ProCook Help Hub

The latest inspiration and advice from the experts at ProCook

What Knives Do Professional Chefs Use?

Finding the right knife is crucial for professional and aspiring chefs, as well as home cooks. Wondering what knives chefs use? Our guide's got you covered.

Back to Hub

Our Professional X50 Chef kitchen knives are perfect for professional chefs and home cooks alike.

Finding and using the right knife can be vital for professional chefs. The weight, size and balance of a knife can impact productivity in the kitchen, which is why many, if not most, professional chefs take the time to find the knives that complement them the most. After all, using the wrong knife for the job can reduce the quality of food preparation.

Professional knives ensure they have the best knives for the job. Typically, they'll invest in a chefs knife due to its all-purpose nature, as well as a quality paring knife and serrated knife. Depending on your responsibilities in the kitchen, you may require more specialised knives like a cleaver.

Whether you're an aspiring chef wondering what knives do chefs use, the following guide will detail the best knives for professional chefs.

Why are Quality Knives Important?

Quality knives are important regardless of whether you consider yourself a passionate cook or not. This is because low quality knives are more likely to lose their edge or become blunt much quicker, resulting in you having to apply more pressure to the knife which can increase slippage - making cutting and slicing much more dangerous.

Our kitchen knives are crafted from quality stainless steel and include high carbon content that helps the blades stay sharper for longer, whereas our gorgeous Damascus 67 collection includes a VG10 core that's encased in beautiful damascus steel for extra sharpness. 

While each professional chef will have their own preferred brands (which is subject to personal preference), there are certain types of knives that are considered a necessity in a professional kitchen. If you're unsure on each knife's individual role in the kitchen, check out our guide 'What are the Different Types of Kitchen Knives'.

What Knives Do I Need?

If you're already an established chef, then you’re most likely aware of the necessary knives. However, if you're a casual cook at home or an aspiring chef, then you may find kitchen knife shopping overwhelming. 

Chefs Knife

As the name suggests, the chefs knife is a chef's best friend in the kitchen. It's an all-purpose knife that is incredibly versatile due to its comfortable size and balanced nature. You can use a chefs knife for a variety of tasks, from chopping and slicing to dicing and cutting meat, vegetables and fruit. 

What Makes a Good Chefs Knife?

When choosing the best chefs knife for you, consider the following factors: the weight, sharpness, and balance of the knife. Upkeep is also vital, so be sure to sharpen your chefs knife regularly and store your knives properly. Learn how to sharpen your kitchen knives and the best kitchen knife storage solutions, so you can increase your kitchen knife's longevity.

Shop Our Cooks and Chefs Knives

Paring Knife

A paring knife is a small knife that's ideal to shave, peel, and cut ingredients. Due to the paring knife's sharp and angular tip, this knife can offer fantastic precision and control that’s necessary for cutting and prepping ingredients too small and delicate for a chefs knife.

Shop Our Paring and Peeling Knives

Serrated Knife

The serrated knife, sometimes referred to as a bread knife, can be easily overlooked. However, its serrated edge makes is an essential knife for home cooks and professional chefs due to its ability to cut through foods that have different textures or are considered delicate - like bread or baked goods. The purpose of a serrated knife is to cut through food with differing textures without affecting its appearance. 

Shop Our Bread Knives

Santoku Knife

At a first glance, the santoku knife could be confused with a chefs knife. However, the santoku knife is usually shorter, features a scalloped edge, and has a downwards tip.

The santoku knife is a traditional Japanese vegetable knife that can be used to slice, dice and mince various vegetables and fruit - similar to a chefs knife. Unlike a chefs knife, the scalloped edge of a santoku knife prevents your ingredients from sticking to your knife, making it ideal for very thin slicing of food. You can also use a santoku knife to thinly slice raw fish for sashimi or sushi, utilising the knife’s dimples to protect the shape and quality of the fish.

Shop Our Santoku and Nakiri Knives

Boning Knife

Removing the meat from the bone requires a sharp and pointed knife - a boning knife is perfect for such tasks. Perfect for separating meat from the main bone in red meat or poultry and removing big and small bones from fish.

There are various boning knives available, some stiff and flexible or curved and straight, so be sure to choose a boning knife based on your specific wants and needs.

Cleaver

Perfect for heavy duty tasks like cutting through thick meat and bones. A cleaver can also be used for breaking coconut shells.

Shop Our Fileting, Boning and Cleavers

What Knives Do Chefs Use?

What Makes a Good Knife?

Not all kitchen knives are the same, so learning what to look out for when knife shopping can help you find the right knife for you. Here are some of the most important factors when looking for a quality kitchen knife.

1. Quality of the Blade

Whether you're seeking western style kitchen knives or Japanese style knives, the material can impact the blade's quality. Kitchen knives crafted from high-carbon stainless steel is highly recommended as they offer good edge retention, added toughness, and are easier to maintain.

All of our kitchen knives are crafted from quality stainless steel containing carbon to ensure the knife holds its edge for longer and is tarnish-resistant. By investing in knives that have a high carbon content, your knife will require less sharpening and improve their longevity.

2. Weight

Finding a knife that's comfortable for you to hold and use is essential, but when it comes to the weight of a knife, it's all about personal preference. Many professional chefs declare that heavier knives help them exercise better control, however, when it comes to choosing the right one for you, visiting one of our stores and viewing our kitchen knives in person can be incredibly helpful. 

3. Durability

A knife that can ensure heavy work is vital. The last thing you want is your knife to become constantly blunt or the knife's handle to become worn too quickly. You’ll also want to invest in a knife that is stain and tarnish-resistant.

4. Balance

Perfect balance makes food prep much easier and smoother. The best way to test out a knife’s balance is to grip the knife's handle and see whether it feels uncomfortably weight toward the back of the handle or towards the blade's tip. We understand the importance of a well-weighted knife, which is why all our knife ranges ensure perfect weight distribution for optimal comfort and efficiency in the kitchen.

Check out some of our best selling professional kitchen knives:

Professional X50 Chef Knife Set 5 PieceTypical Price £169Only £99Shop Now
Nihon X50 Knife Set 5 Piece and Magnetic Glass BlockTypical Price £349Only £199Shop Now
Damascus 67 Knife Set 5 Piece and Magnetic BlockTypical Price £549Only £399Shop Now
Elite AUS8 Knife Set 8 Piece and Canvas Knife CaseTypical Price £579Only £369Shop Now

How to Improve Your Kitchen Knife Skills

Learning the best way to chop and slice food can be a difficult task, especially if you aspire to be a chef working in a professional kitchen.The best way to learn how to use a kitchen knife properly is to learn from a professional chef or trained cook.

We offer numerous cookery classes at the ProCook Cookery School, which is located in London. One specific class is our Knife Skills class that is designed to help you improve and enhance your overall knife skills for added precision when meal prepping. 

Click Here for the ProCook Cookery School