Why America's Test Kitchen Calls the MAC Japanese Series 6 1/2-Inch the Best Vegetable Cleaver
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Our testing editors chose the MAC Japanese Series 6 1/2-Inch Japanese Vegetable Cleaver as our favorite knife in our search for the best vegetable cleaver. It weighs less than 5 ounces, sports a 1.9-millimeter spine, and is light, sharp, and nimble, making vegetable work a breeze.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: This small, lightweight cleaver was razor sharp and easy to control. Just about every tester who handled this knife wanted to take it home. It sailed through all of our tests, slicing through even butternut squash more effortlessly than heftier Chinese cleavers did.
** Our editors proudly maintain an unassailable reputation as an unbiased and advertising-free cooking authority, and our objective reviews are strictly uninfluenced by product manufacturers, distributors, or retailers. **
Read full review: cooks.io/29wWkQ8
America's Test Kitchen is the most-watched cooking show on public television-up to 2 million viewers watch each episode. The show is filmed in the test kitchen of Cook's Illustrated magazine, located just outside Boston.
Each episode features recipes we've carefully developed to make sure they work every time. The test cooks solve everyday cooking problems, test equipment so you never have to waste money on things that don't work, and taste supermarket ingredients to save you time in the store. It's a common-sense, practical approach you won't find on other cooking shows.
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yep...I doubt any of their testers were familiar with asian/chinese style knifework
usubas are highly specialised knifes for fine vegetable work. despite their appearance, they are NOT cleavers and should never be used as such.
i find ATK's understanding of japanese knives leaves much to be desired.
What are you talking about? She clearly stated they should only be used for fruits and vegetables.. It seems it's your understanding of the English language that leaves much to be desired.
Usubas are used for finer cuts and garnishes. Nikiri is the vegetable prep knife for larger denser items.
if you have used cck carbon steel slicing cleaver .It's just a new experience.I use it more than five hour everyday in work and it gets too comfortable that I want to slice more. It was the one. but don't talk about maintenances, rust form on the blade in minutes if it contact with water and not dried immediately.
I know this video is old, but thank you i was struggling with my decision , as amazon was very confusing... cheers
I think the blades that are sharpened only on one side is for a very specific purpose. The Japanese kitchen knives have a lot of designated, special-use knives. Multiple knives for fish ...and probably multiple knives for veges.
@Turtle -- Have you ever seen a video of a Japanese chef cutting a daikon radish in a LONG ribbon going round and round the body of the radish? Chances are he was using an usuba knife. You are right. The Japanese do have a goodly number of specific purpose tools when they cook.
Great intro... now can we see an actual review?
It is NOT a cleaver. It's a Japanese Vegetable Knife.
I agree. I use my "Japanese clever" like a chef's knife and a Chinese cleaver when I'm serious ly cooking.
@@DocPetron My Japanese knife is clever. Re-re smart!
Your videos have gone from a very informative, high-quality, scientific format to this?
No comment on steel type, fit and finish, ease of sharpening, rust resistance or even comparing other knives of that shape. Very poor review.
this is probably just a paid advert
It is illegal to advertise without saying this is an advertisement
Full review link is in the description. Use your free login and you can read the rest, including the runner-ups.
You meant that to be a question, right? Is it illegal to advertise without saying this an advertisement? No, it is not illegal, it is called product placement and happens everywhere. We just have to be a bit smarter than the advertisers.
They must have really been stupid with this one because cooks, who they want to market and would watch this would of course recognize this as advertisement immediately. They didn't even present many knives or popular brands Like Global, Wusthof and Miyabi.
This is a shame because I won't be watching much of test kitchen anymore because it's annoying to always have to be on your guard to try to filter objectivity and subjectivity.
Drake Shattuck I guess you'll be criticizing elsewhere
Funny that they show a German knife as an example of Chinese cleavers. My wife is Chinese, and is a great cook. She uses a Chinese cleaver for most preparation, and is very fast. But her technique is totally different than ATK's testers, who are used to European style chef's knives.
PS In answer to questions about sharpening... If you know a little about sharpening, you can sharpen anything. But if you use a machine or guide, you need knives that match the sharpener. Newer ones have a smaller angle than older ones, but they are still fixed.
I think by sharp; they mean thin behind the edge, and small edge angle. Cutting style definitely makes a difference on preferences. Some like the Chinese cleavers because they transport food on them too.
Actually, I was being lazy with my piggybacked comment about sharpening, because somewhere I saw a question about whether it could be sharpened at home or something. Silly of me, since the person who asked the question probably won't even see it.
But I totally agree about transporting food on cleavers. That's the main reason I try to learn to use them. My wife finds them safer, because she uses her knuckles to guide the blade, which is easier to do with a cleaver; I still haven't learned to feel comfortable with this technique, having used a chef's knife for so long.
