Hitachiya Gokaden VG10 Knife Review

Hitachiya Gokaden Hammered VG10 Chef's Knife

In this week's equipment review, we decided to share with you our thoughts about one of the latest knives we had the opportunity to test, the Hitachiya Gokaden VG10.

Made out of high-performance VG-10 steel, this Hitachiya knife offers an amazing sharpness with incredible edge retention. Its hammered surface, black fluorine coating, and top of the line stainless steel make it an excellent knife for professional chefs and cooking enthusiasts.

‍

‍

High-Performance Blade

Similar to the first knife we reviewed from Hitachiya, the Gokaden VG10 is a high-performance blade designed for professional chefs and cooking enthusiasts.

The VG10 is a 3 layers stainless steel knife with high carbon content. Its name stands for V Gold 10 ("gold" meaning quality), or sometimes V-Kin-10 (V金10号) (kin means "gold" in Japanese). The VG-10 stainless steel was originally designed by Takefu Special Steel Co. Ltd., based in Takefu, Fukui Prefecture, Japan (the former cutlery/sword-making center of Echizen). These types of knives were originally aimed at Japanese chefs, but nowadays they became very popular among western chefs.

Due to its building quality, the Gokaden VG10 can hold an edge for long periods of time and it can withstand rust. Another consequence of its good built quality is the excellent cutting performance and razor-sharp.

‍

‍

An Excellent Knife

Over the last couple of months, the Hitachiya Gokaden VG10 has been our go-to Knife. We have been using this knife for several tasks and we couldn't be happier with its performance. Besides having an excellent performance there are other several aspects that make us like this knife.

The first thing that caught our attention in this knife was the double edge blade (21 cm / 8.2 inches) with a black fluorine coating. This coating not only gives the knife a very cool look but it also contributes to its high performance, making it very easy to clean after each use, and causing less resistance when cutting food.

The handle of the knife is also something worth to be mention in this review. It has an octagon shape that gives you perfect control over the blade and it also makes the knife very comfortable to use for long periods of time. It is made of Japanese Shitan wood and Red Sandalwood for a traditional and authentic look.

‍

‍

A Knife with History

The Hitachiya Gokaden VG10 Knife is made in Sakai city in Osaka Japan which has been cultivated through a long 600-year history. In the late 16th century, tobacco was introduced from Portugal and people started to grow it throughout Japan. Since they needed many knives for cutting tobacco leaves, "tobacco knives" were first produced in Sakai. For its sharpness, they were given a special hallmark called "Sakai-Kiwame" by the Edo feudal government and spread as monopoly goods in Japan.

Sakai city is one of the five major knife-producing centers in Japan and the quality of meticulous workmanship represents the pride of masters who create quality knives, and the quality is ensured by traditional skills that have been continuously inherited from their predecessors. Japanese knives have their own unprecedented shapes and are without parallel in the world as knives created for cutting different foods.

At the End of Hitachiya Gokaden VG10 Knife Review

The Gokaden VG10 is a razor-sharp knife that combines the excellence of the VG-10 stainless steel with an awesome fluorine coating for professional results. Easy to sharp and very comfortable to use, this knife has become a favorite in our kitchen.