20 Best Japanese Meat Cleaver Knife (2023 Updated)

What a great cleaver. Designed to accurately strike and cleanly slice through joints of a chicken. Easily chops through small bones to make lovely prep a breeze.

10 out of 10 points! I did expect that I would have such a great knife for my cooking. Well cared, well packed in a real nice wooden box with authenticity tag. And overall, it works perfectly with the sharpness and precision that I have never had before! I thought it was expensive but when I hold it in my hands and use it, it’s worth every penny! Thank you Kamikoto! Keep it up.

Made from durable, corrosion-resistant CR420J2 steel, a low-quality steel with poor edge retention, usually used for mass market budget knives. Nice to look at, not worth the “sale” price of $150, more like $50.

Maybe with the box, $75. The other knives in the collection have similar value or less.

The main reason I’m keeping this cleaver is to use on the occasions when I send my favorite knives in for sharpening and refurbishing, which usually means a week or two turnaround. But those knives all beat this cleaver in performance.

What I don’t like about this one is the textured surface, so when I slice onions, the cut slice sticks to the cleaver on the up motion. That slows me down and makes the job messy. Another disappointment is that with a cleaver this big, that doesn’t fit in a knife block, I’d have liked AT LEAST a cardboard sheath for it.

I don’t want to invest in a knife guard for it because I don’t like it enough to do that. So it sits in a low drawer in it’s original box until I need it. I searched “returns” on the Milk Street site and NOTHING comes up.

Even after getting it professional sharpened, I’m not finding that it’s particularly better at cutting heartier vegetables than my standard chef’s knife. Other than the fact that the blade has more surface area, I’m still having to exert a lot of energy to cut something like a butternut squash.

Still, it’s good to diversify my knife options, even if it’s just so I bully my chef’s knife less often.

I returned this item because it was too heavy. I am 74 and have carpal tunnel issues with my right hand. This was very heavy. Mr. Kimball stated that it was light weight and not costly. It failed on both accounts.

Not only was it too heavy, it cost more than twice what he said it would – $47. oo, not $15-$20. I sent it back right away and have received my refund.

A REAL WINNER HERE MASSDROP. I have to say I may have a bit of a problem when it comes to knives, whether it’s in the kitchen, my office desk, everyday carry, yard work, the garage, etc. I have Henckels, and Shuns, Calphalons, Cutco, several hand forged-walnut burl beauties, antique cleavers, SOG, Kershaws and Ka-Bars BUT this thing just may be the most comfortable knife I have every held.

From the moment I first held it I knew I made a wise decision in buying this knife and hiding the purchase from my girlfriend. SO COMFORTABLE!!! I got the cleaver style one with the dark wood handle and they way the bolster tapers to meet the blade just fits my hand so perfect.

I’d like to think it’s what I would have done had I designed it. Way to go Massdrop a real shining example of good product selection amid the tactical and ridiculous items I see here daily. Oh and it came wicked razor sharp.

I got the nakiri last drop and I am thoroughly impressed. I’ve been around Japanese knives for the past 7 years via a work friend. He has lauded their quality to me at great lengths. He also gave me a 7 inch chef’s knife and recommended I get a nakiri since I am a vegetarian and mostly cut veggies.

Out of the box, this knife is a razor edged workhorse. It sliced through tomatoes cleanly with ease, as well as any other veggie I have thrown at it. The edge is wicked sharp! After a month of daily use the edge could use some honing but it is far from dull.

I highly recommend these knives. I can’t speak to sharpening them and the difficulty involved yet, but so far I am happy with my nakiri.

Bought the nakiri last drop to replace an aging Japanese knife that suffered years of abuse both at home and in professional kitchens. It wants honing with each use – which, really, most knives do – but with that, it’ll cut through most anything you could ask of a vegetable knife with ease.

Blade does show streaking after cleaning, though this has no impact on use, and the blade was a tad thicker than I expected. It’s thickness is closer to my Wusthof, not the other Japanese knives I’ve owned or used, so it felt a tad heavier than I initially wanted from a Japanese knife.

With that said, I’m very happy with it, especially now that I’m used to it and through the mourning period of my old knife. You really need to spend quite a bit more money to top this on quality.