Using knuckles as a guide is a very good technique to develop speed and consistency. -Should be able to do that with a Chefs, Nakiri, or Chinese cleaver. Using a cut resistant glove could increase your skills and confidence.
Hey Marty, my wife is Chinese and so I'm around quite a few Chinese cooks as they are preparing dinner. You made a really good point about comparing apples to oranges when it comes to these knives. A Chinese cleaver is used for so much more than just cutting veggies. What about slapping ginger to explode the fibers, the only way to prepare ginger. How about tenderizing meat using the blunt end and not the blade?
My eye is on a Shun classic Chinese cleaver. Super sharp and the normal Chinese cleaver dimensions. The Japanese have a lock on hard sharp blades. Chinese people tell me I'm stupid to want to spend $240 on a cleaver, ha ha, they do it all with one for $10.
I have a German made chef's knife, fantastic for meats, as it is intended and I have a medium quality German made heavy cleaver that is designed and intended for cutting through bones.
I have a couple knives that cost $140 / $160. They're not fancy like Shun, but they are made of PM steel. I find myself using my $30 Victorinox almost all the time because I'm not worried about leaving it wet. You can find blades comparable to Shun without the fanciness for ~$60 (like Tojiro DP). When it comes to edge retention; blade geometry, use technique, cutting board material, sharpening technique, heat treatment, etc can weigh heavier than the steel type. I'd go with a $10 cleaver. It sounds like something you want to abuse anyway, and a cheap one will sharpen easier.
Pricey
Mac Knives are the best!
Did she show Wusthof big knife first?
America's Test Kitchen used to be focused on recipe testing and unbiased product reviews. All of their videos for the last 3 months have all been marketing so they can take a cut from their own website. Seems like new management is focused on the bottom line, not the mission of public television.
I totally agree. This new model has seriously damaged their credibility. As a matter of fact, it has completely removed their credibility in my household. Unsubscribed
ditto, unsubscribed, I do not subscribe to advertisements.
I agree this video didn't even attempt to be anything more then an advertisement.
Watch any product review they do, and at the end they have something just like this saying which product they picked as the best. And every review no matter what they pick there're people like you complaining that it's biased, or they were paid to pick that product, so why put together a longer video describing all the products they didn't prefer when everybody's going to ignore the reasons they weren't picked and complain about the one they did?
Care to elaborate please
How do you quarter a butternut squash with as 6 1/2 inch knife? I can barely do it with a 10 inch chef's knife.
I'd recommend a 10" slicing knife over a chef's knife.
I agree, I like Japanese veg cleavers, too, but you can't replace a real Chinese cleaver with one
A Japanese vegetable cleaver is far better than a traditional Chinese cleaver in my experience when it comes to vegetables. The main strength on a Chinese cleaver is for chopping large cuts of meat and through bones. It seems unnecessarily heavy and unwieldily for most other tasks IMO.
@@StrengthScholar0 yeah that's all on you, i worked as a chef in many Chinese restaurants for years and trust me we use them for everything including fine detail work.
You should not put Japanese Vegetable Cleaver and Chinese Chef Knife together as same kind knife. Japanese Vegetable knife is a special knife only for soft vegetable. It is very thin and light. The Chinese Chef Knife is a general purpose knife,it is designed to power through most of food other than largest bones.
I second that. I only have one knife, a Chinese vegetable knife and it does everything.
can you cut squash with the Japanese vegetable knife?
If you are 6-4 230 lbs and your ring finger is a size 14 then the the Chinese version is far superior which is probably why I have 2
any chance you read this and tell me what kind of maintenance this knife needs ? will sharpening it at home risk getting the blade not sharp enough or to the wrong angle since it's thinner than a traditionnal knife ?
Typically Asian knives are 15 degree angles as opposed to European knives which are usually 20-22 so they get very thick at the spine. Asian knives will stay sharp in my experience longer due to the extreme angle but need to be sharpened with a stone. This is easier than it sounds and you can even purchase angle guides to hold the edge at 15 degrees. I highly recommend Gyuto (Chef's) and Nakiri knives, I only use a western knife on the rare occasion I need to debone something.
I have a few Mac knives including one from this series. The steel is very hard and holds an edge well but needs a little additional effort to sharpen. Mac sell a pull through style sharpener which works well if you aren't comfortable with trying to maintain the correct angle. Also, one of mine did show a little discolouration when I cut citrus and neglected to wipe clean immediately. Other than that I couldn't recommend Mac knives higher. I had a good selection of wustofs (?) but I brought a couple of these and was immediately hooked. I'd like to get the above but don't really know if a fruit-and-vegetable-only cleaver represents very good value.
Sharpening is a bit of a hobby for me. I've read a lot on the subject, and it seems like newer sharpeners are changing to a smaller angle. Older ones (like Chef's Choice and many others) were usually 20 degrees, which is stronger and keeps it's edge longer for people who don't know how to store knives. But the smaller angle cuts better.
