MAC Chef Japanese chef's knife 21cm

The MAC Chef 21cm chef knife is a real asset to your cutting equipment. It enables you to chop, mince or chisel meats, vegetables, herbs...A versatile knife par excellence, it's a great model if you're just starting out and don't know which one to choose.

Blade :

Made of AUS-8 Japanese stainless steel, enriched with carbon, tungsten, molybdenum and vanadium. The first two elements have an impact on the blade's hardness, making it more rigid. A rigid blade will hold its edge for a long time, and you can work its edge more thoroughly, to make it razor-sharp.

Molybdenum and vanadium also have a small impact on rigidity, but while vanadium increases the alloy's elasticity and thus its resistance to impact, molybdenum increases the steel's resistance to corrosion. The result is a high-performance, long-lasting alloy that's easy and intuitive to use. What's more, this alloy is easy to work with, so you can easily maintain it with a whetstone when the need arises.

The cutting edge of MAC knives is a hybrid shape, combining Japanese and Western angles, i.e. between unilateral and V-shaped symmetry. This particular angle gives the knife the perfect combination of formidable cutting edge and longevity. What's more, the fineness of the wire ensures clean penetration that reduces fatigue over the long term, as you don't need to force the blade.

Final sharpening is done by hand, on a water stone. The craftsman's skill ensures a razor-sharp edge from the very first use.

Handle:

The handle is made of Pakkawood, a composite material formed from laminated wood and hot-compressed resin. The end result is resistant to moisture, shock and temperature variations. It is completed by 3 rivets that hold the Pakkawood to the full tang blade.

Despite its imposing size, the Pakkawood remains lightweight (thanks in particular to the absence of a bolster), making it more pleasant to use over time. The shape has also been designed to ensure a perfect grip.

A few words about the manufacturer:

MAC is a Japanese knife manufacturer based in Seki, a Japanese town renowned for its quality cutlery production since the Middle Ages. The brand was created in the 60s, after its founder studied in the United States. He worked part-time as a cook to supplement his studies. It was there that he had the opportunity to test kitchen knives that weren't necessarily to his taste. As an anecdote, he was using a heavy, very sharp, blunt German knife when he dropped it on the floor, narrowly missing stabbing himself in the foot. Instead, the knife stuck in the ground, and when he tried to remove it, about 3cm of the point had broken off. To fix this, he took a sharpening stone to the blade, making the point "rounder". Gradually, he realized that this modification had significantly increased the knife's efficiency, and with it his own output.

On his return to Japan, this experience gave him the idea of establishing the MAC company, with the aim of creating knives with a formidable cutting edge, but at the same time safer, more durable, lighter and therefore easier to use. The brand now boasts several patents to its credit, and is known the world over. It is particularly aimed at professional chefs who need to work fast and well! For the record, the name MAC comes from the word "Macrocosm", which in simplified terms means "immense universe" (reflecting the founder's ambition to equip every country in the world with his knives). He chose to retain the first 3 letters of the word.

Interview:

Hand-wash the knife in lukewarm water with a soft sponge. Dry immediately with a soft cloth, leaving no trace of moisture on the surface. In this way, you'll retain its original performance and appearance for a long time to come.

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