DESIGNED WITH LOVE IN HONG KONG, MADE IN YANGJIANG
TIMELESS HONG KONG DESIGN
A timeless piece of Hong Kong design, dyed in the intensity and vividness of the city which inspired it.
Through testing a wide range of knives from different eras, we arrived at something that pays homage to, and builds upon, a classic archetype, modernising the design and using the very best of materials.
Chinese Chef's Knife - 菜刀
Our essential Chef's knife, in the classic Chinese '菜刀' (vegetable knife) shape. This is the most common knife shape found in domestic kitchens in Hong Kong and southern China, and despite being called a 'vegetable knife' it is comfortable with almost all kitchen tasks except bone-cleaving: chopping, slicing, mincing, garlic-smashing, filleting and bench-scraping.
Designed in Hong Kong and made in Yangjiang, China, the capital of Chinese blade production since the Tang dynasty, the Chinese Chef's Knife combines classic Hong Kong design and expert Chinese craftsmanship, updated for the modern global kitchen.
The blade is made from a high-carbon stainless steel that holds a sharper edge for longer than the softer stainless steels typically used in Chinese knives. The handle, slightly shorter than typical to encourage a pinch grip on the blade, is a certified Chinese rosewood engraved with a bold wave pattern to aid grip, and influenced by a rich Chinese design history.
This is the knife we chose to represent Chinese-style knives to the world: a really great all-rounder that is intuitive to use and easy to care for.
Chinese Chef's Knife Leather Sheath
KNIFE & SHEATH BUNDLE
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Cleaver, Chopper, Caidao, Choidou, Chūka Bōchō, Chinese Chef's Knife - We Explain the Difference.
You may see other articles refer to Chinese chef’s knives - 菜刀 (pronounced caidao/choidou in Mandarin and Cantonese respectively) - as Chinese cleavers. Here at Fragrant Knives, we feel that the association of the word ‘cleaver’ with meat cleavers in English leads to a misunderstanding of what the knife is truly for.
Yangjiang really has no right to be as beautiful as it is. It’s a tier-four city of a few million people set in the countryside a couple of hours from its provincial capital, an old city but never one of particular cultural significance. Within China, people might know it for fermented black beans, or blade production, which it’s been the centre of for hundreds of years. Either way, it’s not a place that tourists often visit.