Hand-forged in Ibaraki, this nimble 165mm santoku marries a razor-thin Shirogami #1 core with a rustic kurouchi surface and stainless side cladding. The deep, charcoal-black oxide finish shrugs off food sticking, while the fine-grained core steel sharpens to an effortlessly keen edge. A traditional wa handle keeps the knife feather-light and perfectly balanced for push-cuts, rocking, and rapid vegetable prep.

Shirogami Kurouchi by Yuki Abe & Gaku Kanatsu is the flagship line from the two-person Isamitsu forge. Each blade is shaped, hardened, and ground entirely by the founders, then clad in stainless to protect the high-carbon heart while preserving maximum cutting feel. Their meticulous heat treatment pushes Shirogami #1 to ±62 HRC, giving you crisp edge retention with the signature “buttery” sharpening response chefs love.

Isamitsu Hamono 安光刃物 was founded in 2022 in Sakuragawa, Ibaraki Prefecture. By limiting production and selling through select specialty retailers, Abe-san and Kanatsu-san keep centuries-old forging techniques alive while delivering world-class performance to modern kitchens.

安倍勇光 Yuki Abe & 金津岳 Gaku Kanatsu trained for fifteen years under a legendary regional smith before opening their own atelier. Their hallmarks are ultra-thin grinds, hand-finished kurouchi blades, and an insistence on doing every step—from forging to final whetstone polish—in-house.

Santoku 三徳 means "three virtues." Some say this refers to three types of food — meat, vegetables, and fish — while others say it means three cutting techniques: slicing, dicing, and mincing. Either way, this all-purpose knife with its shorter, taller blade than a gyuto is an all-time favorite for agile prep work and efficient chopping.

San Mai 三枚 means "three layers" — a hard cutting core sandwiched between two softer outer layers. This traditional construction protects the delicate edge from shock while adding toughness and simplifying maintenance, so you can enjoy the performance of high-carbon steel worry-free.

Shirogami #1 白紙 (White Paper No. 1) is the purest of carbon steels—mostly just iron and carbon (1.25 – 1.35%) with minimal silicon (0.1 – 0.2%) and manganese (0.2 – 0.3%). This high-purity Hitachi steel has slightly more carbon than Shirogami #2, allowing it to get even harder and achieve exceptional edge retention. Among the easiest steels to sharpen, it's capable of achieving the most perfect mirror-finished edge. Hand wash and dry promptly to manage patina formation.