Asian Utility Knife

Many of my knife sharpening customers do all their meal prep using only a paring knife, for a variety of reasons. Some prefer a small, light knife, some are afraid of a bigger knife, some probably think it doesn’t matter what knife to use and that a paring knife is just easier.

Generally, a larger knife is better for meal prep — a larger knife will stay sharp longer, the taller blade makes slicing easier, and the taller blade allows you to ‘scoop up’ what you are cutting to move to the pan or bowl. This Wüsthof Asian utility knife pictured has a blade that 4.2” long, 1.2”

I think all paring knife users should try a Asian utility knife, as this knife style fill a good spot — larger than a paring knife, smaller than a chef’s knife — and is made with the good features of the meal prep knife, but in a smaller size.

(image sourced from Wüsthof website)