About Ryusen Blazen Ryu - Of all the makers currently crafting blades in Japan, Ryusen makes some of the cleanest, most consistent, and most comfortable kitchen knives I’ve ever handled. Founded in 1948, Ryusen started producing high-quality stainless steel blades long before others in the industry, working closely with companies like Takefu Special Steel as early as the 1970s.

I’ve been guilty of comparing kitchen knives to sports cars more than once, and this is exactly the kind of knife I’m talking about when I make that comparison: sleek, badass, and incredibly fun to cut with. The handle is tapered to fit your hand perfectly, making the knife an extension of your hand.

When it gets to work, it’s stupidly sharp thanks to a core of super-hard SG2 steel, so the razor-thin edge just blows through whatever ingredients you place before it. It’s actually difficult to put this knife down and move on to the next task.

About the Shape - Inspired by the profile of a traditional European chef knife, Gyutos are a multi-purpose knife with a slight meat cutting bias. “Gyuto” translates to “cow sword.” If you want one knife to do it all, This is it. Starting at 180mm, Gyutos can reach the ridiculously long (and awesome) 370mm. For the at-home or professional cook, we recommend a Gyuto which measures between 210mm and 270mm long.