Light but balanced in hand, and the thin lade allows this knife to easily cut, slice, and dice almost any food. The knife provides good control in fileting, and response nicely to stone sharpening. The design offers comfortable handle, and agile blade make chopping tasks much easier.

The blade offers reasonable edge retention. Noted that the weight of the knife does not match the toughness and versatility offered by the Wusthof. Considering the price, this chef knife is a good value over all.

Light weight, Well balanced, and VERY sharp! I haven’t taken it to work yet but from unboxing and first impession I am very pleased. Knife is well balanced and light weight with a comfortable grip. Out of the box it is razor sharp and comes with a sheath for storing/ protecting it when not in use.

Packaging is very nice with a magnetic lid and felt lining which would also make for nice storage or gift box. I will update my review after putting it to use in a restaraunt environment but my first impression is a good quality knife for the price.

I do think this is the sharpest knife I’ve had in a long, long time. It slices ripe tomatoes quite easily and smoothly, It’s very handy for chopping, slicing, and very well balanced. It has become my “go to” knife.

I highly recommend it, just be careful, it’s very sharp!.

Ok my reviews have already proved my geekdom. I went through a stage of buying knives. Well I watched Sam the Cooking Guy on YouTube. Sam always had a Nakira so I needed one. This did not disappoint It’s.

Not used. yet, but Samantha Brown travel to China. she paid. $22.00, so is. right on.Good cleaver a. must have.Looks good I am. sure. chops well.

I just bought this entire set when furnishing my new apartment. The best knife set I have ever had for the price by far. I feel like a professional chef.

These knives have a good weight, and they feel good in the hand. The blades are sharp and sturdy with little to no flexibility when pressing down. I recently had the tip of one my el cheapo knives break off when smashing garlic.

The utility knife has become my go to knife. I absolutely love it. I use it for a lot of cutting tasks like slicing fruit, cutting the ends off asparagus, slicing through bagels, potatoes, deboning chicken and trimming the edges of meat and whole fish.

The list goes on. I like to use the Chef knife when cutting up or butterflying chicken. It too is comfortable to hold and cuts cleanly through the food items. I haven’t used the paring knife much, but just like the others, it is well made.

I think this set would make a nice gift for someone just starting out or for anyone that likes to cook and appreciates good cooking tools.

Nice quality knife. As a former chef I naturally test any knife I think might be interesting. And so I was looking forward to getting this. It was one of the few knives I didn’t personally own. I’ll start by saying that a knife is very individual thing.

Depending on the size of your hand and the way you like to cook, one man’s knife may not be another man’s knife. I am female, but my hands are larger than most females, but smaller than a male. So the weight of the knife was fine for me.

It might be too heavy for a small handed female. I felt the weight was OK, it balanced nicely. The blades were sharp. A steel maintain the blade nicely. And it re-sharpened with no issues. It has a full tang and rivets and the handle looked of good solid material.

All in all I think for the price it’s a good knife. Again, depending on what you need in a knife. It comes beautifully boxed for giftgiving.

This is a decent knife. You can get them for sub $10 if you shop around carefully. The stainless holds a decent edge. The best knife I ever used had a high carbon steel blade that would rust over fast if you did not oil it but had am amazing edge.

This is not that sharp. Also it is a lot taller than I would prefer it being. It looks impressive but is a bit hard to control. Overall a pretty good value.

Good quality, takes a good edge and at a great price can’t do much better for a good all around kitchen knife. It does have its cons though, the weight takes some getting used to, this is no lightweight, good for chopping but finer work takes some patience.

Gets dull relatively quick, not a problem if you touch up your knives every now and then but still a consideration. Mine arrived with a small crack in the handle but a little epoxy fixed it and ive had no problems since.

Overall its a pleasure to use, definitely recommend.

This was a shockingly pleasant surprise when we pulled it out. It was brought in for a newbie cook to round out his first knife roll. He felt he needed a cleaver, i didn’t think he would use one so we snagged him this.

It wound up being his favorite of the bunch. And I don’t blame him. The weight on this thing is great! The wooden handle felt better in my hand than some of my knives and it came plenty sharp. While it does not hold an edge well the thing is a breeze to kept sharp.

you will just be honing a little more often. I was kinda sad to see this one walk out the door with him when he left.

