Parts of a Knife
| A | Point: | The very end of the knife, which is used for piercing. It should be sharp and relatively thin. | | B | Tip: | The first third of the blade (approximately), which is used for small or delicate work | | C | Edge: | The cutting surface of the knife, which extends from the point to the heel - see below for full details. | | D | Heel: | The rear part of the blade, used for cutting activities that require more force | | E | Spine (Back): | The top, thicker portion of the blade, which adds weight and strength. It can also be used to scrape the cutting board after cutting. | | F | Bolster (Shank): | The thick metal portion joining the handle and the blade, which adds weight and balance and keeps the cook's hand from slipping | | G | Finger Guard: | The portion of the bolster that keeps the cook's hand from slipping onto the blade | | H | Return: | The point where the heel meets the bolster | | J | Tang: | The portion of the metal blade that extends into the handle, giving the knife stability and extra weight. The best kitchen knives have a full tang which is visible on the top, bottom and back of the handle.
The IO Shen range of knives is famous for having a distinctive visible Tang incorporated into their knife design. | | K | Scales: | The two portions of handle material (wood, plastic, composite, etc) that are attached to either side of the tang - see below for full details. | | L | Rivets: | The metal pins (usually 3) that hold the scales to the tang | | M | Handle Guard: | The lip below the butt of the handle, which gives the knife a better grip and prevents slipping | | N | Butt: | The terminal end of the handle |
Edge
The cutting surface of the knife, which extends from the point to the heel. The edge of the knife can be sharpened to a cutting surface in a number of different ways. Flat ground blades have a profile that tapers from the thick spine to the sharp edge in a straight or convex line. Seen in cross section, the blade would form a long, thin triangle, or where the taper does not extend to the back of the blade, a long thin rectangle with one peaked side. They are heavier and tougher than a hollow ground knife. Hollow ground blades have concave, beveled edges that are ground starting midway down the blade, instead of at the spine. The resulting blade has a thinner edge, so it may have better cutting ability, but it is lighter and less durable. Serrated blade knives have a wavy, scalloped or saw-like blade. Serrations make knives ideal for cutting things that are hard on the outside and soft on the inside (such as bread or tomatoes) that might otherwise be ruined by a slightly dull knife with a plain, flat-ground edge. They are also particularly good on fibrous foods like celery or cabbage. Serrated knives cut much better than plain edge blade knives when dull, so they may go longer without sharpening (some serrated blades are claimed never to need sharpening.) However, they require specialized equipment and a different technique in order to resharpen them. Further, serrations are often used to improve the cutting ability of a less-expensive, soft stainless alloy blade, (usually incorporating an extremely thin blade design to reduce friction). For this reason, some professional chefs recommend buying at least a moderately-priced serrated knife made of high-carbon stainless, as these knives will inevitably dull and have to be replaced or resharpened. Granton edges have semi-circular scallops ground into the edge that alternate on either side of the knife and extend from the edge to the middle of the blade. A similar design has oval scallops (kullens) hollowed-out of one or both sides of the blade above the edge. These are normally found on meat carving knives but have recently appeared on other types of knives, especially Western variations of the Japanese santoku. The purpose of scallop-sided blades is make the cutting and separation of meats, cheese, and vegetables easier.
Handle
The handles of kitchen knives can be made from a number of different materials, each of which has advantages and disadvantages. Wood handles provide good grip, and most people consider them to be the most attractive. They are, however, slightly more difficult to care for as they must be cleaned more thoroughly and occasionally treated with mineral oil. Most wood handles, especially those of ordinary varnished hardwood, do not resist water well, and will crack or warp with prolonged exposure to water. They should be hand-washed for that reason. Some people argue that ordinary varnished wood handles can harbor more microorganisms as the varnish layer wears off, thus requiring resealing or revarnishing to seal the wood's pores. Plastic handles are more easily cared for than wooden handles and do not absorb microorganisms. However, plastics may also be less resistant to ultraviolet damage and may become brittle over time, resulting in cracking. Some plastics are also slippery in the hand. The material is lighter than most other materials, which may result in a knife that is off-balance or too light for some tastes. Composite knives are made from laminated wood composites impregnated with plastic resin. They are considered by many chefs to be the best choice because they are as easy to care for and as sanitary as plastic, they have the appearance, weight, and grip of hardwood, and are more durable than either. They often have a laminated, polished appearance, and may have intense or varied coloring. Stainless Steel handles are the most durable of all handles, as well as the most sanitary. Many argue, however, that they are very slippery in the hand, especially when wet. To counter this, many premium knife makers such as Global make handles with ridges, bumps, or indentations to provide extra grip. One disadvantage of some all-metal handles is that knife weight usually goes up considerably, affecting the knife's balance and increasing hand and wrist fatigue.
Blade
Steel blades can be manufactured either by being forged or stamped. Forged blades are made in an intricate, multi-step process, often by skilled manual labour. A chunk of solid or powdered steel alloy is heated to a high temperature, and pounded while hot to form it. The blade is then heated above critical temperature (which varies between alloys), quenched and tempered to the desired hardness. After forging and heat treating, the blade is polished and sharpened. Forged blades are typically thicker and heavier than stamped blades, an advantage in some situations. Stamped blades are cut to shape directly from cold rolled steel, heat-treated for strength, then ground, polished, and sharpened. Though they are not preferred by most professional chefs, several popular knife brands, such as Global, do use stamped and heat-treated blades in their premium knives. Stamped blades can often, but not always, be identified by the absence of a bolster. |
