The 6 Best Knife Sets for 2024
One way to make sure that you are making healthy meal choices is by preparing your meals at home. This can be challenging if you don’t have the right kitchen tools to get the job done. I’ve found what helps the most and makes the cooking process easier is finding the best knife sets. Making sure to have good quality sharp blades will save you a great deal of trouble and stress!
What are the Different Kinds of Knives?
For starters, I found it very helpful to distinguish different blade types and sizes to make sure that I was using them on the right foods. Although most people rely heavily on a good Chef’s knife when cooking, there are actually a wide variety of knives, specifically shaped for certain tasks in the kitchen.
There are three types of kitchen knives that are essential to keep in your kitchen:
Chef’s Knife – The first is a Chef’s Knife. These blades are normally broad and curve upward to a point, creating the ideal shape for mincing. A standard sized chef’s knife is typically between 6 to 12 inches long, often depending on the size of the hands that are doing the cooking. This specific knife can be used for just about everything!
Santoku Knife – The Santoku knife is actually the shorter, Japanese-style version of the chef’s knife. For this specific knife, the tip of the blade points downward, keeping it from rocking on the cutting board the way that a chef’s knife would. Nevertheless, this knife is great for slicing, dicing, mincing, and otherwise.
Utility knife – Utility knives are essentially smaller versions of chef’s knives, which makes them very useful for making thinner slices and filleting. These blades are typically 4 to 7 inches long with a narrow blade and small tip.
Although these three blades can get the job done, there are a variety of other knives that are uniquely tailored to accomplish a specific task.
Paring Knife – These 2 to 4 inch blades are designed for cutting and peeling fruits and vegetables, trimming fat, and other delicate tasks.
Serrated Knife – Serrated knives have jagged edges and are used specifically for textured foods. This makes them perfect for bread, tomatoes, and different varieties of meat (chicken, steak, fish).
Cleaver – This particular knife is similar to a chef’s knife but much heavier, as it is specially designed to cut through bone and other strong substances. The uses for a cleaver range from slicing, chopping, and filleting to pulverizing meat.
Boning Knife – Boning knives are for just that, slicing the meat away from the bone. This kitchen cutlery is roughly 6 inches long and thin, making it flexible for cutting fillets.
What Knives Does Gordon Ramsay Use?
When trying to decide what knives to invest in, it is helpful to know what type of kitchen knives famous chef’s use in their cooking. Gordon Ramsay is a renowned chef who has made a living out of his cooking. Therefore, his experience and expertise with kitchen cutlery is extremely valuable. According to some of the recipe’s from his show, Hell’s Kitchen, Ramsay leans toward knife sets that are made by Henckels as well as Wüsthof.
Both of these brands are world-renowned and acknowledged for their top quality products. This, however, makes their knives quite pricey. So, instead of focusing on the brand, it is best to focus on getting the right blades for the right purpose. Ramsay recommends the chef’s knife, a serrated knife, and a paring knife as essential for anyone with an interest in cooking. According to a video he posted on YouTube, it is important to get a feel for the size and weight of a knife before you purchase it. He suggests holding it in your hand to test the handle and make sure that it is a good fit for you. Watch this video for more info.
6 Best Knife Sets for 2024
Healthy Foodie’s Top Picks of the Best Knife Sets for 2024
Here is a list of average priced knife block sets that are highly recommended for anyone looking to start cooking or replace an old knife set!
