Kato-san Tsuchime Nakiri 165 mm

Yoshimi Kato

Yoshimi Kato works out of the Takefu Knife village and took over the Family business from his father in-law in 2013. His Father in-law Hiroshi Kato-san started the shop in the late 1960's and was inaugurated as the 4th Chairman of the Takefu Knife village in 1994. Making incredible knives runs in the family obviously and we're very excited to have these incredibly sharp knives in our shop. They have one of the most beautiful damascus patterns we have ever seen and are sharpened by famous knife sharpener Makoto Kurosaki; brother of one of our favorite knifemakers Yu Kurosaki.

The Takefu Knife Village is a cooperative workshop in the Echizen region of Japan. It is the home to a long list of blacksmiths that we work with and many young and upcoming apprentices learning the trade. The area has a 700 year long history of smithing with roots in agricultural tools turned cutlery powerhouse. 

The Knife

The Nakiri is designed for vegetable chopping and more specifically for an up and down chopping motion. The tall blade provides a great amount of travel for the user's guide fingers, the flat profile means no stuck together pieces when using that up and down motion and the flat spine can be used to scrape things across your cutting board without damaging the edge. 

The Steel 

R2 Is a fantastic stainless steel, it has excellent edge retention and can take super sharp edge. You might read that it can be difficult to sharpen, which can certainly be true in certain circumstances but we find these knives very easy to sharpen because of how thin they are behind the edge, this also gives them a very satisfying cutting feel. Really nice fit and finish on this knife as well, spine and choil are both nicely sanded and the handle install is very well executed. 

Knife Care (Stainless Steel)

• Although this knife is made from stainless steel we do still encourage our customers to keep their knives as dry and clean as possible.
• NO DISHWASHER - the high heat will ruin the wooden handle.
• Wash and dry by hand using regular dish soap and warm water using a none abrasive sponge or cloth.
• Ensure the knife is dry before being put away for storage and ensure the edge of the knife is protected to avoid any unnecessary dulling.
• Avoid Bones, Frozen foods, nuts and hard candies or anything other than fruits, vegetables and proteins.