Samura Kaiju Knife Set, 3 pcs, with Bolster

The Samura Kaiju knife set with bolster gives you three knives for the core jobs of everyday cooking: a 78 mm paring knife, a 150 mm utility knife and a 209 mm chef's knife. The two smaller knives take care of fruit, vegetables, cheese, sausage and bread, while the chef's knife handles chopping, meat and fish. All three pair hammered AUS-8 stainless steel blades with Pakka wood handles, and each has a bolster.

Blade and steel

The blades are made from a single layer of AUS-8 stainless steel and hardened to 58–59 HRC. In practice, the edges stay keen through regular prep and are easy enough to restore on a whetstone.

A hammered finish gives every blade the lunar pattern of the Kaiju series, and its tiny craters help food come away from the steel as you cut. The edges are polished and double-bevel, ground on both sides with an original factory bevel angle of 15–17°, which keeps resharpening straightforward.

Handle and balance

Each knife has a Pakka wood handle with classic geometry. The dense Pakka wood resists moisture as well as odours. A bolster sits where each blade meets its handle; it is what distinguishes this set from the standard Kaiju set. Together, the three knives weigh 336 g net.

Best uses

• Trimming and cutting fruit and vegetables with the paring knife
• Slicing cheese, sausage and bread with the utility knife
• Chopping vegetables and slicing boneless meat with the chef's knife
• Cutting and portioning fish with the chef's knife

What's in the set

• Paring knife 78 mm
• Utility knife 150 mm
• Chef's knife 209 mm

Care and sharpening

Before first use, rinse the knives with hot water and wipe them dry. After that, wash them by hand with non-abrasive materials and dry them, and do not leave them in the sink for long; a dishwasher is not recommended. Work on wooden or plastic boards, never on glass, and pass meat with bones to a SAMURA cleaver and frozen food to a double-sided saw knife with a serrated blade. Keep the edges in shape with a honing rod between sharpenings, sharpen on a whetstone at the original factory bevel angle of 15–17°, and store the knives in a brush block or knife holder where the blades do not touch metal items.

About the Kaiju series

The Kaiju series is named after the giant monsters of Japanese myth and combines hammered, lunar-pattern blades with Pakka wood handles in two lines, with and without a bolster; this set belongs to the bolster line. Like all SAMURA knives, these come with a 2-year warranty.