Sakai White #2 Usuba 180mm

The usuba is the dedicated vegetable knife of traditional Japanese kitchens. Like other professional Japanese knives, this one is chisel ground, with a bevel on the front side and a hollow-ground urasuki on the back. The flat edge has virtually no curve, and the blade runs tall to allow knuckle clearance while chopping on a cutting board. Usuba literally means thin blade, a quality required for cutting through firm vegetables without cracking them, and the height and straight edge make it well suited to specialized cuts like katsuramuki, the technique of shaving a vegetable cylinder into a paper-thin sheet. This rounded-heel profile is known as a kamagata usuba.

The blade is made from the popular Hitachi White #2 carbon steel with an iron cladding, custom commissioned for CKTG. It will corrode if not cared for properly, but the inner core steel takes and keeps a good edge and is genuinely easy to sharpen. This is a single bevel blade suited to right-handed users only. The simple D-shaped ho wood handle is attached with a buffalo horn ferrule, and a custom saya and pin complete the package.

What Customers Are Saying: One reviewer notes the out-of-box fit, finish, and sharpness left a little to be desired, but after a quick sharpening session he came away loving the knife - he plowed through a whole case of tomatoes and a whole case of cucumbers for a big event without any trouble, calling it comfortable in hand and capable of nice, clean cuts.

• Location: Sakai, Japan
• Construction: Hammer Forged, Ni Mai
• Edge Steel: White #2
• Cladding: Soft Iron
• Knife Type: Kamagata Usuba
• Edge Grind: Single Bevel, Right Handed
• Handle: Ho Wood D
• Ferrule: Buffalo Horn
• Saya: Included
• Weight: 5.8 oz (164 g)
• Blade Length: 173 mm
• Total Length: 320 mm
• Spine Thickness at Base: 3.8 mm
• Blade Height: 44.4 mm

Care Instructions: White #2 is a reactive carbon steel - wipe and dry the blade immediately after every use. Avoid leaving acidic foods on the edge. Apply a light coat of camellia oil after use and for storage. Sharpen on quality water stones; single bevel technique is required. Hand wash only. Each knife is made by hand so measurements may vary.