I've reset the edge on most of the old knives in my home to 17 degrees as a compromise, but sometimes less, depending on the knife.
Why not use a Honyaki, Deba, or even a Yo-Deba? That’s certainly a strange reason for using a German knife I say…”because I needed to de-bone something”
Best,
~S
sold out over night!
Looks like there's still stock for 20% off at the time of this post.
I was, for some reason, expecting this to be a 2-second video of someone going "Because they pay us!"
I am no expert on knives but my CCk veg cleaver performs very well for me.
Once you learn about knives, you realize this is an insane analysis. You wouldn't use a Usuba to cut a butternut squash that way ever. And Mac makes good knives but it is definitely not the best nakiri in this price range. Also, the Chinese cleaver while it could be an everyday use knife is likely going to be doing very different tasks than a nakiri half the time. It's just a completely different knife. I can't say anything negative about the knife they picked but the explanation is not good.
Exactly. I sell knives for a living and the Mac is actually my least favorite nakiri that we have. It’s a good knife. Don’t get me wrong. There are just so much better.
Im thinking about getting the Mac nakiri, what's a good alternative nakiri in that price range? i just got a kiwi to try out the shape and really like it, so want to invest a bit more in a nice knife
The Mac may not be the best performing Nakiri in this price range, but it’s much easier to live with than others. It has a 15 degree blade angle and a harness that doesn’t require an expert to hone and sharp. It’s also easily available to purchase, claim warranty on and can be serviced at various local Mac / affiliate retail locations nationwide.
For most home cooks, it’s an excellent option. Maybe not for a knife expert.
@@mtnx7 yup it definitely has its place and would be the best knife in most households
You would have to define what you mean by such a vague adjective as “good.” Rather than trusting someone off the internet with your happiness, write down what “good” means for you, then come back and list ohI don’t know, 5 things that makes a knife “good” for you, then someone like I or another educated knife guy or gal can better direct you toward what you are actually looking for to meet your expectation of “good.”
Nevermind I saw it at the beginning.
Glad you said “we” as I prefers something else.
Does anyone know this reviewers name?
I do. It was really easy to tell from the beginning of the video where it's shown....
MAC knives are some of the best kitchen knives to come out of Japan. Everyone who has actually USED ONE finds them to be incredible knives, and professional knife sharpeners sing their praises in terms of their quality and their ability to hold and edge. You can never go wrong with a MAC knife. I myself prefer Shun and Miyabi Japanese knives, but all three brands are fantastic.
However, I disagree with putting Japanese nakiris together with Chinese cleavers....the Chinese cleavers are an all-purpose knife in China, much like our western styled chef's knife, where as the nakiri is really just a veggie prep-only knife. Anyone who used to watch the old "Yan Can Cook" series knows just what a Chinese cleaver can do when used properly. However, even Martin Yan preferred the German made versions! No kidding!
Mac will rust up on you immediately due to poor metal quality.
Nice
A solution in search of a problem.
funny and stupid paid advert. Aslo, usuba for cutting butternut squash..? yea.. not sure they did any research
maybe i'm the only thinking Hannah always has redeye, like she just smoked a doobie. what happened to the old crew?
Please bring back "Cooks Country".
that's my show
they came out with a new season
That's great news, thanks!
+DesertDigger1 anytime
Aurelia Blakney
I did not know that the ability to cut even slices depends on the knife. I always thought that it depends on the chef's eyes and skill.
Best? That is a loaded question. Best at WHAT price level is far more useful. The 'best' knife at a lower price may be a poor knife compared to a $700 knife. For the TV show, they select a budget Mac knife. The Mac has low quality steel that will definitely and quickly develop rust spots. The Mac is also only good for soft vegetable. Not a recommended knife or brand.
Mac makes great knives that are indestructible and are a favorite of a lot of world class chefs who want a knife that works well and is no nonsense. Exceedingly expensive knives, with the exception of traditional sushi knives used in a very specific environment, are largely purchased by people who can't cook. Expensive knives are often fragile and not suited to be used aggresively by someone actually concerned about making good food rather than posting knife pics on reddit.
I've used MAC knives for 20 years, first a santoku, then the 8 1/2" dimpled chef's knife, then the nakiri. Sharper, stays sharper longer, easier to sharpen than any Henckels or Wusthof super stainless chef's knife I've owned. The MAC chef's knife was recommended to me by three working chefs, and complemented by another working chef after he borrowed it for a demo. Yes, a MAC will pit if you leave the blade wet with salt on it for an hour, the Henckels and Wusthofs won't, but I clean as I go, and I go much faster with a MAC.
