Kiritsuke

切付け

Head chef's knife General Purpose Specialized

A kiritsuke is a traditional Japanese single-bevel knife (切付け), historically the head chef's knife; by custom, in many kitchens only the itamae carried one. Its long, tall, flat blade ends in an angled K-tip, and it is ground on one side with a concave ura on the other for a keen, clean-cutting edge. It combines the reach of a yanagiba with the height of an usuba. Typical lengths run from 240mm to 300mm.

It unites two specialist knives: the tall, flat edge cuts vegetables like an usuba, while the length and angled tip slice fish like a yanagiba. It suits an accomplished hand; the single bevel rewards good technique with precision few double-bevel knives can match, but steers and wedges when technique is off. Compared with the K-tip gyuto, which shares the tip, it is single bevel and taller. Compared with the K-tip yanagiba, it is taller and more of a vegetable knife.

Not to be confused with the K-tip gyuto, which shares the angled tip but is a double-bevel gyuto. The traditional kiritsuke is single bevel, taller and flatter. Many shops list the two interchangeably; we keep them apart.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best kiritsuke for experienced home cooks?

Settle which knife you mean first. A traditional kiritsuke is single-bevel, ground on one side only. It takes real practice to use well, is set up for right-handed users by default, and needs single-bevel sharpening technique to maintain. A K-tip gyuto shares the angled tip but is double-bevel, ambidextrous, and sharpened exactly the way you would sharpen a normal gyuto.

If you want the single-bevel discipline, choose on length and steel, and read the construction on the product page — each one tells you which you are looking at. Our kiritsuke range is small and sells through in waves; the shelf beside this answer shows what is here today.

When not to buy this: for the silhouette without the learning curve, take a K-tip gyuto — Hatsukokoro Hayabusa SG2 Migaki K-tip Gyuto 210mm.

Is a K-tip Gyuto the same as a traditional Kiritsuke?

Not quite - and it is the single most common point of confusion when people shop for a kiritsuke. The two knives share the same striking angled, reverse-tanto tip, but underneath that tip they are very different tools.

A K-tip gyuto is normally a double-bevel knife: it is ground on both sides like any Western-style chef's knife, so it is forgiving to use, and sharpened exactly the way you would sharpen a normal gyuto. You get the dramatic kiritsuke look with the everyday usability of an all-purpose chef's knife.

A traditional kiritsuke, including the kiritsuke-yanagiba (slicer), is a single-bevel knife, ground on one side only. It is historically a master chef's knife: it takes real practice to use well, is set up for right-handed users by default, and needs single-bevel sharpening technique to maintain.

So if you want the kiritsuke silhouette with no learning curve, choose a K-tip gyuto. If you specifically want the traditional single-bevel discipline - and the precision it allows on fish and vegetables - choose a true kiritsuke. At Knives and Stones we stock both, and each product page tells you which construction you are looking at.

Reviewed by James Zhang · Last updated 29 May 2026