It is always a great start to spark up an interest in a hobby then right away go with it. Similar to gourmets and food lovers, diners may enjoy the time going to different places and try out different dishes out of their usual preferences. However, it is known that Japanese cuisine surely sits in the hearts of diners worldwide with its extraordinary blends of quality ingredients, full of vivid colors and fancy decorations. Delicacy and subtleness are the two words that can describe Japanese food and its entity. While a wide variety of Japanese dishes like Yakisoba and the street food-famous Takoyaki rocks the universe, sushi and sashimi are two most popular Japanese dishes that captivate the hearts of gourmets and sensory masters who are willing to come out of their comfort zone as they taste the flavors of savory delight.
Japanese food is extremely popular and well-known for the intricate processes, the creative presentation, and wise choice of ingredients.
When it comes to the sushi aesthetics, diners would definitely think about the wide, lengthy sushi table that allows professional chefs and sushi masters to showcase their unique skills of the blade – the fast, swift cuts and slices that brings about the product of perfection: thin, delicious, mouth-watering sushi and sashimi slices.
As Japanese blades or knives are essential in the crafting of delicate culinary art pieces like those of sushi and sashimi, a wide variety of knife types are available to ease each intricate process and support the varying techniques. Some common types of knives include: Santoku knife, Gyuto knife, Kengata knife, Bunka knife, and Nakiri knife. To perform different tasks, these knives are designed to support specific skills and usage, making it simpler for users to craft their art pieces. Professionals and culinary experts are always in the search for specific knives to use in the making of high-end sashimi dishes. For beginners, on the other hand, the basic to intermediate knife models can be used to practice several techniques before proceeding to the challenging ones. Now that there are numerous blade selections to choose from, which knife should a beginner use to make the first, ever sashimi dish?
The selection of blades is easy
First, know what you want your knife to do. If you simply just want to cut ingredients of all kinds without having to sharpen the knife too many times, then just any common Japanese knife will do! As Japanese knives are all made out of high-end, fine quality stainless steel alongside materials that are extremely durable, providing toughness and rust-resistance to its general features, Japanese food chefs from all over the world would go all the way to Japan to get their hands on these authentic, traditional Japanese blades.
As a beginner or a novice when it comes to Japanese cuisine, you will have to answer these questions before selecting the first blade of your own.
What is this knife for?
What shape of knife do you need?
What kind of design will keep you happy and excited in the long-term to use it?
These questions will help you through the selection process and make it simpler to decide on the first blade you’ll ever use. However, it is best to have the following basic knives at home for all tasks and simple usage.
Gyuto knife
A Gyuto knife is indeed a must-have Japanese knife that enables users to cut through anything – as it is somewhat a general-purpose blade. Nevertheless, it is a die-hard fan for meat and bigger-sized ingredients. If you are just looking for a multi-purpose knife that does just anything it is told (controlled by your hands of course), then this knife is indeed a perfect start.
Nakiri knife
Japanese chefs have specialized knives for a reason – they perform differently. Nakiri knife is the Japanese version of the ‘veggie knife’, although there is no such thing as a vegetable knife in the West, this knife is indeed a life-saver when it comes to chopping Avocado into tiny blocks, just perfect for Maki sushi must-haves.
Bunka knife
A sassier version of Santoku knives, a Bunka owns a slightly sloped tip that allows it to slice, dice, and mince like a pro and beat all the recipes.
