Asaoya Yaichi

タグ: Kiritsuke

  • Japanese Knives Australia: 5 Powerful Choices I Would Make After 25 Years as a Professional Chef

    Japanese Knives Australia: 5 Powerful Choices I Would Make After 25 Years as a Professional Chef

    Asaoya Yaichi

    When people search for Japanese Knives Australia, they are often faced with an enormous choice of steels, shapes, finishes and prices. After more than 25 years working in professional kitchens in Japan and Australia, I look at knives a little differently. I am less interested in what sounds impressive on paper and more interested in what I would actually want beside me during a long day in the kitchen.

    If you are looking for Japanese knives in Australia, you can also explore the current Asaoya Yaichi collection here:

    👉 Visit our online store:
    https://asaoyayaichi.com.au

    For me, a good knife collection should not simply look beautiful. Each knife should have a purpose, feel comfortable in the hand and be something I genuinely want to use.

    Japanese Knives Australia: My First Choice Would Be Ginsan Nashiji


    Ginsan Nashiji Forged Magnolia Octagonal Handle Buffalo Horn

    If I were building a professional set from the current Asaoya Yaichi range, I would seriously consider starting with Ginsan steel with a Nashiji finish.

    Ideally, I would like a Gyuto, Petty, Nakiri and Santoku in this combination.

    Ginsan, also known as Silver #3, offers an excellent balance for professional work. I like the idea of having the performance and sharpening characteristics associated with a quality Japanese knife while gaining the practical advantage of stainless steel.

    The Nashiji finish is another reason I like this combination. Its subtle, textured appearance has character without being overly decorative. For me, these are knives that can look beautiful while still feeling like serious working tools.

    👉 INTERNAL LINK: Add a link here to the existing Ginsan steel article.

    The Nashiji finish itself also has an interesting place in Japanese knife making.

    Japanese Knives Australia and the Practical Appeal of VG10


    VG10 Polished Hammered 67 Layer Damascus Green Handle

    Another set I would be very comfortable using is our VG10 series with green handles.

    A Gyuto, Petty and Santoku would already cover a huge amount of everyday kitchen work. VG10 is familiar to many people looking for Japanese knives in Australia, and from my experience, a properly sharpened VG10 knife can perform extremely well.

    I currently use a VG10 Sujihiki myself, and that experience is part of why I do not judge a knife only by the reputation or price of its steel. Sharpening, geometry and how the knife is actually used matter enormously.

    👉 INTERNAL LINK: Add a link here to Monozukuri | Where Japanese Craftsmanship Meets Quiet Beauty

    My Personal Choice: Aogami #2 with Turquoise


    180mm Santoku Aogami #2 Green Micarta Handle with Turquoise Spacer

    Then there is the choice that is harder for me to ignore personally: Aogami #2 with a turquoise handle.

    I have used carbon steel extensively during my career, and I still have a particular appreciation for Aogami #2. It requires more care than stainless steel, but for someone comfortable maintaining carbon steel, it can be extremely rewarding.

    The turquoise detail also gives the knife a personality of its own. If I were choosing purely according to my own taste rather than trying to create the most practical matching set, this would be very difficult for me to leave behind.

    Carbon steel is not automatically the right choice for everyone, which is why understanding maintenance is important.

    👉 INTERNAL LINK: Add a link here to Samurai Century | The Finest Expression of Tosa Knife Craftsmanship, Passed Down Since the Age of the Chōsokabe Clan

    The 180mm Kurouchi Kiritsuke Is Still Hard to Beat


    180mm Kiritsuke Aogami #2 Kurouchi Walnut Octagonal Handle

    Purely from the perspective of usability, I also keep coming back to the 180mm Kurouchi Kiritsuke.

    I have written about this knife before because the size and shape make sense to me as a chef. At 180mm, it is large enough to handle serious preparation while remaining compact and controllable.

    For someone exploring Japanese Knives Australia and wanting one versatile knife rather than immediately building a complete set, this style deserves consideration.

    👉 INTERNAL LINK: Add a link here to “切付 | Japanese Knife for Chefs: 1 Powerful Choice After 25 Years in Professional Kitchens.”

    Japanese Knives Australia: Building a More Complete Professional Range

    Ishizuchi Kanamono Manufactory

    Looking at the Asaoya Yaichi range as a professional chef, I think we already have a very strong foundation. Gyuto, Santoku, Petty and Nakiri give both professional chefs and home cooks plenty of practical choices across Ginsan, VG10 and carbon steels.

    But I do not consider the collection finished.

    One area I particularly want to expand is traditional Japanese slicing knives. Yanagiba and Takohiki are important knives for sashimi and specialised fish work, and these are areas where I would like Asaoya Yaichi to offer more choice in the future.

    My goal is not to build the biggest collection of Japanese knives in Australia simply for the sake of having more products. I would rather develop a carefully selected range of knives that I can look at after more than 25 years in professional kitchens and genuinely say: I would use these myself.

    That principle will continue to guide how Asaoya Yaichi grows.

    👉 Explore more:
    https://blog.asaoyayaichi.com.au

    👉 Visit our online store:
    https://asaoyayaichi.com.au

    Thank you for reading, and I hope to see you again in the next story.

