Kuwabara White #2 Nakiri 165mm

Most Japanese knives are made by a collaboration of several craftsmen who specialize in the various aspects of manufacturing a complete knife. It is unusual that a blade is made from start to finish by one single artisan. Such is the case with Kuwabara knives. Mr. Kuwabara works entirely on his own, forging, shaping, grinding, and sharpening each and every blade by hand. He even goes the extra mile by finishing each edge on natural water stones. It is this unusual practice that bought these lovingly created knives to our attention.

The nakiri featured here is made from Shirogami #2 high carbon steel. It is clad in a softer iron which is both more resilient and less prone to damage than the underlying core steel. The outer layer is left with the carbon scale from the forging process which adds a rustic look to the blade and aids in protecting the knife from corrosion. But it is still reactive and requires careful drying after use.

Nakiri blades are made for cutting vegetables and they excel at this task. The flat profile and very thin geometry are perfectly suited to slicing and dicing through the hardest ingredients without sticking or wedging. This is an average nakiri in terms of its size and weight, so it should find favor with chefs of all kinds.

Weight: 5 ounces

Blade Length: 165 mm

Total Length: 305 mm

Spine Thickness at Base: 3.0 mm

Blade Height: 52.0 mm