The knives that come in this 3-piece chef set with blades covers look very impressive in the package. They are heavy in weight in the package so I was concerned they’d be heavy in my hand while using.

That concern was lifted once I opened up the package and took one of the knives into my hand. The handle is solid and I feel confident that it won’t slip while I am chopping or slicing. I like the serrated knife for cutting tomatoes and crusty bread! The smaller knife is great for cutting up veggies and small fruit.

It is always best to hand wash cutlery and dry immediately so I haven’t been able to test these in the dishwasher. It’s nice to know that they are dishwasher safe though. I recommend this knife set which is reasonably priced.

I have been gifted this product so I could give an honest review.

Looking for the huge built solid type cleaver they made back in the good ol’ days? Well this will suit the bill nicely. This is not for delicate work. It is good steel and is balanced well – BUT it is 4 POUNDS! Are we clear? If you are chopping cow, horse, pig, bone or any other large animal, this baby is for you.

Cut the head off a duck, no problem. Gross anatomy cuts on a cow? One shot. Done. Flatten garlic, yep, but so will a real sharp brick. frozen meat or bones like ribs not a problem. If you are chopping chickens, ducks or roosters, this will work, but is probably overkill.

In fact, you probably want a Chinese knife/cleaver (looks like a cleaver but it’s thinner)as it is lighter and will use less energy. If you are chopping fish, greens or vegetables, get another cleaver.

They make a vegetable cleaver that is even thinner than a chinese style cleaver just for this purpose. I love this knife! and though I haven’t had it long enough to see how it will retain an edge I can tell just from the quality of the steel that it will last several generations if maintained right.

Again, this cleaver is 4 POUNDS. you will get a work out wielding this thing for just a few chops, are we clear? good. CONS: the only bad thing I can say about this knife (except packiging which is a seperate section) out of the box is that some of the edges for the outline of the cleaver weren’t deburred as much as I would like them to be.

You would have to put a decent amount of pressure and friction to get it to break skin. but still. A minor gripe fixed easily with a piece of sandpaper or emeryboard but just so that it was mentioned.

I usually don’t review product and hate it when one request to review their bad product. If one ask to to review their bad product I give 0 STAR if possible. coming to the point, This is a very nice heavy weight chopper.

I just used it for Chicken. Awesome. Still waiting to see how it works for Beef bone and Lamb Bone. will update for beef and lamb.

This is the first time trying a Dexter Russell made cleaver but will definitely not be the last let me say I am very, very impressed by the quality of this cleaver. It is very heavy which is exactly what I want in a cleaver that is needed to cut through the harder stuff and it is also very sharp.

The metal seems to be high grade and the wooden handle and rivets are also well done. This cleaver is comfortable to hold and serves it’s purpose well. So to sum up if you are looking for a sharp cleaver with good weight and excellent craftsmanship this is the cleaver for you.

It takes a lot of power to come down on a massive kabocha squash to cut it in half. It has the sharpness and strength, but the power comes from a carefully aimed strike on a good cutting board. I still use my small knife for smaller squash cuts, but this beats them all for large fast strokes on long pieces.

If I were a meat eater, I would say it could easily cut right through a meat bone. Just watch your fingers! I bought one for each of our homes and it hangs beautifully on the knife hook we have in the kitchen.

I’ve had this cleaver for about two years. It is a heavy-weight cleaver intended to be used for chopping. It is not a chinese cleaver (which is intended to stay closer to the cutting board), and it would be too heavy to be used as one.

I have been using it primarily to process poultry and the occasional turkey, and for this it works great! Functionality: 5/5 +thick, solid blade +no rust or stains after 2 years +the edge doesn’t chip, even after heavy use Fit and Finish: 4/5 +ready to use out of box with no adjustments +sharpened to about a 25 degree angle on each side, which is perfect for it’s intended use +no chipping even after heavy use -The edge profile is uneven, but it makes no difference in performance with this item -QA issue with the handle.

It is sometimes a little wobbly (the rivets are a little loose). This doesn’t occurr in all of them. Value: 5/5 +amazing price at just over 5$, comparable items are 2-3x the price Other notes: Just like with a knife, using a honing steel regularly will help this cleaver stay sharp longer.

