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Nothing is more confusing than buying your next Japanese knife. For starters, there are hundreds of makers all around Japan, and then there are the different shapes and sizes, grades of steel and aesthetics versus usability. In this article I will explain the basics of what you need to know for your next purchase and probably save you some big bucks in the process.
First, know what you are using it for. In the Japanese kitchen, we have different knives for different jobs.
Listed below is a list (but not limited to) of the most commonly used knife’s in the Japanese kitchen.
Yanagi-ba – sashimi knife
Deba – fish cleaver (there’s a few types in this category too!)
Usuba – vegetable knife
Fugu-hiki – fugu knife
Tako-hiki – sashimi knife without the pointed edge
Hamo-giri – hamo (pike conger) knife
Gyuto – western style chef’s knife
Unagi-saki houcho – unagi knife
Assuming that you already know what you want, this brings us to the finer details of the grades and types of steel.
The Steel
Let’s start by the ranks of the forging process and the steel. From the top are the ones with the most “kirenaga” or durability.
Honyaki (ao-ko) - Forged out of a single material of high carbon blue #1 steel. This is the highest grade of Japanese kitchen knives. For the true professional only because of the skills needed to sharpen and maintain it. Only used for delicate work like sashimi. Since honyaki’s are the hardest to forge, requiring high level of skills and experience, it is the most expensive. Prepare to fork out at least around $1200 USD (minimum!) for a 33cm yanagi of this rank.
Honyaki (shiro-ko) – Forged out of a single material of high carbon white steel. Just like the ao-ko honyaki but without the tungsten and other additives. It is notably softer and easier to sharpen compared to the ao-ko honyaki. Still, it is very hard (around 63 HRC Rockwell scale) and again, only for the professional due to the skills needed to sharpen and maintain it. As this is a honyaki, it is costly. Prices vary from maker to maker but it usually starts at around $800 USD for a 33cm yanagi.
Kasumi (ao-ko) – All kasumi’s are forged with 2 kinds of steel, solid high carbon steel sandwiched between soft iron. This rank of steel are reserved to experienced chefs who want more durability out of their knives. When it comes to kasumi ao-ko’s, there are 2 grades of it. The harder and more durable blue #1 or sometimes called super blue and the latter blue #2 or ao-ko. Most chefs will argue that the blue #2 is rather the same or just a hair above a good kasumi white steel knife. So how much does it cost you may ask? For a 33 cm yanagi forged with the blue #1 steel (super blue), it may set you back around $500 USD while the blue #2 of the same length around $400 USD. Please do note that some makers refer their blue #2 knives as different names. This is the case with Mizuno Tanrenjo. Their blue #1 knives are called ao-ko deluxe and their hontanren series are blue #2. Make sure you get sufficient information from your maker regarding this grade before you make your purchase.
Kasumi (shiro-ko) – For the novice and professional alike, easy to sharpen and maintain. As mentioned above, all kasumi’s are forged with 2 kinds of steel, solid high carbon steel sandwiched between soft iron. Although this is the lowest rank, it is divided further into a few sub ranks. Names vary between makers but it usually goes like hon-kasumi, kasumi and shiro-ko. Prices and durability vary greatly between makers but I would say anything over $400 for a 33 cm yanagi is not worth getting.
You might notice me repeating the same length for the yanagi’s. Well, that’s the most often used length for professionals when it comes to yanagi knives. Most first time buyers make the mistake of getting a short one because it feels right in the shop and regret later because they wear out fast and it’s too short to make a nice clean cut for sashimi. For Deba (fish cleaver), try getting something at least 21cm. If you have a lot of chopping to do, get the hon-deba. If you have a mix of chopping and filleting, try out the ai-deba. Ai-deba’s are thinner and lighter compared to hon-deba’s. If it’s all about filleting, get the oroshi-deba.
Basically, there are 2 types of steel used in the forging process. The shiro-ko and the Ao-ko (white steel and blue steel). The latter being more superior (and expensive). The difference between this 2 is the tungsten additives in the Ao-ko which makes it notably harder and durable than the shiro-ko. In terms of sharpness, if done properly, the white steel (shiro-ko) can be sharper than the blue steel, this is due to the smaller carbide size of the white steel of around 0.2~0.25 microns. There’s also the damascus if you’re purely into aesthetics. Damascus knife’s are true work of art, it is forged in a way that you can see the intricate patterns along the length of the knife, the sharpness vary due to the many types of steel that can be “damascus” forged.
