Kitchen Knives

For most commercial cooks, an 8" chef's knife is the best all-round size: long enough to chop and slice through most produce and proteins, but still easy to control. A 6" suits smaller hands, tight prep stations, and detail work, and the Winco Acero 6" Chef's Knife is a forged option. Go up to a 10" if you chop large volumes of vegetables or portion big cuts of meat, since the extra blade length covers more ground per stroke. The Mercer Culinary Genesis 10" Chef's Knife and the Victorinox 5.2003.25 Fibrox 10" Chef's Knife both come in at that length. If you're between sizes, pick the longer knife you can still handle comfortably.

Most cooks don't need both, because they suit different habits. A chef's knife has a curved belly made for a rocking chop, while a santoku is shorter with a flatter edge for straight up-and-down chopping and thin, even slices, which makes it a favourite for vegetables, fish, and boneless proteins. If your line does mostly prep and slicing, a santoku can replace a chef's knife; if you do a lot of heavy chopping or rock-chop herbs, keep a chef's knife too. The Mercer Culinary Genesis 7" Santoku Knife has a Granton edge that helps food release from the blade, and the Winco Acero 7" Santoku Knife is a forged, NSF listed alternative. For a squared-off blade built for vegetables, look at the Winco Acero 7" Nakiri Knife.

A boning knife removes meat from the bone and trims fat and silver skin on poultry, pork, beef, and fish, so you'll want one anywhere you break down proteins in house. Its narrow blade gets close to the bone, but it isn't meant to cut through bone itself; that's a job for a cleaver or breaking knife. A flexible blade like the Victorinox 5.6413.15 Fibrox 6" Flexible Boning Knife bends around fish and poultry, while a stiffer blade like the Victorinox 5.6603.15 Fibrox 6" Semi-Stiff Curved Boning Knife gives more control on beef and pork. The Winco Acero 6" Boning Knife and Mercer Culinary Genesis 6" Boning Knife are forged options for heavier daily use.