Is a mezzaluna/hachoir better for chopping herbs than a kitchen knife?
A mezzaluna or hachoir is ideal for chopping and mincing herbs however, this does not make it ‘better’ than a kitchen knife. It is purely down to personal preference and your own knife skills.
ekitchenknives.co.uk stock the Kitchen Craft double bladed mezzaluna which comes with its own chopping board or alternatively the Master Class single bladed mezzaluna.
What is the difference between Western and Japanese kitchen knives?
The difference is the blade. Western kitchen knives and Western-style Japanese kitchen knives are symmetrically double-bevelled, meaning the angle of the slope is the same on both sides of the blade.
Japanese traditional knives are asymmetrically single-bevelled; meaning one side of the blade is either flat or slightly concave.
The angle of the blade on a Western knife is usually between 20 and 30 degrees on each side. The angle of the blade on a Japanese knife is usually between 10 and 20 degrees.
A lot of Japanese food is often consumed raw, so its structural integrity must remain as close to its original state. The sharper the knife the less damage to the ingredient, therefore Japanese knives is often the sharpest you can buy.
I have just found a Scimitar kitchen knife on line and I wondered what it would be used for?
A Scimitar is a large kitchen knife, used for cutting larger pieces of raw meat. Scimitars are typically 12 inches (30cm) or longer. The name and shape of a scimitar are derived from the curved scimitar sword, which originated in the Middle East.
What would I use santoku kitchen knife for?
A santoku kitchen knife is closely related to a chef’s knife. The word santoku loosely translated means “three virtues”, meaning that it can be used to cut meat, fish or vegetables. It was adapted by the Japanese from the Western chef’s knife, but it has a straighter edge that is suited to Japanese style of cutting which is chopping rather than rocking. Santoku knives are becoming more popular in the West and are usually fairly short. In Japan santoku’s are almost solely used in the home rather than professional kitchens.
Which three kitchen knives would you recommend I purchase to start my collection?
ekitchenknives.co.uk would recommend you start off your collection with a chef’s knife (sometimes called a cook’s knife or French knife). This is the most important knife as it can be used for almost any cutting you need to do, from slicing a melon to dicing an onion. 
Chef’s knives are available in various different sizes, the most popular being 8 inches (20cm). This is the size that would normally be included in pre-packaged knife block sets. The next knife would be a paring knife. The paring knife can be used for slicing or dicing small food items such as strawberries or shallots. 
Paring knives are also available in various different sizes ekitchenknives.co.uk would recommend a 4 inch (10cm) paring knife. Finally, ekitchenknives.co.uk would recommend a 6 inch (16cm) slicing knife. 
This knife is smaller than a chef’s knife, but larger than the paring knife so would be used for cutting items of medium size.
