Pictured here are my two Henckels knives, a Santoku and classic chef’s knife. The former was a purchase, the second a gift.

I remember reading in Kitchen Confidential that German steel knives are fussy and require frequent sharpening. That’s probably true, but I have a basic two-grit electric sharpener that has worked just fine for the last 20 years, so they’re easy to keep sharp. And boy: sharp they are.