If you love Japanese fish dishes, the Yanagiba knife is a must-have in your kitchen. Also known as a "sashimi knife", it's perfect for making maki, sushi and sashimi. Unlike the Western filet de sole knife, its blade is not flexible. This rigidity enables it to cut sushi and maki cleanly, while respecting the flesh of the fish.
The blade of the Yanagiba knife is long and sharpened on one side only. Its cut is therefore bevelled. In fact, a slice of fish cut with an asymmetrical blade has two different surfaces: a smooth side that must come into contact with the palate and allow the sushi to slide into the mouth, and a bevelled side that allows the fish slice to adhere better to the rice. The asymmetrical cutting edge of the Yanagiba knife is renowned for preserving food flavors to the maximum.
Most yanagiba knives are designed "for right-handers", but why? Quite simply because Japanese left-handers are used to using the same knives as right-handers, so there are hardly any asymmetrical-blade knives suitable for left-handers - it's a handy trick to have!
What's more, the Yanagiba knife is slightly concave to prevent food from sticking to the blade. This makes cutting your maki rolls faster and easier.
Ideal for preparing bite-sized fish dishes, the Yanagiba knife 's sharpness can also be used to cut meat. You can use it for :
Lifting fillets to reduce waste.
Remove skin from fillets.
Cut makis precisely from the rolls.
Slice sashimi without tearing the delicate flesh.
Cut raw, cooked or smoked ham.
Cut very thin strips of meat or fish to make carpaccio.
For a perfectly controlled cut, pull the blade towards you in a single movement, instead of forcing it downwards.
Like all knives, the Yanagiba needs to be sharpened to maintain its cutting edge. You can sharpen it regularly with a whetstone by following our tutorial on this page!
