Every chef needs a knife

One tester summed it up: “Premium-quality knife at a bargain price.” Knives costing four times as much would be hard pressed to match its performance. The blade is curved and sharp; the handle comfortable. Overall, “sturdy” and “well- balanced.”

Best suited for cooks with smaller hands. Testers with large hands complained that their knuckles hit the board before the blade did. The spine of the knife was thought to be “unnecessarily sharp,” but this knife performed well in all tests.

This “ultra-light” knife is also “ultra-sharp,” although the “skinny” handle doesn’t fill a palm very well and the thin blade is too flexible to chop up squash or chicken bones. If you use a cleaver for those tasks, this knife could be a “nimble” addition to your collection.

Described as hefty but bulky, this knife also comes with a contoured handle that can get slippery and “didn’t feel comfortable” in all testers’ hands. The blade borders on being “too flat.”

A dead ringer for expensive German knives, but the thick blade on this knife is heavy enough to tax even the strongest cook. “Feels more like an ax” than a kitchen knife.

A delicate knife not suited for even the most delicate tasks. The blade bowed and twisted even when used to chop parsley, and it bent permanently when faced with strenuous jobs such as splitting squash.

We found nothing to like about the cheapest knife of the bunch. This “over-grown paring knife” left no room for knuckles. The perfectly flat blade and shiny, slick handle make this contender a show-in for the junk drawer.

This knife feels unfinished, and the rough seams between blade and handle are uncomfortable. Forget slicing—we could only “bruise” onions.

The “shaggy” wooden handle needs some sanding. While dull knives bruise vegetables, this one doesn’t even scratch the surface. One tester realized, “This is why folks get cut.”