Best Guaranteed Yukihiro Sakai Hinokuni White #1 Santoku

First Impressions

The first impression when opening the box is that it’s absolutely obvious these knives are made by someone who has apprenticed under Daisuke Nishida and they bear most of the same characteristics of those knives for obvious reasons.

White #1 steel is known for its ability to achieve an incredibly fine edge, it’s the steel of choice for sushi knives and out of the box, these are impressively sharp and will hold that edge well.

Beauty

There is a raw beauty about these knives, you can really tell that they’ve been created with a great deal of pride and skill. They’re made entirely by hand although across the range the consistency of the finishing is good but be prepared to see the occasional scuff or impefection.

The knives are left with a traditional kurouchi finish and if you’re looking for a very traditional style knife then look no further.

In Hand

The knives across this range do have a noticeable weight to them when using them and so they’ve got a reassuring feel in hand.

They’re marginally taller than usual which offers good clearance if you have bigger hands or simply prefer a taller knife.

It’s worth noting that the fit of the black ferrule on the handle isn’t snug with the handle which some aren’t a fan of but it simply reflects the choice of Yukihiro-san preferring to spend more time and effort on the blade and pairing it with a relatively inexpensive handle which functions perfectly well but can easily be replaced if that’s your preference.

Durability

White #1 takes and retains an edge very well and this range is forged in a traditional style which adds some weight and thickness to the blade and so while it’s not a heavy duty knife, it’s got a reassuring feel in hand and the 62-63HRC of the steel will certainly keep performance levels high for a long time.

Ease of Care

These are very reactive knives so we’d definitely recommend rinsing and drying immediately after use but they will patina and change as they react with the foods and moisture in the kitchen.

Please note that the usuba in this range is a single bevel knife designed for right handed use and so while the other knives are easy to sharpen we recommend the nakiri if you’re not confident sharpening and caring for single bevel knives.

Our Verdict

This is a great value range if you’re looking to embrace everything in a highly reactive, fully handmade Japanese chef knife.

It’s fantastic to see more of the apprentice blacksmiths taking their craft and skills independent but following the work of their teachers and Yukihiro-san has created a quality knife with an impressive grind and in using a White #1 steel core you get excellent edge retention.

We’re delighted to be one of the few shops to stock this range and we’re sure it’s going to be a very popular knife in a competitive price bracket.