1. Knife Shapes (Profiles)

From everyday all-rounders (Gyuto, Santoku, Bunka) to vegetable specialists (Nakiri) and precision slicers (Petty, Sujihiki, Yanagiba).

Written by Knife Fit from the sources listed under each entry; not the result of testing. Reviewed 29 Oct 2026. Report a correction

Gyuto, santoku and bunka side by side

The three all-purpose shapes most home cooks choose between. The photos show one real knife of each shape, not to scale; the table gives the same information as text.

Gyuto, santoku and bunka compared

	Gyuto Long blade with a gentle belly and a pointed tip	Santoku Shorter blade with a nearly straight edge and a spine that curves down to a rounded tip	Bunka Tall blade with a mostly straight edge and an angled, clipped tip
* Images from Carbon Knife Co
Usual length	About 180–270mm; 210mm is the most common	About 165–180mm	About 165–195mm
Edge profile	Gentle belly, can rock a little	Nearly straight, little rocking	Mostly straight
Tip	Pointed	Rounded; the spine curves down to it	Angled and clipped (a "k-tip")
Often chosen for	One knife for most tasks if you have the board space	Compact all-purpose knife for smaller boards	Precise tip work along with all-purpose cutting
Watch for	Needs room; the longest are awkward on a small board	Less reach for large roasts and melons	The angled tip is thin and can chip if levered

Gyuto vs santoku · Santoku vs bunka · All guides

Gyuto (牛刀 — Japanese Chef's Knife)

All-purpose chef's knife (200–240mm)

The Japanese all-purpose chef's knife, used for vegetables, boneless meat and fish; it is the counterpart of the Western chef's knife. Gyuto typically have a flatter heel section for push-cutting, a gentle belly curve for occasional rocking, and a pointed tip for detail work. Blade length, profile, thickness and weight vary by maker, so "gyuto" alone does not say how a particular knife will feel: compare the specifications of the model you are considering.

Beginner Tip: A 210mm gyuto is the length most often sold as a first Japanese chef's knife. Choose by your board and counter space: 180-195mm suits small boards, while 240mm gives longer single-stroke cuts if you have the room.

Sources: Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife · Wikipedia: Chef's knife

Santoku (三徳 — 'Three Virtues')

Compact all-rounder (165–180mm)

Translates to 'three virtues' or 'three uses'—traditionally meat, fish, and vegetables (or slicing, dicing, and mincing). Shorter than a Gyuto with a flatter cutting edge and a rounded sheep's-foot (Kamagata) tip. Offers a very safe, agile feel in compact home kitchens.

Beginner Tip: Ideal if your kitchen has limited counter space, a cutting board under 40cm, or if family members find a full-length 210mm Gyuto intimidating.

Sources: Wikipedia: Santoku · Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife

Bunka (文化 — K-Tip All-Rounder)

Compact all-rounder with an aggressive K-tip (165–180mm)

Combines the compact, flat-bellied body of a Santoku with a dramatic triangular 'reverse-tanto' or Kiritsuke (K-tip) point. Offers exceptional knuckle clearance, a generous flat spot for vegetable push-cutting, and a needle-sharp tip for scoring onions and precision slicing.

Beginner Tip: A popular alternative to the gyuto with a similar all-purpose job. Take care not to dig or twist the pointed tip into the cutting board.

Sources: Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife

Nakiri (菜切 — Japanese Vegetable Knife)

Rectangular, double-bevel vegetable chopper (160–180mm)

A tall, rectangular blade with a completely flat or very gently rockered edge and squared-off nose. Engineered purely for push-cutting and chopping vegetables straight down. Because the edge makes full flush contact with the board, it completely eliminates 'accordion cuts' (veggies held together by uncut skin).

Beginner Tip: Double-bevel and thin behind the edge. Not a cleaver—never chop bones, frozen vegetables, or hard squash rind with it.

Sources: Wikipedia: Nakiri bōchō · Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife

Kiritsuke (切付 — K-Tip Gyuto)

Full-size chef's knife with angled sword tip (210–270mm)

Traditionally in Japan, single-bevel Kiritsuke knives were status symbols reserved exclusively for executive head chefs. Modern double-bevel Kiritsuke (K-tip Gyutos) bring that striking sword-like silhouette to an all-purpose knife, offering flatter heel geometry and laser-accurate tip work.

Beginner Tip: Looks sensational on the magnetic rack. Because the belly is flatter than a standard Gyuto, it excels at push-cutting and pull-slicing rather than rocking.

Sources: Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife

Petty (ペティ — Utility / Paring Knife)

Small detail knife (90–150mm)

Derived from the French word 'petit'. The essential secondary knife in every kitchen, handling all the tasks too small or delicate for a Gyuto: trimming fat, shallots, garlic, de-seeding peppers, peeling fruit in the hand, and portioning citrus.

