The design of the handle and the weight distribution of this knife make it popular with people who have small hands. The santoku, meaning ‘three virtues’, is a multi-purpose knife that takes its name from its ability to easily handle meat, fish and vegetables. “Santoku” translates to “three virtues” or “three uses.” This refers to the three types of cuts the knife is made to perform: slicing, dicing, and mincing. Santoku Kitchen Knife - 7 inch Ultra Sharp Japanese Chef Knife - Premium German High Carbon Stainless Steel with G10 hand-polished Handle Asian Knife - Three Smiles Collection 5.0 out of 5 stars 4 $25.90 $ 25 . What is a Santoku knife? Let us begin by disclaiming a common belief: the santoku, a legendary type of Japanese knife, is not a "sushi knife". The knife design as well as the blade length and size allows for a thicker spine and adds to the knife’s weight. It also allows you to cut food in one swift motion. 6. What is Santoku knife? The high profile of the blade makes the santoku well-suited for home use, keeping the knuckles well above the cutting board. Size: Eight inches (most used by home cooks) or 10 inches (popular with pros) are the most common lengths, but it can range from six to 14 … Santoku are derived a lot from japanese vegetable knives (nakiri), and are optimized - flatter though not completely flat profile, harder material on a quality knife - for techniques where the pivot point is the hand/wrist of the user and the knife is lifted off the board in its entirety between cuts. At first glance it’s easy to mistake a Japanese Santoku knife for a Western chef’s knife, but the two aren’t remotely the same. The word ‘santoku’ is a Japanese word. Santoku knife blades are normally handmade from thinner steel that allows it to be the lightweight cousin of chef’s knife. The three virtues are said to refer to the Santoku’s versatility in use for chopping, slicing and dicing, or the primary range of ingredients that it can be used … Why santoku translates to "three virtues." Most of the time, one uses the santoku knife to dice and slice food. The santoku knife is designed to provide a comfortable, well-balanced grip. It’s especially popular with female chefs, and Giada de Laurentiis uses one religiously. It has a very thin blade so the cutting should be very smooth and accurate. The thinner blade also allows Santoku knife to be used for precise and delicate slicing work. The Santoku is a versatile multi-use Japanese knife, famous for the translation of its name, ‘three virtues’. Rather it is a more versatile chef's knife in the Oriental tradition. That’s because the knife allows you to be swift in cutting. These three virtues represent the major uses of santoku.The santoku knives are the master of chopping, dicing and slicing. 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