The problem with these specialty knives is that in the end you are going to grab your 8" chef's knife and thesse others tend to stay in the block. I've got a really nice Wusthof Santoku and a Chinese cleaver but I rarely use them. Once you get a well balanced 8" Chef Knife it becomes an extension of your arm and the other knives feel slightly clumsy.
Obviously you did not take in account the billions of meals prepared the Chinese knife. The design is simple and has been the essential tool for Chinese cooking for thousands of years.
In my opinion, being used to the European chef knife and just starting to experiment with the Chinese cleaver. The learning curve needed to master the Chinese cleaver is slightly longer than for the Japanese vegetable knife. One needs to use the extra weight as an advantage and not a hindrance.
@@studiocorax8790 You have the time.
@@KYurbanHOMESTEADINg It seems like I had about 11 months.
@@studiocorax8790They are great. I was tempted to get a MAC Japanese vegetable knife, but I miss the old cleaver I used to use. Probably a decent one right now on the shelf at a local Asian grocery for $17.95. Great to have all of that surface area for scooping. 7-11 months seems fair.
@@KYurbanHOMESTEADINg I am not going back to the European chef knife, perfectly happy with this cleaver too.
I thought this was talking about vegeta not vegetables
0:57 the guy in the backround should of does this video he seems more qualified
My only advice is when you see a “Japanese” knife measured in inches, not millimeters, probably stay away.
"unwieldy" because you don't know how to use it.
Feels like a commercial.
I prefer the Chinese versions and my hands aren't big.
I think I will keep my handmade Katsushige Anryu hammered Aogami #2 Nakiri.
I'll stay with the Kato Kiri Nakiri
That piano intro belongs in 1987.
Just for fruits and vegetables??? What about ATK preference for tools that are multifunctional? I'll just stick with a chefs knife, thank you.
You should try one somewhere that lets you like Sur La Table. I own lots of knives but almost always use a Nakiri. Japanese knives can be easily damaged by bone but work well for almost anything else, like chicken breast.
It can be used fine on meat, if you know what you're doing; it could be used to break down chickens. The nakiri can save cutting board space (so you're not jabbing product) The rounded part of the tip is blunt so it doesn't bury into a cutting board like a chef's knife. I wouldn't recommend one for home users in the US, but they do have their utility.
Japan definitely makes some of the best knives in the world. When I visited Japan I bought quite a few carbon steel knives, and one stainless steel. Surprising to me, carbon steel was difficult to find compared to stainless steel; however, at a store that only sells knives or one that sells to restaurants, carbon steel is throughout the store, not stainless steels. I enjoy them much more than Wusthof, and the recommended ATK Chef knife. But like the video says, I cannot use any of mine near bones, or even hard vegetables for that matter; they chip easily.
Na-kiri. Ni-kiri is a sauce.
I use the Chinese cleaver for Almost everything, except for cutting things like bread or baguette
Everyone knows the Chinese make the best vegetable cleaners
now buy this shit from us
Ahh yes, the undeclared affiliate link in its natural habitat!!
btw if it says "?tag=" in an amazon url, its an affiliate link
3 words for all of that ridiculousness… . .
I THINK NOT !! ! !!
This borders on satire, if you've spent some time in kitchens.
Chinese cleavers are heavier because they are used for all types of foods, Not just vegetables.
Sponsored by MAC Japanese knives...
how much can we expect to pay .... I hate these short snippets
The MAC is about $70 from Amazon. I have a Mercer Nakiri knife that I just love. Mercer is a company that makes knives for culinary students. The Mercer 7" Nakiri runs for about $50. It is NSF certified and is made of a high carbon German cutlery steel. Easily the knife that gets the most use. Prepping vegetables is a breeze and the santoprene handle ensures a good grip. The MAC knife has a Pakka wood handle and is made of molybdenum steel. I considered the MAC but I don't like wood handles. Do not regret the decision in the least.
@@wilhard45 You can easily stick with a Mercer or Victorinox and save a few $ of the MAC
I dunno bout that knife, but the host was a BAD TING
''Yousuba''... Stop.. And the Nakiri, or as you incorrectly call it ''Vegatable cleaver'', is not a cleaver, but a push cutter...
Usuba aren't for squash. Hell nakiri aren't for squash. Duh.
Not traditionally speaking, though they CAN BE used for. Them, mitigating the rocks of chipping by taking many things into consideration and putting Sis considerations into practice.
Japanese Vegetable Knife is NOT a cleaver. Its a huge difference for what they used to. I'm sry, but when you're doing a review... Do your research!! Props on the people in den comments - they know more as you do... Sry.
That is the weakest cheapest review on just about anything I've seen.
This show USED to be good. tsk tsk.....
Comparing apples and oranges makes for a poor review
Yeaaaa.....except the Mac isn't even CLOSE to the best Nakiri. Not.....even......close!!! When EVERY comment is bad, just assume your video sucked and take it down!!!
Fake video, not from ATK