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HENCKELS Statement Knife Block Set, 15-pc
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Cuisinart C77WTR-15P Triple Rivet Collection 15-Piece Cutlery Block Set
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Cuisinart C77SS-15PK 15-Piece Stainless Steel Hollow Handle Block Set
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Elegant Life 15-Piece Kitchen Knife Set with Block Wooden
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Amazon Basics Premium 18-Piece Kitchen Knife Block Set
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Henckels Definition 14-pc Self-Sharpening Block Set
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Get my list of the Best Steak Knife Sets Here
1. HENCKELS Statement Knife Block Set, 15-pc
This kitchen knife set from Henckels comes with 15 stainless steel pieces and a knife block. The set includes a 3-inch paring knife, a 5-inch serrated utility knife, a 7-inch santoku knife with a hollow edge, an 8-inch Chef’s Knife, an 8 inch bread knife, six 4.5-inch Steak Knives, and sharpening Steel Kitchen Shears. These are professional steel blades with a black plastic handle that is lightweight for precise cuts.
Pros: Comes with honing steel, well-balanced
Cons: Not the German brand (used by Ramsay), slightly expensive
2. Cuisinart C77WTR-15P Triple Rivet Collection 15-Piece Cutlery Block Set
With 15 pieces and a wooden knife block, this Cuisinart stainless steel set comes with white or black handles. The knife set includes an 8-inch Chef Knife, an 8-inch Slicing Knife, a 7-inch Santoku Knife, a 5.5-inch Utility Knife, a 3.5-inch Paring Knife, a 2.75-inch Bird’s Beak Paring Knife, six 4.5-inch Steak Knives, and an 8-inch Sharpening Steel with All-Purpose Household Shears. The blades are carbon-forged stainless steel designed for stability and control.
Pros: Comes with sharpening steel, two different sized paring knives, tapered blades with good weight
Cons: May rust (not dishwasher safe), handles may separate
3. Cuisinart C77SS-15PK 15-Piece Stainless Steel Hollow Handle Block Set
This knife set by Cuisinart comes with an 8-inch Chef Knife, 8-inch Slicing Knife, 7-inch Santoku Knife, 5.5-inch Serrated Utility Knife, 3.5-inch Paring Knife, 3.5-inch Bird’s Beak Paring Knife, 8-inch Sharpening Steel, and a pair of All-Purpose Household Shears. The knives are high-carbon forged stainless steel and lightweight making them easy to maneuver. The tapered blades ensure long lasting sharpness.
Pros: Relatively inexpensive, stainless steel handles for comfort, very sharp
Cons: May rust (not dishwasher safe)
4. Elegant Life 15-Piece Kitchen Knife Set with Block Wooden
The Elegant Life Knife set includes 15 pieces with a chic design, wooden handles and a wooden knife block. The block includes a Chef Knife, Slicing Knife, Bread Knife, Santoku Knife, Utility Knife, Paring Knife, Kitchen Scissors, Kitchen Sharpener Rob and 6 piece Steak Knives. The blades are forged and hand polished to keep the perfect balance and sharpness while cutting.
Pros: Kitchen shears are multi-purpose, Knife block has names of blades, comes with honing steel
Cons: Not dishwasher safe, slightly expensive, handles may separate
5. Amazon Basics Premium 18-Piece Kitchen Knife Block Set
This amazon knife set has all the essential pieces as well as a multi-purpose kitchen shears and a honing steel in a wood knife block. These blades are made with high-quality stainless steel and a
well honed blade for precision cutting. They are equipped with triple-riveted black plastic handles.
Pros: More pieces for cheaper, comes with honing steel, sharp with good weight
Cons: Not dishwasher safe (may rust), may not last
6. Henckels Definition 14-pc Self-Sharpening Block Set
A bit more costly than the others but so worth it!! This set comes with a self-sharpening block that features stylish brushed stainless-steel cap and stained ash wood base that is tailor made for the Definition knife series. The 14-piece block set features all the knives you need to set your kitchen up right. From the 4-inch paring for smaller scale jobs to the all-rounder 8-inch chef’s knife for slicing and dicing, this set contains the key knives for all tasks, along with kitchen shears and 6 ultra-sharp steak knives.
Pros: self-sharpening, dishwasher safe, free shipping direct from manufacturer
Cons: costly, heavy block
If you’re looking for ceramic knives, check out my article here on ceramic knives