This amazing looking set of five Japanese style Santoku Kitchen knives from EUNA, is priced at just £49.99, a decent price for a quality knife set but not the cheapest out there. Are they worth the difference?
So what is a Santoku knife?
It seems it is a general-purpose Japanese kitchen knife, deriving from 三徳包丁, or ‘three virtues’ in Japanese. The Santoku knife is shorter, lighter, thinner, and has more hardened steel in the tradition of Samurai sword steel than a traditional Western chef’s knife. Of course, how far this new knife set from EUNA embodies this, I cannot say, I can only say that they are all mega sharp.
In the impressive presentation box are the knives themselves, a tough plastic sheath for each knife and a short user and care guide. The set consists of 8″ Chef’s Knife, 8″ Slicing Knife, 7″ Santoku Knife, 5″ Serrated Utility Knife, and a 3.5″ Paring Knife. Build quality throughout, for the knives and even the box is first-rate and this is clearly a prestige set. The amazing rose gold finish to the blades makes them look all the more impressive.
The knives all have ergonomically designed textured handles, non-stick coated carbon steel blades, 1 with a cutting angle of 13-15 degrees each side. The blades, we are told, have a Rockwell hardness of 53+ (whatever that is). The BPA tested handles are made from a plastic resin of some sort, listed as ‘PP’, but they all sit nicely in the hand and balance the blade nicely.
Caring for the knife, as with any precision instrument, is important and although these are described as being dishwasher safe, it is recommended for best results to wash carefully in warm water with a soft cloth. It is also suggested that when sharpening a knife to always do so at an angle of 15 degrees to the whetstone or sharpening tool.
What all this boils down to is that this perhaps one of the sharpest and easiest to use kitchen knife set I have ever handled. There may be better, I am no chef and don’t have much experience of kitchen knives, but I suspect you would have to look long and hard to find a better set and may much more than the price asked for this one. The only drawback for me is the lack of a robust storage case or wall mount, something I would be happy to pay more for.
This is a spectacular looking knife set that is as good in the kitchen as the display case.
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