Damascus Santoku Knife, Hand Forged 7 Inch Kitchen Knife with Olive Wood Handle

A santoku is the knife most cooks reach for on a home board for vegetables, boneless meat and fish. The flatter edge and the low tip suit an up and down chop rather than the rocking a chef knife wants, and the short blade turns easily in a small kitchen. This one is a 7 inch Damascus blade over a high carbon core, full tang through olive wood, with a stamped leather sheath.

Specification

The blade

The Damascus is pattern welded over a high carbon core and then etched, so the light and dark layers show, with the bevel taken to a mirror polish. No two patterns repeat. The edge runs close to flat from heel to tip, so the whole length meets the board and an onion falls apart instead of staying joined at the last cut. The honest trade is the carbon steel under the pattern. It darkens with use and it spots if left wet, so dry it as soon as you wash it.

The handle

Olive wood is dense and slightly oily, so it stays warm in the hand and does not go slick when wet. The grain runs in honey and brown waves, and no two pieces match, because the tree decides the figure. The tang is full, steel unbroken from tip to butt, with brass pins through the scales. Five inches of handle leaves room for a pinch grip with three fingers still on the wood, which is how most cooks drive a santoku.

The leather sheath

Every knife in this batch ships with a slim leather blade sheath cut for that exact blade. Vegetable tanned leather, welted edge, hand stitched, and the face on this one is hand stamped with a carved leaf and vine inside a stamped border. It covers the blade only and leaves the handle out, so it is a cover for storage and for carrying rather than a belt sheath. That suits a drawer where a bare edge would otherwise chip, a knife roll, or the drive to a friend's kitchen for dinner.

Who it suits

A santoku makes a good first hand forged knife. It is short enough to control and long enough for most of a prep list, and it takes less board.

• Cooks working on a small board or in a small kitchen
• Anyone who chops rather than rocks
• Buyers who want a Damascus pattern they can see
• Someone shopping for a wedding or a housewarming

What comes in the box

• The santoku knife
• The stamped leather blade sheath
• A care card
• A free laser engraving quote on request

Every piece is different

Every knife is forged, ground and finished by hand, so runs stay small and no two are alike. The Damascus pattern, the color of the olive wood and the stamping vary from the photographs. Yours will be its own piece.

Looking after it

Wash it by hand and dry it straight away. Never the dishwasher and never left soaking, since dishwasher damage voids the warranty. Damascus darkens with use, and that gray patina is normal and protects the steel. Sharpen on a whetstone at roughly 20 degrees per side, then strop. No pull through sharpeners. Cut on wood or plastic, never glass or stone. More in our knife care and sharpening page.

Put a name on it

Laser engraving is 20 dollars per blade. Around 30 characters fits on a blade, and longer messages sit better on the sheath. We send a proof image before the laser runs, and it adds 3 to 5 business days. Clean line art engraves well, photographs do not. Free on orders of 10 pieces or more. See the engraving page.

Questions buyers ask

How is a santoku different from a chef knife? Flatter edge and lower tip, so it chops instead of rocking.

What is the stamped sheath for? It covers the blade in a drawer or a knife roll.

Is 7 inches enough? On a home board, yes. Big roasts want an 8 inch chef knife.

Is it dishwasher safe? No. Hand wash and dry it right away.

Will this steel rust? Carbon steel sits under the pattern, so dry it after every wash.

How long until it ships? Most US orders arrive in 5 to 7 business days.

For more blade, the Damascus chef knife in olive wood runs 8 inches, and the Damascus nakiri in rosewood has a straight edge and no point. The rest sits in kitchen knives, the pattern welded blades in Damascus steel, and the wood in olive wood handle knives.