Customer Reviews

Wasabi by Kershaw 9-1/2-Inch Yanagiba Knife

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I own several knives from the Shun Classic line and decided to give this one a try to see if I liked the blade design before purchasing a yanagiba from the Shun Pro line. I was pleasantly surprised. The knife is super sharp and cuts through meat effortlessly. It may not be as pretty as my Shuns, but it gets the job done. My only complaint is that the handle is a little smaller than what I'm used to. Other than that, I love this knife and have been recommending the Wasabi line to my friends who like to cook but aren't as fanatic about it as I am.

Great for slicing fresh fish, meats and even some general kitchen tasks. I used it for a week straight in my kitchen after getting it and the blade held up well. The knife faced the dishwasher with no problems and held an edge better than I expected. A valuable addition to my kitchen, and a bargain for such a quality knife.

Even if you're a casual chef, there is nothing more frustrating than having knives that don't cut or lose their edge after one use. My buddy has several Shun Pro knives and recommended these knives because they are much more cost effective and good for the cook just starting out. These knives are incredibly sharp. I made a steak last night and simply placed the yanagiba on the meat and drew it back and voila, the meat was cut in half. I also bought the 4 1/2" Deba and the 8 1/2" Deba. I got those 3 knives for less than the price of one Shun Pro chef's knife. With the exception of a nice paring knife, these are all the knives you will need for a long time. And what's more, Kershaw will sharpen them for free. You just pay to ship them. Great value!

I'd say this knife met my expectations, although contrary to the other reviews I read, I didn't find this knife substantially sharper than any other mid-priced knife I've purchased. I bought this as a sample to determine the differences between the Japanese style and German style knives to see which I preferred; the differences are about what one would expect: this knife cuts more at a diagonal due to the single-sided cutting edge, which must be compensated for. Still, it's a fine carving knife.

Pros:
Looks very nice, even compared to more expensive knives
Cuts as well as Henckels' International series, once the diagonal is adjusted for

Cons:
Matte blade surface is an interesting appearance, but makes it somewhat harder to clean
Handle is rather lightweight for a knife of this length

For an introductory Japanese knife, this one is decent, especially considering its low price when compared to the mid-grade German knives.

This was a good purchase. I'm not disappointed with the blade. However, you simply just CAN NOT put this blade anywhere near the level of Shun, MAC, Korin, etc. That's just plain silly. If you have never had a real japanese style blade before (one-sided), then this line is PERFECT for you. It'll give you an idea of how a yanagiba works. It'll give you a chance to practice sharpening one too (I highly recommend a DVD or book on the topic - Japanese-[...] makes a pretty good one). But if you want a Knife that effortlessly cuts sashimi, save your money and wait till you can buy a better blade. If, on the other hand, you rarely cut raw fish and only once in a blue moon need a slicer like this - or just want to impress your friends with a traditional looking knife - get this blade. It also might be a smart purchase for someone who works in a kitchen where some jerk will pick up YOUR steel and try *cringe* sliding your single japanese blade down a coarse honing steel to "sharpen" it.

Anyways, like I said, this was a purchase I don't regret - it gave me a good oppurtunity to practice sharpening and get a feel for the action of slicing heel->tip. However, it's like using a hammer when compared to a true yanagiba. If I had only one yanagiba in my collection, I'd just hold off until I felt ready to get a little better one - around $100 is what you should expect to pay for a good entry-level to intermediate blade of this type.

I purchased this knife from Amazon for cutting raw fish to make sushi rolls and nagiri. The knife is LASER sharp, no joke, it's not for people that are uncomfortable with something that will cut with just a touch. It has performed flawlessly for a year and after many batches of sushi it still does not need sharpening. If I could change anything about it, I would make the handle a bit thicker as I have large hands, but I can handle it well and make paper thin slices if needed. Also, it does not come with a blade guard of any kind, and it will need one due to the fine edge. The parent company makes many fine (expensive) knives, enjoy these economy models with confidence.

I knew it wasn't top of the line when I bought it, but it seems to work as intended. Having fun w/ this product. It cuts more than just fish very thin... It's a nice compliment to my kitchen tools.

This is a nice knife. I purchased it for one reason only... The Shun Kershaw name. The price of this knife is fantastic and is less than half the cost of the Shun items so I was hoping to get some of the Shun quality in this knife. Overall it is nice, heavy steel, the grips are a poly compound not wood. If you expect Shun quality you will not be happy but for an everyday knife, it is worth a try.

A REALLY sharp knife for the price! It handles very well while cutting, and doesn't do anything unexpected, like many cheap knives. As far as overall construction, it seems adequate. The overall blade thickness is a little lacking, making it a bit on the flexy side, but if you're using it for sashimi ie: not cutting hard, solid things, it does fine.

It definitely isn't a Fujiwara or Tsuneo Yoshida (google them), but it is a great value for the price. You can beat on it and not feel guilty, which is a comforting feeling.

If you're just getting into sushi-making, it's a great intro knife. Get one.

This is my first yanagiba knife and I'm happy. I didn't pay very much for it and Amazon's shipping cost/speed was top notch as usual. I own a lot of knives and do a fair amount of cooking/butchering. In the future, if I do more sashimi slicing, I would spend the money on something nicer like a Shun. For now, this knife fits my use/purpose just fine.

I've had this knife for 2 weeks now and have used it to slice through over 5 fish (salmon, yellowtail, mackerel, and black cod). My best test so far has been to slice geoduck so thin, it's translucent like a pane of glass. The handle requires a bit of practice to hold while slicing, but feels comfortable and is easy to clean.

You'll notice that the blade is pretty thick, thicker than the Shun I was looking at before. The blade holds its edge well after all this slicing and I (purposely) haven't sharpened it yet. I've also avoided putting it in the dishwasher (for now).

If you've thought about buying/serving sashimi at home instead of going to mediocre restaurants (and have access to excellent quality fish like I do here in Seattle), then I would recommend buying this knife. If you're only going to use this every once in awhile, buy this knife. If you're experienced at slicing fish and have used a one-sided blade before, buy a more expensive knife (especially if used regularly or professionally).

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