ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE NAKIRI

Deciding on a new knife is not an easy task, with so many options to choose from, how on earth do you know what knife is "the one". We spend most of our time searching for the best Japanese knives available so you can rest assured that once you have found a knife that meets your criteria, it will exceed  your expectations. 

BENEFITS AND VERSATILITY OF THE NAKIRI 

The Nakiri is a shape designed specifially for vegetable chopping. It has a flat profile (less curvy blade) that helps the knife make great contact with the cutting board when using an up and down chopping motion, helping to avoid those pesky accordions of stuck together ingredients. It's tall blade gives the user lots of travel for their guide hand and helps the user to feel more confident they're not going to slice off a piece of their finger. 

COMMON USES OF THE NAKIRI

Having been designed specifically for vegetable chopping the Nakiri is generally used for just that. Of course, it can be used to slice a steak or cut up a chicken breast, but it really shines when chopping vegetables in the mid size range. I like to refer to my Nakiri as my stir-fry knife, there's no better knife for blasting through carrots, onions a bell peppers, slicing them nice and thin and getting them ready to be quickly sautéed in a pan. Furthermore, their tall blade gives them great surface area and they can  be used as a scoop to easily move large amounts of thinly sliced vegetables from you cutting board to the pan or a storage container. 

ALTERNATIVES TO THE NAKIRI

While there is no better option for chopping vegetables the Nakiri is a bit limited in what it can do when compared to other knives that have a pointy tip. We would argue that any well rounded kit will contain a Nakiri, but if this is to be your first knife you might consider a Gyuto, Santoku or Bunka as they are more versatile and capable of tasks that the Nakiri may not be well suited for. 

TIPS FOR CHOOSING YOUR FIRST NAKIRI

While it can be tempting to purchase a Nakiri based purely on aesthetics (I should know, I've done it once or twice), We would highly recommend considering a few factors before making a decision. Japanese knives are made from a variety of steel types which can impact their maintenance requirements. Knives made from carbon steel can and will rust if not properly maintained, while knives made from stainless steel will remain rust free. All of our knives have their steel type and care instructions listed on the product page so you can make a better informed decision. You can also check out our Knife Maintenance blog post here.