Beginner Tip: A 135mm or 150mm petty is a common second knife next to a main gyuto or santoku, for small jobs a large blade handles awkwardly. Shorter 90–105mm pettys work like paring knives.

Sources: Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife

Sujihiki (筋引 — Slicing Knife)

Long, narrow protein slicer (240–300mm)

'Muscle puller.' A slender, double-bevel blade designed to carve cooked roasts, brisket, whole poultry, and slice sashimi or boneless raw fish in a single, continuous drawing stroke. The low blade height dramatically reduces surface friction and drag.

Beginner Tip: 240mm is the sweet spot for home boards. Pull smoothly from heel to tip in one motion without sawing back and forth.

Sources: Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife

Deba (出刃 — Fish Butchery Knife)

Heavy single-bevel fish butchery knife (150–210mm)

A stout, heavy traditional single-bevel knife designed specifically for breaking down whole fish. The thick, rigid spine (often 6–9mm thick) provides momentum to sever fish heads and slice cleanly along vertebrae without the blade flexing or chipping.

Beginner Tip: A specialized Japanese culinary tool. Single-bevel with an ura (concave back). Use the heel for fish bones and the thin tip for filleting along the spine. Not meant for land-animal bones.

Sources: Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife

Yanagiba (柳刃 — Traditional Sashimi Knife)

Single-bevel sashimi knife (210–300mm)

'Willow leaf blade.' The iconic knife of the Tokyo sushi chef. Single-beveled with a hollow back (ura) to slice raw fish with razor-clean, glassy precision that preserves texture, sheen, and cell structure without tearing delicate fish flesh.

Beginner Tip: Requires right-handed or left-handed dedication and dedicated whetstone maintenance. For general home slicing of meats and raw fish, a double-bevel Sujihiki is far more versatile.

Sources: Wikipedia: Yanagi ba · Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife

Takohiki (蛸引 — Square-Tipped Slicer)

Single-bevel slicer with a square tip, the Tokyo yanagiba

A regional Tokyo variant of the yanagiba: a long, single-bevel slicing knife with a square tip instead of a pointed one, usually lighter, thinner and flatter, made for slicing dense flesh such as octopus (tako).

Beginner Tip: It slices like a yanagiba and is sharpened like one, on one side. Choose between them by the tip you like: square or pointed.

Sources: Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife

Usuba (薄刃 — Traditional Vegetable Knife)

Single-bevel vegetable knife for very thin cuts

The traditional Japanese vegetable knife: a thin, single-bevel blade for push-cutting, fine julienne (sengiri) and katsuramuki, peeling a vegetable into one long thin sheet. The Edo usuba has a square tip; the kamagata usuba, the style favored in Sakai, has a rounded sheep's-foot tip.

Beginner Tip: A double-bevel nakiri does the same chopping and is much easier to sharpen and to use. An usuba is for cooks who want the thin, decorative cuts of Japanese cuisine.

Sources: Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife

Honesuki (骨スキ — Japanese Poultry Knife)

Triangular poultry & boning knife (~150mm)

A stiff, short, triangular blade engineered specifically for breaking down chickens, ducks, and poultry. Features a tall heel for scraping meat and separating joints, a robust spine, and an acute tip to glide around bones and sever tendons.

Beginner Tip: Cut around and between joints, never directly through thick bones. Typically ground with an asymmetrical 90/10 or 80/20 right-hand bias.

Sources: Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife

Pankiri (パン切り — Bread Knife)

Scalloped / serrated bread knife (215–270mm)

The Japanese name for a bread knife. Its serrated or scalloped edge cuts through crust and soft bread without crushing the loaf.

Beginner Tip: Use long, light strokes and let the serrations do the work: pressing down is what squashes a soft loaf.

Sources: Wikipedia: Bread knife

Chukabocho (中華包丁 — Chinese Cleaver)

Tall, thin-ground vegetable cleaver (200–220mm)

A tall, rectangular cleaver ground with a thin Japanese cutting edge. Combines immense knuckle clearance with a built-in bench scraper to scoop prep directly into the wok. Effortlessly falls through piles of cabbage and root vegetables.

Beginner Tip: Despite the cleaver shape, Japanese Chukabochos have very thin edges. Never use on animal bones or frozen goods.

Sources: Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife · Wikipedia: Caidao

Other Japanese Shapes (Soba Kiri, Unagisaki, Hankotsu…)

Rare knives made for one job

Japanese cooks have a knife for many single jobs. A few that stores sell: the soba kiri (a large oblong knife for cutting noodles), the unagisaki (a single-bevel eel knife, made in Kanto, Kyoto, Nagoya and Kyushu styles) and the hankotsu (a short, pointed boning knife for taking meat off hanging bones). The catalog lists these together as Other Japanese.

Beginner Tip: Each is a specialist's tool for one task. If you are choosing a first or second knife, start with a gyuto, santoku or petty.

Sources: Wikipedia: Japanese kitchen knife