Complete Guide to Japanese Knives: Types and Uses
Yoshihiro Cutlery
Japanese knives are renowned for their precision, craftsmanship, and specialized design. Each style serves a unique purpose in the kitchen, from slicing sashimi to breaking down poultry or chopping vegetables. Whether you're a seasoned chef or a home cook exploring the world of Japanese cutlery, understanding the different types of knives can help you choose the right tool for the job and elevate your cooking experience.
Explore by Knife Type
Chef Knives | Slicing & Fileting | Utility Knives | Vegetable Knives | Specialty
Chef Knives
Japanese chef knives are crafted for precision, efficiency, and versatility. This collection includes multi-purpose blades like the Gyuto, Santoku, Kiritsuke, and Bunka—each designed to handle everything from meat and fish to vegetables with exceptional control and ease.
Gyuto
The Gyuto is a Japanese chef's knife with a Western-style curved blade that smoothly rocks back and forth and has an extended tip for quick chopping that can be used to cut meat, fish, and vegetables. "Gyuto” literally means “beef sword” and was initially used for cutting meat in Japan. The Gyuto is one of the most versatile and essential knives a cook can have. View our selection of Gyuto knives.
Santoku
The Santoku is an all-purpose knife with a round tip. The blade is shorter and thinner, making it perfect for home cooking. Santoku literally means “three virtues,” and can be used for meat, fish, and vegetables. View our selection of Santoku knives.
Kiritsuke Chef Knife
The Kiritsuke is a hybrid chef knife with a long flat edge and a pointed tip that combines the functions of a Yanagi and Usuba. It’s ideal for slicing fish, vegetables, and boneless proteins with precision. The unique sword-like tip adds both style and functionality. View our selection of Kiritsuke knives.
Bunka Chef Knife
The Bunka is a versatile Japanese knife known for its angular “reverse tanto” tip, which is excellent for precision tasks like fine slicing and detailed prep work. Its wide blade also makes it a great choice for scooping and transferring ingredients. View our selection of Bunka knives.
Vegetable Knives
Designed specifically for chopping, slicing, and dicing vegetables, these knives offer clean, straight cuts and maximum control. Explore Nakiri and Usuba styles for your vegetable prep.
Nakiri
The Nakiri is a traditional Japanese vegetable knife with a flat edge that’s ideal for clean, straight cuts. Its tall blade makes it easy to scoop up ingredients and provides excellent knuckle clearance. Designed specifically for chopping, dicing, and slicing vegetables, the Nakiri is a favorite among home cooks and professionals alike for plant-based prep. View our selection of Nakiri knives.
Usuba Kama-gata
The Usuba Kama-gata is reminiscent of a small cleaver and has a sharp tip for more intricate work. The Usuba is hefty enough to chop through heavy root vegetables with a blade that can thinly slice delicate tomatoes. View our selection of Usuba knives.
Edo Usuba
The Edo Usuba originated in Tokyo and is reminiscent of a small cleaver with a blunt tip that comes in handy for such things as cutting the eye out of a potato. The Usuba is hefty enough to chop through heavy root vegetables with a blade that can thinly slice delicate tomatoes. View our selection of Edo Usuba knives.
Slicing and Fileting
Find the perfect slicing and filleting knives for delicate cuts, whether you're preparing sashimi or trimming proteins. These knives are crafted for clean, precise slicing with minimal effort.
Sujihiki
The sujihiki is a slicing knife with a long narrow blade that smoothly slices through meat or vegetables and preserves the integrity of each ingredient's freshness. The Sujihiki slicer can carve and fabricate large roasts and other meats and fish and can be used for thinly slicing other ingredients such as cucumbers or smoked salmon. The sujihiki is the Western-style equivalent of the traditional yanagi knife. View our selection of Sujihiki slicers.
Yanagi
The Yanagi is a long slicing knife that was designed to slice thin slices of fish for sushi and sashimi. The length and shape of the blade allows it to slice through an ingredient in long uninterrupted strokes, preserving the ingredient's freshness and integrity. View our selection of Yanagi knives.
Yanagi Kiritsuke
The Yanagi Kiritsuke is slightly heavier than the traditional Yanagi and has a sword-like tip. The weight of the knife is evenly distributed from the tip to the heel of the blade, which helps balance the length during use. View our selection of Yanagi Kiritsuke knives.
Takobiki
The Takobiki is a long slicing knife that was designed to slice paper-thin slices of fish for sashimi. Its blunt sharp tip is also useful for cutting the long tentacles of octopus. The Takobiki is longer and thinner than a Yanagi and can slice through an ingredient in long uninterrupted strokes, preserving the ingredient's freshness and integrity.
