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One of the most important items a persons uses in his kitchen to prepare a meal is knives and cutlery. While you can spend $100’s of dollars on a single knife you can buy excellent quality cutlery for much less. I have found the best brand for the money is Mundial.

Mundial, Inc. is one of the largest cutlery manufactures in the world. The company over 70 years o;d currently produces its cutlery in Brazil. The founders had been knife craftsmen for many generations. To this day, the company continues to produce knives with the same traditions and superior quality that they have always been known for. Mundial has been the actual manufacturing arm of many other brands and competitors.

My favorite is the Mundial’s premier 5100 series. It is fully forged from one piece of molten steel. The blades are precision ground in a modern plant in a manner that is environmentally friendly in the use of energy and materials. The handles have fixed rivets and injection molded high impact plastic. All handles are designed to provide maximum handling comfort. The razor edge blade provides for safe and effortless cutting. Independent testing lab data indicates that Mundial blades maintain their sharpness longer than many brands that cost 40-70% more! All Mundial products carry a LIFE TIME WARRANTY against defects in materials or workmanship.

The 5100 series is available with a choice of BLACK, RED, WHITE or PINK handles and are shipped in attractive gift boxes.

There are several different Knife types. It can become extremely confusing so here is a brief description of the most popular.

Paring Knife – available in both a 3 1/2” and 4” blade. Use for cutting small vegetables, fruit etc

Peeling Knife – the curved blade makes peeling of curved fruit and vegetables an easy and fun task.

Utility Knife – 6” blade offered with either a serrated or straight edge. This is a multi-task tool that can be used to cut fruit, vegetables and meat. The small blade is designed to offer precision cutting.

Santoku Knife – The personal favorite in my kitchen. This Japanese style knife is very popular general cutting tool. Chopping is the primary task. Note that this knife has less of a curve than chef style knives and as such is generally designed to chop and not rock. Available in either a straight edge or “Granton edge” stlye. We love the Granton edge.

Chef Knife – one size does not fit everyone so Mundial makes a 4”, 6”, 8” and 10” blade. The curved blade allows for an easy rocking motion while cutting and mincing vegetables. This is a great general purpose tool.

Bread Knife – Can you guess what this knife is for? That’s right! Most people prefer to cut bread with a serrated edge. The point makes it easy to start the cut.

Boning Knife – designed to remove meat from bone. The fillet knife works very well with fish.

Carving and slicing Knives – available with either a pointed or rounded tip. The edge can be serrated or straight. The primary function is to slice cooked meats.

Granton edge Knife – the pockets found on the sides of blades serves the purpose of allowing for both a thin and quick cut. This type of edge works well with things like cucumbers and will speed slicing since the air pocket reduces the clinging effect of the slice to the blade. It does not work as well with high water content vegetables such as tomatoes. Cooked meats are a great item to slice with granton edged slicer.

I hope this gives you a little information and what does everyone say: “A little information can be dangerous” In the case of cutlery that is true only if you are not careful!