The Oxo Professional series of knives includes two Chef knives: a 6" size and an 8" size. Both are roughly shaped the same, except the larger Chef knife has a longer, thinner blade. I am writing about the Oxo Good Grips Pro Chef Knife with the 8" blade.


Description

The Oxo Professional series features knives that are constructed from hardened stainless steel with a no-stain blade. The full-tang blade offers added strength and balance. One of the special features of this knife is that the handle is non-slip, with the traditional black comfort grip handle that Oxo is known for. The handle is also contoured for ergonomic comfort. At the end of the handle is a silver oval featuring the Oxo name.

The blade of this knife measures 8" long. A metal shank at the base of the blade, connecting the blade to the handle, adds another 1/4". The black comfort grip handle measures 4 3/4" long. Overall the knife is 13" long.

At its widest area, the blade of the knife is 1 3/4" wide. The bottom of the blade is gently curved and ends in a point.


My Experiences

Oxo states that this Chef’s knife is for chopping, mincing, dicing and scooping vegetables, herbs “and more”. When I am cutting a lot of vegetables, this is the knife I reach for. I have used it to cut a variety of fruits and vegetables including turnip, zucchini, carrots, peppers, onions, celery and in the rare instance head lettuce.

I can’t say enough great things about this knife when it comes to cutting turnip. We enjoy the hard turnips that can be bought in a grocery store with a wax coating to help preserve them. Using other knives, I struggle to drive the blade through the hard turnip rind. The Oxo Chef’s knife does an excellent job. Not only does the knife pierce the turnip rind, but it easily slides through the turnip’s dense core. Once the turnip is sliced in half, I then quarter each half with the Chef’s knife. I then use my Oxo paring knife to remove the rind from the smaller turnip pieces. This Chef’s knife makes this task go much quicker, and my fingers are not sore from wrestling the knife through the turnip.

The end of the knife has a sharp point. On rare instances, I will use the sharp point to gouge out a bad spot in a vegetable ... but I prefer using a smaller blade for those tasks. The Chef’s knife is just large enough so that I don’t feel I have the control that a smaller blade provides.

Using the comfort grip of this knife handle is a joy. My hand does not slide on the grip. This is a nicely balanced knife, too. I can also cut for longer periods of time than using a knife that doesn’t have the rubberized comfort grip. I sure notice the benefit when tackling hard vegetables such as turnips and carrots.

One of the great features of this knife is the no-stain blade. The blade cuts well and cleans like a dream. Nothing I’ve cut has stained it. However, I do notice that the wax from the turnip-coating tends to linger on the broad side of the blade. The wax has not stained the knife, but it is difficult to completely remove.


Cleaning & Caring of the Chef’s Knife

This Oxo knife is not dishwasher safe. The instructions that came with it say to hand wash the knife and then to promptly dry it. I use Dawn dishwashing liquid in warm water and then immediately (and carefully) dry the knife with a paper towel.

I store this knife in a knife block. This not only protects the knife blade but is also a safe way to store knives so that there are no accidents.


Purchasing

This knife retails for $19.99. Look for sales as it can be bought for less than this price.


Summary

The Oxo Good Grips Professional Chef’s Knife makes cutting my vegetables easier (especially the hard vegetables that need a serious blade). My only complaint is that the wax from the turnips leaves a residue on the flat side of the blade that is difficult to remove. But since this family likes turnip, and this knife does at fantastic job at cutting them, I’m willing to live with some wax on the knife.

I hope you have found this review useful.

Enjoy the day,
Dawn
http://dlstewart.com


Please read my other reviews:

Oxo Good Grips Professional Paring Knife

Oxo Good Grips Professional Santoku Knife

Oxo Good Grips Professional Bread Knife

Oxo Good Grips Professional Utility Knife

Oxo Comfort Grip Apple Divider

Oxo Good Grips Small Silicone Flexible Turner

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Copyright 2007 Dawn L. Stewart

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): n/a