You could fill a kitchen with handy (or less-than-handy) gadgets, but there are only a few tools that a person absolutely needs every time they cook, among them a set of kitchen knives.
But honestly, even a whole set is more than you need! Most of the time a chef’s knife, a bread knife, and occasionally a paring knife will do. Other knives may be helpful or even fun, but they won’t get daily use the way a chef’s knife will.
So when you’re shopping for knives, those are the ones to focus on. But what makes a good knife? Surprisingly, price has little to do with it. I’ve worked for more than a couple food magazines and websites, and had the opportunity to test dozens of knives over the years, which touted a wide array of features.
What I’ve found is that there are only two important considerations when choosing a good knife: Is it comfortable to hold, and can I easily get it sharp?
No one will use an uncomfortable knife for very long, but the importance of that second question is vastly underrated. Knife makers love to tout how long a knife will stay sharp — and any knife you buy starts out sharp as a razor, of course. But no matter what, eventually, it’ll get dull — especially if, like me, you bang it around, run it through the dishwasher, toss it in a kitchen drawer with other knives, or generally treat it poorly.
But if you can easily get that knife sharp again — sharp enough to slice an overripe tomato without turning it into mush, you’ll love it forever. And if you can’t? It’s useless, and you need to replace it. That’s why one of the things we recommend is buying knives with built-in sharpeners. The more often you sharpen a knife, the longer it’ll stay sharp, and the less likely it is that you’ll end up with a drawerful of dull knives you don’t know what to do with.
Here are five of our favorite options for all setups: whether you’re just trying to get the job done, or are looking for something a little more unique.
1
Smart + Affordable
The Best Knives You Can Just Toss In a Kitchen Drawer
Farberware
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2
Highly Rated
The Best Affordable Set (But You Don’t Need a Set)
HENCKELS
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3
One Click Away
The Best “Buy It Direct” Set
misen.com
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4
Shameless Self Promotion
The Set for Country Living Superfans
Country Living
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5
Worth the Splurge
The Best Wedding-Present Set
williams-sonoma.com
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1
Smart + Affordable
The Best Knives You Can Just Toss In a Kitchen Drawer
If you’re looking for tools you don’t have to feel precious about, that you can just use and enjoy, pick up this Farberware EdgeKeeper Chef’s Knife.
(Pick up the Farberware EdgeKeeper Paring Knife and the Farberware Wave Edge Bread Knife as well — the bundle will set you back about $45 total.)
Though the knives fit comfortably in hand and are well balanced, the true genius lies in the sheaths that cover the chef and paring knives: Each contains a small sharpener, so that each time you pull it out, it whets the edge.
And because the sheath helps keep the blade from getting dull, these may actually be the only knives that stay sharp forever, as long as you store them properly!
2
Highly Rated
The Best Affordable Set (But You Don’t Need a Set)
Sometimes you want to have something whether you need it or not, and we get that. A block knife set looks good on the counter, and it’s great fun to have a few different knives on hand in case you’ve got a helper prepping onions, say, or you’ve just used one to slice chicken and now you want to chop veggies.
For that, we like the Henckels 14-piece Self-Sharpening Knife Set with Block. It’s priced affordably, with stylish, comfortable handles, and each of the knife holders contains the same kind of built-in sharpener that our first recommendation did, meaning that each time you remove one to use it, it’ll be sharpened again.
3
One Click Away
The Best “Buy It Direct” Set
If you’ve done any searching for cookware online you may have seen (more than) a few different online-only companies, such as Made-In, Great Jones, or Misen, selling stylish cookware directly through their site (meaning you can’t pick it up at Target). If this appeals to you, we recommend taking a look at Misen’s Essentials Knife Set. It’s a great only-the-necessaries collection of quality cutting utensils that feel good in the hand and should offer many years of use. Don’t forget to also purchase a good knife sharpener, though!
4
Shameless Self Promotion
The Set for Country Living Superfans
Well, we can’t help tooting our own horn occasionally, can we? We worked with the dedicated manufacturers over at Epoca to put together an all-the-basics-and-then-some set of knives, cutting boards, and kitchen shears that are stylish, comfortable, and affordable. Give this Country Living 20-Piece Kitchen Knife Set to anyone who wants to say “I love Country Living and I don’t care who knows it!” (If that’s you, go ahead and splurge. You’re worth it. 😉)
5
Worth the Splurge
The Best Wedding-Present Set
If you’re looking to give a gift to a new homeowner, newlywed, or home cook that’s just upgraded their kitchen space, and want to hit that sweet spot between splurgy and actually useful, consider this simple high-end knife sit. The weighty tools feel good in the hand, and stick to the most useful knives in the block. The self-sharpening block will keep them gliding through peppers and peaches with ease, and the high-quality name (and Williams Sonoma packaging) will have them saying “Oooh, you shouldn’t have!”
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