The choice between the 2 types of steel (shiro-ko and ao-ko) when selecting a knife all depends on what type of abuse you are putting it into. A professional sushi chef won’t have the time to sharpen their knife’s a few times a day so it’s important to have a durable knife that can last him a full day.
All the price range listed here is from Mizuno Tanrenjo, although I get nothing from them for promoting their knife’s, it is still my favorite knife forger after working with different kind of brands in numerous restaurants and hotels from Tokyo to Fukouka. Masamoto is another maker worth checking out. Of course there are lots of great knife forgers out there but this 2 is just my personal favorite.
Happy cooking,
Daisuke Tanabe
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Fugu is also known as puffer fish or blowfish because it can swell up its belly to resemble a ball when provoked. The kanji character for fugu literally translates to “river pig” because they usually congregate at the mouth of rivers.
Of the approximately 100 species of fugu found worldwide, about 38 are found in Japan and 22 species are edible. The most consumed and sought after species is the Tora fugu (takifugu rubripes) because of the high “umami taste” incomparable to the other species.
Whenever the word fugu is mentioned, the first thing that comes into ones mind is the poison.
So what makes fugu so poisonous?
The poison found in fugu is Tetrodotoxin (TTX), 1250 times deadlier than cyanide.
Fugu does not produce the toxin by themselves and the poison is believed to be from the shellfish that the fish consume in the wild. The toxin is accumulated mostly in the ovaries and the liver.
Tetrodotoxin is a powerful neurotoxin and in humans, symptoms of poisoning starts 10-15 minutes after ingestion, usually as tingling of the tongue and inner surface of the mouth . Other common symptoms include vomiting, light-headedness, dizziness and weakness. An ascending paralysis develops and death can occur within 6-24 hours by respiratory arrest. There’s no proven antidote so far most probably because the toxin has a molecular structure unlike any known so far in organic chemistry.
Commercially, there are 3 local main grades of Torafugu.
Wild caught (tennen), semi-farmed (chikuyo) and farmed (yoshouku). Wild caught torafugu is the most expensive due to the limited numbers caused by over fishing.
It is also the most toxic as earlier on I’ve explained how tetrodotoxin accumulates in the fugu from the shellfish and food that they consume in the wild.
Special care is taken when chefs gut wild caught fugu.
Semi-farmed fugu (chikuyo) is those below prime size caught in the wild but raised in pens/farms until maturity. These are usually of superior quality and they cost slightly more than the fully farmed torafugu. The phrase “Russian roulette” can be correctly applied to this type of fugu if one consumes the liver ( which is banned but highly delicious ) because no one knows how long the fugu have been out in the wild and how much toxin is accumulated as the diet is not 100% regulated .
One good example of death by the consummation of fugu liver is at January 1975 when the famous kabuki actor Mitsugoro Bando VIII died after eating 4 servings of fugu liver.
Fully farmed fugu is as safe as your next batch of Norwegian salmon.
The diet of the fugu is regulated from hatchlings to harvest, so it’s practically non-toxic. Studies taken by Japanese scientist have shown this to be true.
So how can one tell the difference between the 3 grades? There are a few pointers but the most obvious is the caudal fins. Wild caught fugu has perfect, long and straight caudal fins. Chikuyo’s still have long caudal fins but usually there are signs of damage or irregularities in the patterns. This is due to the cramped conditions in the farms. Fugu have habits of nibbling anything in sight as the teeth has to be worn down (like a mouse), other fugu caudal fins included.
Fully farmed fugu’s (yoshouku) are the lowest grade, and have stumps as their caudal fins. They are badly deformed due to the highly cramped pens that they’re raised in.
Any Japanese chefs experienced in fugu or the true Fugu connoisseur will tell you why it’s worth paying twice the amount for the gastronomic experience of the wild caught ( tennen ) fugu .
It’s about the taste, taste and taste!
And I’m not talking about just a slight difference.
As fugu is high in protein , low in calories , rich in metabolism aiding inosinic acids (the umami taste) and also with high collagen concentrations for beautiful skin, and rich in the “pick me up” organic acid taurine, it should be on your “to do” list the next time you plan a visit to Japan .
