When I was a kid growing up, my grandfather was the carver of meat and the griller of barbecue in my family. Every holiday, he assumed his ceremonial duties to slice the turkey, ham or prime rib and portion out the slices. I remember very clearly his love of gadgets and his first use of an electric slicer: an avocado green reciprocating blade carving knife with a motor base the size of a whole pork loin. Ahhhhh, the 70's ...
Sadly, this cutting edge (ha!) knife technology didn't stay in his repertoire of cutlery as he preferred his 10" slicing knife and meat fork combo that he'd picked up in Europe before shipping home after World War II.
While I'm a gadget freak myself, I also believe that simple is often better. When I went shopping for my first knives for barbecuing and grilling, I asked a chef buddy about where he got his knives and he was adamant that I shouldn't go after my $1600 Wusthoff or Henckels mega-set with 30+ knives for every occasion and situation ... instead, he advised me to go get a decent granton edge slicing knife from the local restaurant supply warehouse.
After playing around with the different knives, and drooling over the Global and Shun sets, I found that I really like the Victorinox specialty knives to complement my standard kitchen set. Many of you may have already put two and two together ... Victrorinox is the maker of the ubiquitous Swiss Army knives and they have a wide range of cutlery designed for the griller/smoker in mind. My choice was a relatively inexpensive
Victorinox 12" Granton Edge Slicing Knife with a sturdy black Fibrox handle; I elected to go with its rounded edge rather than the scimitar-style for ease of use and I found the slicing motion to be more intuitive.
PROS:1. The blade is high carbon stainless steel and keeps a very keen edge, in my experience. I do use a sharpening stone with this as opposed to a steel.
2. The handle is utilitarian and NSF-approved. It's got a good grip even when your hands are wet or greasy.
3. The granton-edged blade makes cutting super thin slices of any meat, even brisket, not only possible but easy. The little granton grooves allow for fat and juices to move freely while slicing which helps prevent the meat from tearing or shredding.
4. Keeping clean is a simple matter of hot water, soap and a good sponge; as with any good knife I would recommend hand washing over the dishwasher.
5. It pairs nicely with the Victorinox meat fork and
Victorinox meat cleaver, both of which I use and have similar quality and utility.
CONS:1. It's stamped, not forged. I do like a heavier forged knife, and Victorinox does offer a 10" forged version, but it's also more than triple the price. These stamped knifes have held up well for over two years so I'm pleased so far.
2. The Fibrox handle, while slip-resistant and sturdy, does scar a bit. Since I use this as a carving knife and not a presentation knife this isn't a deal breaker for me.
3. Any granton edge knife takes a bit more work to safely sharpen but with a good sharpening stone, or even some skill with a sharpening steel, it'll keep its edge.
FINAL RECOMMENDATIONS:This is a very cost effective choice for a high quality carving knife. While some swear by a high quality plain blade slicer or even a simple chef's knife I think this granton edge slicer provides tremendous functionality and serious bang-for-your-buck. I would recommend getting an
inexpensive edge-guard to protect the knife while in your kitchen drawer (and your hand when you reach for it) and I'll link that below as well. Overall, I am very happy with this purchase and believe that it helps present brisket, pork roast, turkey, ham and other large meats in the best manner possible. Whether hunks of brisket or paper-thin slides of smoked ham this slicer can do it all.
VENDOR RECOMMENDATION:Victorinox Slicing Knife:
http://www.webstaurantstore.com/victorinox-12-slicing-knife-w-granton-edge-and-fibrox-handle/35340645.htmlMessermeister Slicing Guard:
http://www.amazon.com/Messermeister-EGS-12S-12-Slicer-Edge-Guard/dp/B000LVXWZI/