Sakimaru Takobiki
The Sakimaru Takobiki combines the sword-like tip of the Yanagi Kiritsuke with the flat profile of a Takobiki. Its heavier weight is evenly distributed from tip to heel, and the blade is wider than a typical Takobiki, offering improved balance and control when slicing through sashimi or octopus. View our selection of Sakimaru Takobiki knives.
Utility Knives
Our utility knives are compact and nimble, great for everyday tasks like peeling, trimming, and prepping smaller ingredients. A reliable companion for both home cooks and professionals.
Petty
The Petty knife resembles a small chef's knife and has a medium-sized blade that can maneuver through both small and big jobs. It can intricately carve and style vegetables and fruits for beautiful presentations and garnishes, and can also be used for bigger jobs such as preparing meals. View our selection of Petty knives.
Paring
Paring knives are used for smaller precision tasks such as peeling, trimming, and slicing small fruits and vegetables. Paring knives can be used to intricately carve and style vegetables and fruits for beautiful presentations and garnishes. View our selection of Paring knives.
Specialty Knives
Discover traditional and task-specific Japanese knives like Deba, Honesuki, and Garasuki. These blades are made for unique culinary techniques, from breaking down poultry to prepping fish.
Deba
The Deba knife is a heavy knife made to filet and butcher whole fish. The heft of the Deba knife allows it to cut through the heads and bones of a fish, and its smaller pointed tip filets the flesh from the bones. The Deba knife can be used for chicken and meat but is not recommended for cutting through large bones. View our selection of Deba knives.
Mioroshi
The Mioroshi knife is a longer and sleeker version of a Deba knife. The Mioroshi has enough heft to filet whole fish and cut through the fish's cartilage and bones while also being long enough to be used as an all-purpose knife. The Mioroshi knife can be used for chicken and meat but is not recommended for cutting through large bones. View our selection of Mioroshi knives.
Kenmuki
The Kenmuki is a traditional Japanese peeling knife with a sword-like tip, designed for handheld work similar to a paring knife. “Ken” means sword and “muki” means peeling. It’s used to peel and shape vegetables or fruits while holding them in your hand. With a single-edged blade and a concave back, the Kenmuki offers precise control and clean cuts ideal for detailed prep and decorative work. View our selection of Kenmuki knives.
Edosaki
The Edosaki knife was made specifically to filet eel. Its blade was designed to filet from the back to the front, and it has a short beveled handle to fit securely in the palm of the hand during slippery conditions. View our selection of Edosaki knives.
Honesuki
The Honesuki knife is a poultry boning knife with a hefty spine and heel that arcs into a sharp thin tip to maneuver through filets and heavy joints. The sharp pointed tip cleanly separates poultry and meat from the bone. The spine of the blade increases in thickness towards the heel giving it extra heft and balance to cut through joints and cartilage. View our selection of Honesuki knives.
Garasuki
The Garasuki is a traditional Japanese butchering knife, designed for breaking down poultry and other meats. Unlike Western butcher knives, the Garasuki is single-edged and built with a heavy-duty spine and heel that provide extra weight and control. Its thick spine tapers into a sharp, pointed tip that allows for precise separation of meat from bone, while the added heft makes it capable of handling joints and cartilage with ease. View our selection of Garasuki knives.
Chinese Cleaver
The Chinese Cleaver is a traditional version of an all-purpose chef's knife. Its heavy blade can be used for everything from fabricating poultry and breaking down hearty root vegetables to mincing herbs. The Chinese cleaver can be used for dicing, slicing, and chopping, but is not recommended for cutting through hard bones. View our selection of Cleavers.
Meat Cleaver
The Meat Cleaver has a thick and heavy blade that can fabricate large sections of meat and poultry and break through bones. The Meat Cleaver can also chop through large root vegetables and mince herbs for garnishes.
Fugubiki
The Fugubiki is a lighter and thinner version of the Yanagi, that is meant for slicing paper-thin transparent slices of the Fugu blowfish. "Fugu" or blowfish is traditionally served on a painted plate and cut extremely thin so the design on the plate can be seen through the sliced fish.
Bread Knife
Bread knives are serrated to cut through bread, bagels, rolls, and cakes without crushing their exterior surface.
Find the Perfect Knife for You
Choosing the right knife isn't just about the shape or size—it’s about finding the tool that matches your cooking style and needs. At Yoshihiro Cutlery, we’re proud to offer a wide selection of handcrafted Japanese knives to suit every level of expertise. If you have any questions or need help finding the perfect knife, feel free to reach out to our team. We're here to help you find a knife that lasts a lifetime.
