The Shun Kanso chef's knife is a must-have. This all-purpose knife is ideal for a wide variety of cutting tasks. The length is perfect for preparing fruits, vegetables, proteins, and a wide variety of other foods. It offers a wider heel, a fairly flat profile toward the heel perfect for push cuts but shuns also gave it a little belly from mid-blade toward the tip so that it can be gently rocked through fresh herbs or spices to produce a very fine mince. The Yayasan wood handles are slightly contoured, enabling an easy and comfortable chef's grip while cutting. Shun took away anything that doesn’t matter and kept everything that does high-performance steel, razor-sharp edge, perfect balance, and precision cutting control. The steel is Japanese AUS 10 A-highly refined, high carbon, vanadium stainless steel that takes a razor-sharp edge and holds it longer. Kanso's - Heritage finish hides scratches and gives Kanso a rustic look that just improves with age. The handle is made of tagayasan wood, sometimes known as iron sword wood. The handle contouring enables an easy chef's grip. Full tang construction provides strength, balance, and easy cutting control. Like all Shun knives, Kanso is sharpened to a 16° cutting angle on each side to cut cleanly and help preserve food’s freshness and best taste.