My Nakiri

[TheLegalRazor]

The gyuto gets the attention, but in my kitchen the nakiri is the workhorse. They get used once or twice a day on most days. My wife, who is not a knife enthusiast and who dislikes large knives, is comfortable with the nakiri. She even uses it to slice small cuts of meat. I currently have five carbon steel nakiri and rotate through them evenly.

Left to right:

Isamitsu white #1

Nihei white #2

Moritaka blue #2

Moritaka as

Masakage (Kato) Koishi as

The two Moritaka are clad in iron, and the other three are clad in stainless. They're all easy to maintain with occasional stropping on a Chosera 5k. They're all 165mm because I find that size balances better in my hand than the 180mm long nakiri. If 180mm is too short, I just move to a 210/240 gyuto.

[komarov]

Very nice. I like the nakiri profile a lot too, I use mine more than any other of my knives.
Do you think you could pick just one of those? Is there much difference between the two Moritaka in your opinion?

[stevem627]

I like my nakiri, but if I added another I’d like to try a tall nakiri.

Also, your wife might like a nice bunka. The addition of a tip proves nice to have, and once you have one, she might like it a lot. My wife now prefers our bunka to the nakiri.

[Kekoa]

I want to try a Nakiri eventually, my only hesitation is that 165mm has seemed kind of short to me in general. I actually threw around the idea of a custom 210mm Nakiri at one point, could be something I do eventually as a high end alternative to my Chinese Cleaver. Of course I have a 210mm Gyuto so a 165mm might just occupy a different set of tasks for me, I can always swap over to the gyuto for larger things as you said you do.

[taz575]

I used to love Nakiri, but when I got some nicer and thinner gyuto with longer flat spots, they fell to the wayside. I also picked up a 165mm funayuki and that worked well when I was just doing smaller cutting tasks, like if I was just doing meal prep for myself for something simple like a salad. The Funayuki has a nice tip to it, but a flatter profile kinda like a bunka, but not as pointy of a bunka K tip. They were also taller, so I got knuckle clearance as well from it.

[TheLegalRazor]

Very nice. I like the nakiri profile a lot too, I use mine more than any other of my knives.
Do you think you could pick just one of those? Is there much difference between the two Moritaka in your opinion?

The two Moritaka are the same length, but the blue #2 is slightly taller. I don't notice a difference in performance between the two. Edge retention and sharpenability seem comparable to me. I don't let knives get dull and strop on a high grit stone when I notice a decline in sharpness. The rough, lightly hammered finish on the blue #2 is nice, if you like the rustic look. The Moritaka have the flatest blade profile of my five nakiri.

If I had to pick just one it would probably be the Masakage Koishi.

[komarov]

Here's my Nubatama nakiri





Let's see some more!

[TheLegalRazor]

Here's my Nubatama nakiri





Let's see some more!

Very nice! What's the core steel? Clad in iron?

[komarov]

It's stainless clad "nubatama black steel". The kurouchi is just starting to wear down in a few places after 10 years

[Qapla']

Here's my Nubatama nakiri

What do you think of it in use?

How long/tall is it?

[aporigine]

does anyone else start to hum a Clash tune when reading the thread title?

[ronnie_suburban]

does anyone else start to hum a Clash tune when reading the thread title?

I think it's The Knack and yes, every time!

[aporigine]

does anyone else start to hum a Clash tune when reading the thread title?

I think it's The Knack and yes, every time!

slaps forehead! Yes.

m-m-m-myyy Nakiri

[Radar53]

Also, your wife might like a nice bunka. The addition of a tip proves nice to have, and once you have one, she might like it a lot. My wife now prefers our bunka to the nakiri.

My wife wasn't particularly interested in my "dangerous" JK's, but one day just picked up my Shibata Koutetsu 185 bunka. Long story short, it's now her knife and I can use it if I want to. She uses it on pretty much everything, including squash, pumpkin and other veges. She also likes the tip for more detailed stuff. I'm encouraging this .......

[ChefKnivesToGo]

Friends don’t let friends cut butternut squash.

[darien87]

I like Nakiris too. I "only" have 3 of them. I'd use my Nakiri pretty much exclusively if it had a tip on it. I also would like to get one that is just a bit taller than the standard height.

[aporigine]

Friends don’t let friends cut butternut squash.

The Shibata is an elegant weapon for a more civilized age.