The occasional sharpening with a diamond steel or sharpening stone will be necessary.

I bought this cleaver to chop semi-frozen fish filets for our local Knights of Columbus Lenten Fish fries. This cleaver works awesome, previously we were swinging cleavers and butcher knives with fish flying off the table but with this and it slightly rounded blade to just rock to cut through the filets nice and clean without fish flying around.

Relatively frozen filets cut even easier than the filets that are mostly thawed. This cleaver meets my needs, just wish it came with a cover as well but it is easy to make one with a little cardboard and duct tape.

You do not want to throw this cleaver on your car seat without a cover unless you want holes cut into the seats.

First it arrived 3 days earlier than I had been told. That’s great! This is a really nice cleaver. It is not too heavy and it pretty sharp. (could be sharper, but it is OK) My garden helpers use knives like this and chefs knives and also serrated knives to take down the hosta leaves and chop them up in the garden at this time of year.

That helps the leaves degrade better over winter, providing soil nutrients for the plants in the spring. It is kind of like leaf mulch.

One of the tree metal tacks on the wood handle which was closest to the main part of knife worried me a little. There were spaces between the wood handle and knife. But after daily use, cleaning and rinsing, the wood expended, filled the space out.

Now it is my favorite knife for slicing, chopping. One knife is all I need in my kitchen ( All the Chinese chefs require only one good knife. But do keep the knife clean and wipe off the water before let it air dried, so the wood handle will last for years to come.

).

I use a paring knife for so many things in the kitchen. And I had one that had been my mother’s which I used, and I loved it. Then one day the tip broke off. (Well, it WAS half century old. ) So I went looking for a new paring knife.

Found this one and took a chance on ordering it without ever having hefted it. After arrival this little knife took over the kitchen. It feels good in the hand and makes every job much easier. I love this knife.

I received my Nakiri as a gift, and I was blown away. It will cut an onion with little to no effort, and will make short work of denser veggies, like squash or carrots. Great weight and balance. Incredibly sharp right out of the box.

Add a monogram, and you will have a beautiful knife to add to your collection.

Well made and looks great. Not as much flex in the blade for a boning knife as I thought it would have, but I love it.

Very good. I enjoyed using it. The weight and how it’s balanced made the knife easy to use. And the handle, it’s very grippy. I thought it’s gonna get slippery when fat and oil get on to it but I was wrong.

Overall I’m impressed with the knife. I’m a global fan now. I have wusthof and fury in my kitchen, both were great knives but I love using my global to hack and slash my next masterpiece.

I have this habit. maybe not a good habit. of running my thumb and index finger along the length of the blade to get off pieces of what I’ve been cutting. If you do that with this cleaver, you will cut yourself because the blade is angled (watch the video on this page).

That said, it is a really sharp cleaver and is well-made. I wish it had come with a sheath. I keep it in the very back of my drawer and don’t use it as often as I would wish. If you’re just a regular cook that wants a good cleaver, perhaps look at another brand with a regular blade.

I am delighted with Global Meat Cleaver that I purchased, as it worked beyond my expectations, which others appreciated and its price was far below other shops. Its value prompted me to purchase a top boning/ filleting knife and set of steak knives last week that I also know others sell at much higher prices.

It also prompted me to my imminent purchase of 2x Swiss Army Penknives for my 2 grandsons requested Xmas presents, after their mothers OK. We jointly checked them out at a leading shop last week and I found the Kitchen Warehouse prices for the same items to be much lower.

Delivery to date has been fast and flawless. Thank You!.

This is most definitely the real deal. I’m not going to even talk about how excellent this is for the price, but how this is a professional chef tool. The construction, size and weight is on point with butcher cleavers that cost 10 times the amount of this thing.

Must have if you butcher and cleaver.

If you’re looking for a fancy addition to your collection of pricey kitchen cutlery, this ain’t what you want. Weighing just under two pounds; this puppy could easily split kindling, froe cedar shakes, or cripple enemies.

Not the prettiest cleaver on the internet market, but the best value.

I gave it five stars because of the price. The quality is way better than I expected, it is stainless and very heavy, just what I wanted. I am not a butcher, If I were there are a lot of fine quality expensive choppers out there that I would probably want.

