's knife. What was difficult for me was choosing a manufacturer. I didn't want to spend a fortune on a type of knife I had never used before, but it also shouldn't be too cheap in terms of quality. So I had been looking at the American warehouse for a long time and kept deciding against buying.

But this time I was convinced to find a knife for myself and I was right. I found the Nakiri knife from the company SHAN ZU. Never heard of SHAN ZU? Neither had I! But the listing made a good impression and the reviews were consistently positive.

The knife is made of German stainless steel with a 16.5 cm long blade and really made a good impression in the pictures, all for a price of just 29.99 euros. 

AND ANOTHER WETSTONE WITH IT!

Once I had the new knife in the shopping cart, I thought about finally ordering a whetstone as well.

In the last video, I was just reminded again that you shouldn't drag the knife over the board because it will become dull. I know that myself, but I just can't get it into my head; I keep forgetting. If you can't prevent something, you should at least be able to correct the mistake, so I also immediately ordered the sharpening stone from SHAN ZU.

The whetstone has 2 grits, a 1000 grit for sharpening and a 6000 grit for polishing. The whetstone should be soaked in water for 5 minutes before use so it can absorb water. A rubber holder on the bottom provides a firm grip, and a sharpening guide is included to ensure sharpening at the correct angle.

It's also so tempting when Amazon shows "Frequently bought together," then it must be so. Into the shopping cart with it and finally press the order button, and 1 day later it was already there, my sharpening stone and Nakiri knife from SHAN ZU.

DELIVERED AND TESTED

As usual with Amazon, the goods were already there the next day, unpacked and started.

The knife is delivered in a box with a magnetic closure. Makes a good impression right away. The knife itself looks like in the picture, the handle feels high-quality and is excellently crafted, and the blade has a pleasant weight. Probably everything done right.

The whetstone is securely packed and feels very valuable after unpacking. Wooden base and the anti-slip rubber look good and are well made.

Everything really looks top and feels high-quality.

WHAT DOES NAKIRI MEAN?

Literally translated, Nakiri means "leaf cutter" and is therefore more intended for vegetables. With the blade, vegetables can be easily chopped and then, thanks to the blade height, quickly picked up. Working with the knife is so pleasant that it is now used as an all-purpose knife and so it will also be used for meat with us.

UPDATE

You know how it is, when you don't know a company, you always buy cheap at first and then the products that cost a bit more. That's what we did now. The Nakiri impressed us so much regarding price/performance that we ordered a Damascus steel kitchen knife as well.

The appearance: you can tell that you are holding a higher-quality product. The knife is a bit heavier than the Nakiri and the handle feels better. The logo at the end of the handle is not etched but engraved. The handle's workmanship seems to be a bit better than with the inexpensive products. The blade looks great with the small rose decorations.

The quality: The knife is already pre-sharpened and can be used immediately. The knife fits well in the hand (I would describe my hands as average size) and cuts fantastically.

The knife is sharpened by the manufacturer at an angle of 15°, so the sharpening aid on the whetstone can be used since the aid is designed for 15°.

CONCLUSION

After Mahika received her first kitchen knife last year, it was my turn again this year. The first tests were a lot of fun and I can't wait to really work with it. For just 30 euros, I bought a top knife that you can work really well with. Just check out our upcoming videos, you'll see it more often there.

So now we not only have sharpening stones and Nakiri knives from SHAN ZU, but also a Damascus chef's knife. The price-performance ratio has completely convinced us. If our opinion changes during daily use, we will announce it here.