A Great Knife for the Home Cook

I get this question asked of me ALL the time…what is my knife of choice?  But it’s really no secret at all.  I am biased and I play favorites.  I love my Shun, which you will see me use often in my videos, but it can be a little scary to use for the home-cook.  With that said, I absolutely ADORE my pink-handled special edition Kyocera ceramic santoku knife.  And mind you, I am an UN-official spokesperson for them, but darn it, I should go into business with them, because I’m always a giddy school girl professing my love.  Here’s WHY:

1. It’s small, cute and light-weight….like my glory days in college… ((sigh))… It has a plastic handle and feels like a toy, which makes using it feel less scary.
2. $5.00 from every purchase gets donated towards breast cancer research, hence the pink color.
3. It stays sharp and needs re-sharpening about 1/10 of the time a stainless steel blade needs.
4. If the ceramic blade chips or gets dull, you just send it away for free sharpening from the Kyocera facility, which is conveniently located in Costa Mesa, CA.  All you have to do is pay for shipping (yes, even if you live in Costa Mesa because they do not accept walk-ins).  I sent mine away to do just that.  It has taken about 3 weeks to get it back, but they said that this was abnormal.  They were just super busy and backed up with a few orders.  It usually only takes 2 weeks.  After speaking to one of the service reps on the phone, I can do this forever, as long as I own my knife.

Q. It has a white blade.  Doesn’t it get dirty or stained?
A. Why yes it does.  Over time, the pure white blade gets a little orange-y or yellowed from use.  BUT not to worry.  According to the rep, a soaking and scrubbing in a mixture of Clorox bleach & water will do the trick.

Q. Ceramic huh?  That sounds awfully delicate and high-maintenance.  Can’t it get damaged or even shatter?
A. You are right.  It can, however, it’s a lot sturdier than you’d think.  I’ve banged it around by accident a few times while on a job, and it has held up quite nicely.  Just try not to drop it on a hard kitchen floor or throw it in the dishwasher, which in my opinion, you should never do with any of your knives anyway.  They should be your babies.  Plus, remember, you can send it to Kyocera for a fix-up if it chips.

Q. I don’t want to send it out to California each time I need to sharpen it.  Can’t I just do it at home?
A. Heck to the no.  I wouldn’t recommend it.  Kyocera blades are sharpened only by their own facilities using special diamond wheels.  Now, if you’ve got a professional quality diamond wheel hanging out on your kitchen counter, please leave me your name and home address so I can steal admire it.

Click here to check out the rest of my kitchen knives and tools.

That’s all folks.  Take it or leave it, but I love my little pink knife and you just might too.