  • 切付 | Japanese Knife for Chefs: 1 Powerful Choice After 25 Years in Professional Kitchens

    切付 | Japanese Knife for Chefs: 1 Powerful Choice After 25 Years in Professional Kitchens

    Ishizuchi Kanamono Manufactory

    If I could own only one Japanese knife for chefs, what would I choose?

    After more than 25 years working in professional kitchens, I have used many different knives for many different jobs. Gyuto, Santoku, Sujihiki, Yanagiba, Deba and other specialised Japanese knives all have their own strengths. If I had the space and freedom to choose, I would always prefer using the right knife for each task.

    But what if I could keep only one?

    From the knives we currently carry at Asaoya Yaichi, my choice would be a 180mm Kiritsuke.

    Not because it is the best knife for every individual job. It isn’t. I would choose it because its combination of size, blade width and pointed tip allows it to handle an unusually wide range of kitchen work.

    That is what I would want from my only knife.

    Why I Would Choose a 180mm Japanese Knife for Chefs


    180mm Kiritsuke Aogami #2 Kurouchi Walnut Octagonal Handle

    A 180mm blade sits in a very useful position between compact home-kitchen knives and longer professional blades.

    For vegetables, the Kiritsuke has enough blade height and width to feel stable when cutting harder ingredients such as daikon. Compared with a narrow Sujihiki, I find a wider blade much easier when I need to apply controlled downward pressure through a firm vegetable.

    At the same time, 180mm is still compact enough to remain agile.

    This balance is important. If I can own only one Japanese knife for chefs, I don’t want something that excels at one specialised task while becoming inconvenient for everything else.

    👉 INTERNAL LINK: Read our article about why Santoku knives became one of Japan’s most practical kitchen knives.

    The Kiritsuke Tip Changes What One Knife Can Do


    165mm Kiritsuke Aogami #2 Kurouchi Walnut Octagonal Handle

    The feature that really makes me choose the Kiritsuke is its pointed tip.

    A sharp, accessible tip can be extremely useful when working with fish. Of course, if I were preparing fish every day and could choose a dedicated knife, I would use a Deba. But that isn’t the question here.

    The question is what I would use if I had only one knife.

    When breaking down a fish, a precise tip can help with detailed cuts around fins, bones and joints. When removing a fish head, rather than trying to force a blade directly through heavy bone, I prefer finding the natural joint and cutting through it cleanly. A pointed Kiritsuke tip gives me the control needed for that kind of work.

    👉 INTERNAL LINK: Discover the history of Tosa knives and how Japanese blades developed alongside specialised kitchen work.

    Can This Japanese Knife for Chefs Handle Sashimi?

    Asaoya Yaichi

    For sashimi, I would normally prefer a longer Yanagiba or Sujihiki. Their long blades allow cleaner slicing with fewer movements.

    However, again, we are choosing only one knife.

    A 180mm Kiritsuke still gives me a relatively fine, pointed blade that can perform controlled slicing. For preparing a modest amount of sashimi at home or in situations where a dedicated sashimi knife is unavailable, I would be comfortable using it.

    The pointed tip also gives me more control over small, precise cuts than I would get from a more rounded blade profile.

    👉 INTERNAL LINK: Read what 25 years in professional kitchens taught me about carbon steel and sashimi.

    Why the Pointed Tip Also Works Well With Meat

    The same characteristic becomes useful when preparing meat.

    When trimming sinew, connective tissue or silver skin, I often want to get the tip underneath the tissue first and then guide the edge along it. A pointed Kiritsuke makes that movement natural.

    A Sujihiki would be excellent for trimming and slicing meat, but its narrow blade would not be my first choice for harder vegetables or general chopping.

    This is exactly why choosing one knife changes the decision.

    👉 INTERNAL LINK: See why the first edge of an expensive Japanese knife doesn’t always reveal its true potential.

    The Best Japanese Knife for Chefs Is Not Always the Most Specialised

    Japanese knife culture has developed highly specialised tools for good reason. A Deba is better suited to serious fish work. A Yanagiba is superior for traditional sashimi slicing. A Sujihiki gives me more blade length for slicing meat.

    I wouldn’t pretend that a 180mm Kiritsuke replaces all of them.

    But if someone took away my knife roll tomorrow and told me I could choose just one Japanese knife for chefs, I wouldn’t choose the knife that performs one job perfectly.

    I would choose the knife that allows me to perform the greatest number of jobs well.

    After more than 25 years in kitchens, that distinction matters to me.

    👉 INTERNAL LINK: Learn the difference between hand-forged and machine-made Japanese knives and why construction is only part of choosing the right knife.

    My One Japanese Knife After 25 Years as a Chef

    Ishizuchi Kurouchi Kurisuke

    So my choice is simple: a 180mm Kiritsuke.

    It gives me enough blade width for vegetables, enough length for everyday slicing, a pointed tip for fish work and detailed preparation, and the precision I want when trimming meat.

    Would it always be the perfect knife?

    No.

    But perfection at one task isn’t what I am looking for in this experiment. I am looking for versatility.

    And if I could walk into a kitchen tomorrow with only one Japanese knife in my hand, the 180mm Kiritsuke is the one I would want to carry.

    After 25 years, sometimes the best knife isn’t the one that can do one thing better than everything else.

    It’s the one that lets you keep cooking.

    👉 Explore more:
    https://blog.asaoyayaichi.com.au

    👉 Visit our online store:
    https://asaoyayaichi.com.au

    Thank you for reading, and I hope to see you again in the next story.