4-piece knife set with Damascus-pattern blades

Four blades, four jobs

A head of cabbage and an apple with the same knife: one slips, the other splits. This set holds four knives of four different lengths, and each has its own work: a 20 cm chef's knife, a 17.5 cm santoku, a 12.5 cm utility knife and a 9 cm paring knife.

These are not one knife in four sizes but four different blade shapes. That is why they are not interchangeable: the santoku is not a thinner chef knife, and the paring knife is not a small utility knife.

Which one to reach for

The chef knife is the one you will work with most: onions, carrots, meat, larger vegetables. Its long curved edge lets you rock the blade rather than lift it for every cut. The santoku has a flatter edge and asks for a firm downward stroke; for fish, thin slices of meat and vegetables it is the more precise of the two. The utility knife sits between them: tomatoes, cheese, smaller fruit, slicing for a sandwich. The paring knife is the one you take to food held in your hand rather than on the board: the skin of a pear, a strawberry hull, a clove of garlic.

The pattern on the blade and the metal ring

Hold the blade up to the light: a wavy pattern of darker and lighter bands runs across the surface. The handle meets the blade through a metal ring, a small metal insert closes the end of the grip, and those two metal details are what give the knife its balance in your hand. None of it shows in a drawer; on a worktop it does.

Heat-treated stainless steel

The blades are made of heat-treated stainless steel. Heat treatment is what decides how long a knife holds its edge: untreated steel is either too soft and dulls quickly, or too hard and chips. In these knives the steel runs through the handle as well, so the blade is not a plate glued into a grip.

Four blade shapes, four movements

The four blades come from the same steel, and still their shapes differ. The chef knife has a broad spine and a curved belly, so it rolls on the board. The santoku is straighter-edged and taller, so it lands flat. The utility knife is a hand-sized blade, and the paring knife is barely longer than your index finger.

The handle and the finger guard

The handle is shaped and carries a finger guard. That is not decoration: the guard is what stops your hand sliding forward onto the blade when the food is wet. If you hold the knife in a pinch grip, thumb and forefinger on the heel of the blade, the guard also marks where that grip belongs.

The board matters as much

On glass, stone or ceramic the edge meets a surface harder than itself at every cut, so it dulls quickly. On wood and plastic the edge presses into the board and comes back unharmed. If you have been cutting on the worktop or on a plate, that one habit is worth more to your knives than any sharpening gadget.

Material and safety

Stainless steel blades with a Damascus pattern, ergonomic handles with a finger guard. The set is four knives, without a block.

Damascus pattern

A wavy figure on the surface of the blade that recalls the layered structure of true Damascus steel. On these knives the pattern is a decoration of the blade rather than a forged, layered construction.

How they stay sharp

• Wash them by hand in warm soapy water after use and dry them straight away.
• Work on wood or plastic; glass, stone and ceramic dull an edge quickly.
• Do not use a knife against bone, frozen food or a tin.
• Straighten the edge on a honing steel regularly and sharpen it once a year.
• Do not store the knives on top of each other: steel chips steel too.

Who the four knives are for

Frequently asked questions

The set in one place