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Best Carving Knife

Best Carving Knife For Getting The Most Out Of Your Roast!

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If you’re the appointed carver of a Thanksgiving turkey having the correct carving knife for the job is a must. By using the best carving knife you’ll be able to preserve the crispy golden skin on the outside of the turkey, and slice your meat into even, neat pieces every time. Afterall, you want to keep the look and texture of your bird after all the hard work you have put into preparing your Thanksgiving dinner, right?

A sharp knife edge helps to keep the crisp skin attached to that juicy meat, and the long blade effortlessly breaks down the bird into tidy, manageable pieces. But having the best carving knife for the job isn’t enough on its own, you also need to make use of a boning knife as well as a carving fork.

The boning knife is for taking meat off the carcass, due to its sharp, flexible, small blade it makes easy work around the bones ensuring all traces of meat are removed. The prongs of a carving fork help to anchor the bird allowing you to cut to the exact thickness you desire. After carving the prongs can also double up as a serving tool.

When looking for a carving knife to buy it’s important to try and find a knife that has a pointed sharp end rather than a rounded one. The sharp end allows you to work on difficult edges and joints quickly.

Best Carving Knife to Purchase

best carving knives

Do you want to carve your next Thanksgiving turkey with the minimum of waste and time? Let’s take a look at the best carving knives and forks that can carve your roast effortlessly.

Shun Carving Knife: High Budget

Shun Carving Knife

Shun produce some of the best kitchen knives to find their way into any kitchen. Manufactured in Seki City, Japan using the same traditional knife making techniques used to craft samurai swords you know you are getting a good quality kitchen knife.

I like the Shun carving knives mainly due to their medium-strength steel that’s easier to sharpen and still holds an edge longer than other kitchen knives such as Henckels or Wusthof.

The Shun 8-inch classic carving knife has been manufactured with 16 layers of forged high-carbon stainless steel that produces a rust-free Damascus finish. The Damascus style blade has been paired with a durable Pakkawood handle with a comfortable offset steel bolster.

Not the cheapest carving knife, but as the old saying goes you get what you pay for; expect this carving knife to last for generations of Thanksgiving dinners.

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Wusthof Carving Knife: Medium Budget

Wusthof Carving Knife

If you don’t have enough money put aside for the Shun carving knife, an excellent alternative that comes in slightly cheaper is the Wusthof carving knife. Produced and manufactured out of Germany the Wusthof carving knives are a favorite among professional chefs and avid home cooks.

The Wusthof carving knives have a classic look with their full-tang design providing perfect balance combined with the timeless three riveted handle. The hardened high-carbon stainless steel blade also holds an excellent edge and each blade has been sharpened using a new computer controlled method allowing the blades to be made sharper to 14 degrees per side for a total of 28 degrees, doubling the sharpness retention.

The Wusthof classic carving knife is perfect for carving larger cuts of meats or even fruits. For a medium budget, this is the best carving knife you can buy.

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Victorinox Carving Knife: Low Budget

Victorinox Carving Knife

If saving those pennies is your primary concern, and you don’t have a couple of hundred bucks burning a hole in your pocket, but you still want a good quality carving knife look no further than the Victorinox carving knife.

Loved by culinary students and professional chefs alike the Victorinox kitchen knives are the perfect example that you don’t have to break the bank to buy a quality knife.

The Victorinox carving knife isn’t going to win any awards for its looks but when it comes to functionality Victorinox carving knives shine. The handle isn’t fancy (it’s plastic), but it comes sharp out of the box and has just the right amount of flex for getting into those hard to reach places when carving your turkey.

Plus, it’s cheap enough that if you screw it up in the process of learning how to sharpen your knives, it’s no big deal.

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Best Carving Knife Set

Wusthof classic carving set

As we mentioned earlier in this article you also ideally need a carving fork combined with a knife to get the job done correctly and that’s where the Wusthof classic carving set comes in.

The Wusthof carving set includes a hollow-edge knife blade and a carving fork, allowing you to cut to the exact thickness you desire quickly.

The carving fork lets you easily hold to meat in place and after carving the fork can be used to serve those freshly carved pieces of juicy meat. The blade of the carving knife has indentations along its edge which helps to reduce drag, giving you smoother slicing and helping you to work more efficiently on each knife pass. A great carving knife set to give as a wedding gift.

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What is the Difference Between Slicing and Carving Knives?

The difference between carving and slicing knives is barely noticeable. To be honest, depending on the manufacturer and brand the terms carving and slicing for knives are generally interchangeable. However, you may find that a carving knife will have a slight serrated or hollow-edge knife blade compared to a smooth slicing knife.

When compared to a chef’s knife, for example, carving and slicing knives have a longer thinner blade which aids in cutting perfect uniform slices of meat and poultry. If you’ve ever tried to carve a turkey with a chef’s knife you probably already know how hard it can be.

The best carving knife tends to have a blade anywhere from 7-inches to 15-inches in length and will have either a pointed sharp tip or a rounded one. Each type of knife tip has its pros and cons, for example, a rounded end carving knife works well with on beef roast, boneless turkey breasts, boneless hams and other foods such as meatloaf and pork roasts. A pointed end carving knife is the best choice when it comes to getting in around joints or bones such as a whole bird.

Andy Nash