Mine came reasonably sharp and the handle was quite dry, I wiped the wood down with mineral oil (the same that I use for my butcher block). This thing will last longer than me. What more do you want for under $20.

00 ?.

I treated myself to this ideal meat carver as we eat roasted joints regularly. And What a treat this turned out to be. It looks amazing , it feels nice in the hand, well balanced & the finish is great.

This is not a knife you stick in the draw. it now has pride of place in its own rack, where all can see. Its super sharp & the build quality is spot on. I collect collector knives which never get used so I’m pretty clued up.

this was purchased with use in mind. & we use it all the time. It managed very well through our festive season & saw in the new year. It’s a pleasure to use, you wouldn’t even know if you were cutting a tuff joint to a succulent joint.

It glides through the meat with no effort at all. I may now have the bug & buy a few more chefs knives, all our guests have been impressed with it * Japanny have been great , there selection is vast, the service has been great & the postal times off the chart , it arrived faster than a local rate parcel.

, so you wont go wrong with there knives Or service. Many Thanks ,, Steve’o.

I received knife in excellent condition. Really well balanced, attractive design, and super sharp (especially after putting a nice edge on it). I really like the VG-10 metal. It holds its edge for quite a while and gets super sharp.

Only drawback is it does take a little bit longer to get it sharp. This is my main knife now. I don’t know why I ever tried to save a couple of dollars for a knock off Japanese knife. This is the real deal and easily 4 times better than my previous 10 inch VG-10 chef knife made in China.

I am more productive and my cuts are more accurate. Thank you! Highly recommend.

It’s a very beautiful knife. It came sharpened. I’ve been using it for about a month and it has only dulled a little. Very good knife for general at home cooking and good if you have small hands. I would also describe it as light weight, so it does not strain your wrist.

I got it because I wanted a professional knife and I heard that the dents prevent food from sticking when you’re slicing. Although that doesn’t seem to be the case when I am using it, it might be because it is the shorter/smaller model and the dents aren’t as deep (?).

Overall it’s a great knife and I only wish it came with a guide telling you how to keep it sharp.

This cleaver is everything good! It is pretty and well as a great vegetable cleaver. The cutting is precise and clean. Even the box it came in is so elegant.

Very good chef knife I brought it cause. I wanted something bigger then the standard one love it use it the most. Good weight to it and perfect feel in your hand.

Like the sturdiness of the blade and the ability control while using. It’s the right size for daily needs.

I would NOT RECOMMEND this knife or this company to anyone. The knife has a tiny handle, making it difficult to use and uncomfortable in the hand. It is weighted like a knife with a longer handle making it bite into my palm.

I do not have large hands. Hocho knives were unsympathetic to my concerns and made no attempt at customer satisfaction. They simply replied with a copy of their terms of service. I’m now stuck with a knife I can’t use because the return / exchange process is designed to make it not worth it (customer pays return shipping plus 30% of original price- even for store credit).

This is the perfect vegetable chopping knife I’ve ever used. I was using a really nice nakiri before, but I’m loving this one more. The damascus pattern makes this a beautiful knife, it’s a razor sharp blade out of the box, and has a nice weight to help power through whatever you’re chopping.

Everything in buying and shipping process was smooth and perfect as well. The packaging makes sure the knife reaches you without a chance of being damaged. This is the only place I’ll be buying Knives from now on.

This cleaver is beautifully made. It arrived sharp and ready to go to action. I like the heavier weight on this knife yet it still feels comfortable. The only improvement I would recommend is to increase the ergonomic of the wooden handle.

I think a round handle will give the a better control.

An excellent product and beautifully crafted. As soon as you take it out of the presentation box you can feel the craftsmanship, it’s comfortable to hold and very nicely balanced, it’s also very sharp.

(would recommend using a sheath). Yes it’s expensive but your buying a work of art.

Great buy. The knife is of excellent quality. Very sharp, balanced and beutiful. Rouded knife blade. I prefer the blade to be shaped straight like a traditional chinese chef’s knife.

I absolutely love this knife. Not too heavy, handle fits perfectly in your hand and very versatile. I would not recommend using this cleaver on meat.