Aogami No 2 edges outlast the celebrated Shirogami whilst being less prone to staining and equally easy to re-hone. The limited supply due to the various delicate and specialist processes required to produce it (along with high demand) has to lead to this very special material being reserved for only the most skilled Nokaji and thus it is rarely applied to the creation of accessible culinary blades. For these reasons, blades made from Aogami No 2 are amongst the most prized and this is usually reflected in the price demanded of these ‘Uber’ knives.
Aogami (aogami literally translates as blue steel, just as ‘shirogami’ means white steel this refers to an old paper wrapping classification system, not the colour of steel) with its very high Carbon content requires the addition of toughening elements to counteract brittleness and slow oxidisation – Tungsten and Chromium are 2 such elements. Taking into account their positive and negative influences – the exact amount of each is used to create a material that is hard, tough and slow to oxidise. In order to make resharpening easier this very hard & tough steel is sandwiched between two layers of soft steel that both protect and aid easy grinding. The result is an edge capable of enduring razor sharpness which is easy to maintain.
It should be noted that these are totally handmade knives using Bubinga wood for the sleek, seamless handles and as such the colour and tone does vary from piece to piece.
The shape is basically a small Sujihiki or slicing knife. As the name suggests it is a multi-function knife used for the preparation of vegetables and precise cutting of meat and fish. The slim profile presents a smaller area to fatty, oily, and starchy foods where a wider blade would create a stronger vacuum and ‘stick’ more to the food.
Function – Multipurpose for preparing all food groups. A favourite knife of many home cooks who are uncomfortable with large blades.
Normal length – 150mm
Tip: This knife is also used for carving petite roasts, filleting and skinning fish as well as careful dissection of poultry without hitting bones. An extremely useful size for any kitchen.
).
Ann (verified owner) –
Excellent product, requested for Christmas present
Mr Chau (verified owner) –
Very sharp in its own way. It has a strong spine and is great for all sorts of cutting, except tomatoes. For the latter, I use a cheap thin-blade Victorinox.