F. A. Porsche Chroma Haiku 301 Knife Set

Kitchen Stainless Steel 3 Piece Cutlery

F. A. Porsche Chroma Haiku 301 Knife Designed by F. A. Porsche, this three piece set of Chroma Haiku Type 301 knives brings a space age look to your kitchen and yet makes perfect practical sense. So simple in appearance, there's much going on beneath the surface of these one piece stainless steel chef's knives.

The handles are where your eye will go first. Ergonomic means different things to different people. Usually it means large and soft; for F. A. Porsche it means sleek and efficient. At first it didn't hit me as correct, but when you think about it the flat horizontal section for the palm, blending smoothly into the vertical section for the fingers, becomes a beautiful simple solution to the old grip problem. The metal "pearl" marking the juncture between handle and blade actually does work. Your fingers find it and it becomes the bolster, but lighter and smaller.

The blades' high carbon alloy designed for superior edge holding and easy sharpening (two qualities that are seldom successfully combined) have familiar classic shapes without the fancy attributes that are often tough to see as useful unless you imagine really really hard. The Chroma Haiku knives are based on simple concepts of steel and edge--if you get those right, there's nothing to argue about.

These are not ordinary knives. Chroma insists they be treated differently than the western chef's cutlery most of us already know. Do not use a sharpening steel, because that will damage the edge; do not use a dishwasher--this steel is chosen for cutting quality, and will be damaged by machine washing. In the home kitchen you may only need to sharpen these knives once every six months, with proper care--when you do, you'll need a proper stone and the instruction book.

Want a travel set for the professional chef? Check out the Chroma 301 Chef's Starter Kit w/ travel case.