Happy cooking,
Daisuke Tanabe
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<img class="aligncenter" title="Sanma Bonzushi" src="http://prochef360blog.com/images/Sanm
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Three types of dishes that best represents Japanese cuisine are sushi, tempura, and sukiyaki. Among them, sushi is the king of kings. Despite this, not many know that sushi originated from pickles. There is a long history of evolution from Narezushi (fish based fermented sushi) to the Komezushi (rice based sushi) that we know today.
During the various stages of development, sushi that incorporated local differences in taste was created. In that sense, we can say that sushi represents the varying climate and characteristics of many diverse regions in Japan.
The first kind of sushi (Narezushi) was introduced from China to Japan at around 8th century AD along with rice farming. Initially Narezushi was a kind of pickle. Salted sweet fish was laid in a wooden bucket filled with rice and were left to ferment for six to twelve months. During the fermentation process, the starch in the rice changes to lactic acid resulting in a unique sourness. The rice decomposed and only the fish was left for consumption.
Later on people started to eat slightly sour rice before it decomposed. At this stage, the fish was partially raw so people called it Namanare (Nama means raw). During the Muromachi period, (approximately 1336 to 1573) people mostly ate Namanare.
Different kinds of Namanare were created at that time and different parts of Japan had their own unique styles. A few examples are Suzumezushi (Namanare of young mullet) of Osaka, Tsurubeizushi (Namanare of sweet fish) of Yoshino, and Sabazushi (Namanare of mackerel) of Kishu. Kishu’s Sabazushi were made by wrapping mackerel and rice with a reed or persimmon leaf and letting it sit for 1-3 weeks.
During the Edo era (the early modern period, 1603 to 1868 in Japan), a third type of sushi was introduced, haya-sushi. Haya-sushi was assembled so that both rice and fish could be consumed at the same time, and the dish became unique to the Japanese culture. It was the first time that rice was not being used for fermentation. Rice was now mixed with vinegar. Fish, vegetables and dried preserved foods would be added. This type of sushi is still very popular today. Each region utilizes local flavors to produce a variety of sushi that has been passed down for many generations.
Examples of Haya-zushi are, but not limited to, Inari-sushi (vinegary rice ball wrapped in a bag of fried bean curd seasoned with sugar and soya sauce), nori-maki’s (called maki-sushi in the Kansai region) and chirashi-sushi (garnished sushi rice with assorted seafood and vegetables).
Hand formed sushi called nigiri-sushi were created during the mid Edo period. It is called Edomae sushi (Tokyo style sushi) Edomae literally means the sea in front of Edo (Tokyo), and actually refers to the body of water extending along the cities of Shiba and Shinagawa. Fish caught in that region was called Edomae-san and the freshness was greatly sought by the people there. People in Edo (Tokyo ) were known to be short tempered .
They couldn’t wait till sushi was firmly box pressed or garnished , they simply placed a slice of fish meat on top of the vinegary rice and Edomae sushi was born. It is said that a man named Hanaya Yohei was the pioneer of the Nigiri-sushi (hand formed sushi).
The nigiri-sushi invented by Hanaya was not fermented and could be eaten using the fingers or chopsticks. It was an early form of fast food that could be eaten at a road side.
There were three famous sushi restaurants in Edo, Matsunozushi (松之鮨), Yoheizushi (興兵衛鮓), and Kenukizushi (けぬき寿し) but there were thousands more sushi restaurants. They were established in a span of barely twenty years at the start of the 19th century. Nigiri-sushi was an instant hit and it spread through Edo like wildfire.
These early nigiri-sushi were not identical to today’s varieties. Fish meat was marinated in soy sauce or vinegar or heavily salted so there was no need to dip into soy sauce. Some fish was cooked before it was put onto a sushi. This was partly out of necessity as there were no refrigerators.
The advent of modern refrigeration allowed sushi made of raw fish to reach more consumers than ever before. The late 20th century saw sushi gaining in popularity all over the world.
Happy cooking,
Daisuke Tanabe
I would like to welcome Chef Daisuke Tanabe to the blogging platform, he has over 12 years experience in the field of Japanese cuisine having worked in Malaysia and Japan alike. Chef Daisuke has been focusing on fine tuning his skills in classic Japanese cuisine. He is extremely dedicated to his chosen profession. It is assured that his determination along with his sincere passion for food will bring great things to him in the not too distant future.
Chef Matthew J.G
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Australian Chef- Matthew J. Goudge is the mastermind behind the formation of the ProChef360 platform.
