Five rules for caring for a Japanese knife, covering hand washing, the right cutting board, whetstone sharpening, and proper storage.
Yuki Nakamura
Yuki covers technique: the cuts, the grips and the small habits that separate a knife that's used from a knife that's merely owned. Expect step-by-steps that assume you'll actually pick up the blade.
Best Kitchen Gifts for Summer 2026: 10 Ideas They Will Love
Ten kitchen gifts for summer 2026 cooks, from a Sakai Kyuba santoku and brass chopsticks to walnut cutting boards and a three-knife set.
Best Japanese Knife Set for Beginners: Complete Guide
A beginner’s guide to Japanese knife sets, why the chef, vegetable and paring trio works, plus the Sakai Kyuba KYU Set at €690 for first-timers.
Stainless Steel in Kitchen Knives: A Complete Guide to Every Steel Type That Matters
A reference on the stainless steels used in kitchen knives, from budget 1.4116 to VG10, SG2 and ZDP-189, and how carbon and chromium shape each one.
Frutti di Mare Spaghetti (Seafood Spaghetti) Recipe
Spaghetti tossed with clams, mussels, king prawns and squid in garlic, white wine and arrabiata, finished with herbs and lemon. Serves a crowd.
Fresh Chimichurri Salsa
A hand-chopped chimichurri salsa of parsley, garlic, oregano and paprika loosened with apple cider vinegar and olive oil, for meats and veg.
Pearl Couscous Salad with Grilled Salmon & Mint-Lime Dressing
A pearl couscous salad with flaked grilled salmon, radish, cucumber and apple, tossed in a buttermilk dressing with lime, mint and Dijon.
The Tastiest Polish Sausage Sourdough Sandwich You’ll Ever Make
A Polish sausage sandwich on fresh sourdough with Wiejska or Podwawelska, Sarebska mustard, tomato, lettuce and gherkins, grilled until crisp.
Keeping Sharp Kitchen Knives Safe with Little Ones at Home
How to store sharp Japanese knives safely around young children, with practical storage habits, clear boundaries and age-appropriate teaching.
The World Of Dumplings: Gyoza, Pierogi, Dim Sum, Pielmieni And More
Nearly every cuisine folds dough around a filling. Crispy-bottomed gyoza, butter-fried pierogi, Cantonese har gow and Russian pelmeni, side by side.
The Art of Karate: A Journey of Discipline, Strength, and Tradition
Karate began in Okinawa as ‘te’, shaped by Chinese martial arts and practised in secret under weapon bans. Its history, philosophy, and core techniques.
Why Are Japanese Knive Worth Their Price?
What makes Japanese knives worth the price: high-carbon VG10 and layered Damascus steel, task-specific designs, and matching kitchen accessories.
The Okinawan Secret To Longevity
Okinawa has one of the world’s highest counts of centenarians, linked to a plant-rich diet and the Hara Hachi Bu habit of eating until 80% full.
Why Nakiri Is A Perfect Knife For Vegetarians
The nakiri has a flat rectangular blade built for an up-and-down chopping motion, which makes it a precise, efficient knife for plant-based cooking.
Why Linen Is One Of The Best Materials For Your Kitchen
Linen is naturally anti-bacterial, eco-friendly and very absorbent, which is why it has become a staple fabric for kitchen towels and tableware.
How To Overcome Cooking Fatigue
Seven ways to beat cooking fatigue during lockdown, from online cooking classes and YouTube tutorials to recording family recipes and buying better tools.
4 Knife Safety Tips
Four ways to stay safe with kitchen knives, keeping them sharp, using a large wooden board, and choosing a knife that fits your hand.
7 Ways You Are Accidentally Destroying Your Kitchen Knives
Seven everyday habits that quietly wreck your knives, including the dishwasher, air drying, drawer storage and scraping the board with the edge.
Why Should You Oil Your Chopping Boards
Why wooden chopping boards need oiling, and how mineral oil keeps them from drying, staining and cracking. Covers the what, how and when.
4 Basic Knife Cut Techniques Everyone Should Master
The four knife cuts worth knowing, the slice, the chop, the back-slice and the rock-chop, with how to grip the blade and use its full length.
What Wood Is Best For Cutting Boards & Butcher Blocks?
Not all wood suits a cutting board. Judge a species by Janka hardness, toxicity, porosity, conditioning and cost before you buy or build one.
How To Cut A Pomegranate Using A Knife
Cutting a pomegranate without the mess takes a paring knife, a board and a bowl. First, here is how to pick one that is ripe and juicy.
5 Simple Steps To Creating A Functional Minimalist Kitchen
Five steps to a minimalist kitchen, from decluttering by the 9-month rule to restricting colours, losing handles, and planning hidden storage.
50 Greatest Cooking Tips (Of All Time)
Fifty cooking tips gathered from top chefs, covering baking temperatures, storing spices, making stock, seasoning evenly, and much more.
Why Japanese Diet Is Considered So Healthy?
The traditional Japanese diet is rich in fish, vegetables and fermented foods, low in sugar, and linked to long life and good health.
Which Whetstone Grit To Choose For Sharpening Japanese Knives
Which whetstone grit to use for Japanese knives, from coarse stones under 1000 for chips to 4000 to 8000 finishing stones for the edge.
How To Use Chopsticks Like A Pro
Grip two-thirds up the barrel and let only the top stick move. The mechanics of chopsticks, plus which length and wood make them easiest.
How To Choose The Best Cutting Board?
Glass, marble, bamboo and steel all wreck a fine edge. End-grain hinoki, hiba or walnut give the blade something to sink into instead.
15 Best Christmas Gifts For Japan Fans
Fifteen presents for the Japan obsessive in your life, from a 100-sheet origami set to a kintsugi kit and 24-carat gold-lined bone porcelain.
The Best Way To Store Your Kitchen Knives And Metal Tools Safely
Why a loose drawer ruins knife edges, and how magnetic racks and blocks keep blades sharp, space saved and out of children’s reach.