A Bit of History on Damascus Steel Knives

Damascus Patterned Swords and knives, is said to be originated in Syria. The raw material that the swords and knives were made from is called Wootz steel, and came from India and Sri Lanka around 300 BC. Wootz ore was made from iron ore that was melted and the impurities burned away. Then Carbon and other materials were then added. This produced a steel could be made harder than that of European steel at the time. It was then transported to the mid east and made into swords and knives by folding alternating layers of steel and iron, twisting the metal and folding it again and again during the process of forging. This produced a Sword that was very strong and beautiful. While it was strong, it also rusted. This is because of the high carbon content in the steel.

Modern Damascus Steel Kitchen Knives are made considerably different, as the original process has been lost. Some say it was because the iron ore was depleted from the sources where it was mined. Because of the depletion of the ore, the forgers had to use other ore that did not produce the same effect. Though there are plenty of instances of Pattern welding (alternating layers of steel and iron) that produced similar results in other cultures.

Today’s modern knives are made in the ancient Damascus style, But use the Bessemer process, exact control of the amount of carbon in a steel blank. Then again folded and twisted to create the beautiful patterns on the knife. There are two completely different Damascus style knives being made today. The first is that of the artist forger and it is closer to the original method of making Damascus knives, hand forging and hammering. Some of the incredibly talented forgers such as Kyle Royal are making knives that are beautiful, functional and really are collector items. These knives can take weeks or even months for the artist to complete. The second Damascus style knives are made commercially and are Damascus patterned on the blades. At the core of some of the best knives are steel alloys such as VG 10, then the softer “Damascus” high carbon steel is pattern welded onto it. This produces an extremely sharp knife that will stay sharp for a long time with care as to its use. With modern metallurgy the rusting problem has been mostly solved. Any steel, high carbon or not, can discolor if improperly handled.

If you want beautiful, functional and extremely sharp knives, I recommend The Qiang Brand line of Kitchen cutlery.

Better Kitchen Utensils

Chef Knives and my first knife kit
By Unclephil

I had no ideas which were the best chef knives for me when I started California Culinary Academy San Francisco in 1976. This was the first class and there was no list of what knives and chef tools that a neophyte cook would need. Being an observant person by nature, I started looking at what others were using and decided to purchase a set of J.A. Henckels Chef Knives, as they were many professional chefs’ preference at the time. My parents decided that I needed an early graduation present. Wow to my surprise they bought me a set of white handle J.A. Henckels that were way to flashy I thought.

Man I felt pretty cool when I whipped out that set of knives on my first day of work at the Hyatt Regency in downtown San Francisco. On the third day of work, after finishing prepping a couple hundred salads for a banquet and I left my knife kit out while putting the salads away. I was gone to the walk-in for only two minutes and when I returned my new beautiful knives were stolen!.......Heartbroken, I found out how important it is to keep your tools secure. There are lots of trolls who thieve and plunder, may they rot!

The next day I had to figure out what I needed and then I went out to buy;

1) 10 in Chef knife
2) 8 in Chef Knife
3) Boning knife
4) 6 in Utility knife
5) 4 in Paring knife
6) Sharpening steel
7) Zester
8) Kitchen Shears/scissors
9) Bread Knife
10) Knife bag

In the end a utilitarian knife kit to be sure and it reflected only what I needed at the time. This was just the beginning of the professional kitchen tools that I have bought and used in the last thirty years.

These days professional chef’s often have very nice (gourmet) Chef Knives. Japanese Chef Knives from Seki, fine German Solingen steel, Brazilian, Chinese and American Blades that are exotic and precision tools. Knifes that are balanced, super sharp that stays sharp and beautiful. Professional chefs are very picky about what tools they use and most are ardent supporters of their favorite brand. A knife that is inherently better because performance ergonomics or beauty becomes the new standard. Chefs, Cooks and Enthusiasts are starting to seek out better kitchen utensils for function and fashion.