Product Description

This 7-in. Asian Chef's Knife has a sharp upward curve and thicker "belly" than a traditional cook's knife. Great all purpose knife for cooks that like to chop or rock against the cutting board. Loved by professional chefs around the world, Global knives are an excellent choice for the serious home cook. The thin and razor sharp Global blade allows the cook to cleanly slice through foods, preserving the integrity of the ingredient and maximizing its flavor. The majority of Global knives are ground to a straight point rather than the western style of beveling the edge. To balance their knives Global uses a hollow handle that is filled with just the right amount of sand to create the correct balance. The handle has its own unique darkened dimples for a non-slip grip. Because the knives are very light weight they reduce hand fatigue. Global knives have a smooth contour and seamless, all stainless construction that eliminates food and dirt traps. Global knifes are forged in Japan from CROMOVA 18 Stainless Steel, a blend of 18 percent chromium for good stain resistance plus molybdenum and vanadium which gives excellent edge retention.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #92070 in Kitchen & Housewares
• Brand: Yoshikin
• Model: G-4
• Dimensions: .90" h x 3.50" w x 14.70" l, .64 pounds

Features

• Lightweight, precisely balanced 7-inch Oriental chef's knife
• Blade made of high-tech molybdenum/vanadium stainless steel
• Edge retains razor sharpness exceptionally well
• Stainless-steel handle molded for comfort, dimpled for safe grip
• Lifetime warranty against defects and breakage

Amazon.com Review
High-tech from tip to handle, Global knives from Japan created a sensation when they burst onto the world's culinary stage as an alternative to traditional European-style cutlery. Blades are made of hard molybdenum/vanadium stainless steel and "face-ground" with a long taper rather than a short bevel so edges remain sharp longer than even the best high-carbon stainless-steel knives. Edges also are ground at a more acute angle than traditional European-style knives and arrive from the factory razor sharp. Although Global also makes a heavyweight line for cooks who prefer hefty knives, its original knives--of which this 7-inch Oriental chef's knife (or santoku) is an example--have thinner blades and are lighter than traditional European-style knives. Global also dispensed with bolsters on its original knives to reduce weight. Global achieves balance in these knives by injecting a precise amount of sand for a particular blade style into a hollow handle. To ensure balance is continuous, the sand flows inside the handle as a cook maneuvers the blade. A finger notch between blade and handle provides safety.

Stainless-steel handles are Global's most striking feature. They're molded to fit the hand and dimpled to resist slipping. Smaller around than many European-style handles, they're easy for small-handed cooks to grasp, and the seamless construction between handle and blade is more sanitary. This knife's wedge-shaped handle is particularly well engineered for grasping securely with a relaxed hand. Global recommends using a ceramic sharpener or a diamond steel instead of a metal sharpening steel for its knives, supplemented by a synthetic whetstone, a ceramic whetstone, or a Shinkansen Sharpener. Global also makes a sharpening guide set so blades can be honed on a whetstone at the proper angle. Global knives should be hand washed to protect edges. They carry a lifetime warranty against defects and breakage. --Fred Brack

Customer Reviews

A great all purpose blade, but consider the 8 inch chef too.
This was my first Global knife, and I've since bought four more. After three years of daily use it's still as sharp as ever, with only a few passes over a diamond steel occasionally. (If you are going to use Global knives, bite the bullet and get a diamond steel.)Global knives are frightenly sharp when they are new, even the serrated knives like the bread knife, which appear more benign. Be careful with these things until you get used to them, even if you've had good German knives before. (No, you won't cut your fingers,you'll be naturally cautious about that, you'll nick an arm or a wrist by brushing the blade, something I never even knew could happen until I got my 10 inch Global chef.)

The eight inch Oriental chef is a great little chopper and slicer, and the very wide blade is nice for lifting slices, but do think about the traditional 8 inch Global chef as your mainstay knife if you're only getting one. This one is balanced for a "push" stroke, rather than the pull stroke that most Western cooks use, the handle is a little high for a good rocker chop -- at least until you get used to it, and the back of the blade is curved, so if you're used to scraping your cutting board with the spine of your blade, this one won't do the trick. Your veggies will escape under the curve. The blade is hollow ground (beveled on both sides) not single sided like the denba, so you don't have to worry about being left or right handed.

None of this makes the knife a bad one, but it does take some getting used to and frankly, I'm more comfortable with the 8 inch chef as my mainstay knife. (The 10 inch chef is a bit of a monster for most tasks. Great for cutting a pizza all the way across in a single rock, but, well... I guess I shouldn't admit I use my good knives on pizza, huh?) You won't go wrong with a Global knife, it's just a question of which one feels right for you.

One more thing: these knives look like modern art, if that sort of thing matters to you. You can see the quality in them as well as feel it.

Once you use Global, you'll never go back!
I bought this knife after having my Wustof rust through at the handle after 20 years of use. It was my previous favorite knife, and I was about to just purchase another one as a replacement. Then I was watching a cooking show, and saw this strange steel-handled knife, and I looked into it. After reading a few reviews, I decided that [the money] was a reasonable risk to take, and that if I didn't like the knife, I could just sell it and get another Wustof.

I took this knife out of the box, and pulled out a clove of garlic. With more ease than ever before (it was like the garlic wasn't even putting up resistence to this ultra-sharp blade), I immediately was making paper-this slices very quickly. The knife balanced so well, and the blade was so sharp, I was immediately hooked. The light weight of the knife really allows you finer control than I was ever able to get out of my heavier knives. My plan is to make all my knives Global from now on.

As for sharpening it, definitely do get a diamond steel or a whetstone. These knives hold their edges for a much longer time than my Wustof did (or Henkels that I have previously used), but they still do need to be sharpened occassionally. I simply use the diamond steel, and that's all I've needed so far. One other thing to look out for--the handles are built for small or medium sized hands. If your hands are huge, you will probably engulf the handle a bit. But for me, well...like the title of this review, I'll never go back.

THE BEST
I've worked quite a few kitchens in my life most of them being Japanese restaraunts so I have a little bit of experience with knives and I must say... this Global knife is one of the best I've had the opportunity to use. I first heard about Global in the book "Kitchen Confidential" (Which is a great book, and if you have worked a kitchen or two in your life you will relate to a lot of the stories!). I checked this knife out at the local cutlery store and was immediately impressed. Although not as hefty as my regular 8" chef's, it's balance was amazing. The shaped handle made handling of this knife a true pleasure. The blade truly holds it's edge, and slices and chops like a dream. You will not be dissapointed with this knife, and I have no doubt it will become your knife of choice when working in the kitchen.

One note, although the company recommends using their diamond steel to sharpen due to how hard the steel in the knife is, I found that using my regular steel on occassion works just fine. I know I'm wearing my steel down a little quicker but it realigned the edge just fine.