The Best Ceramic Knife Sets

A standard, traditional kitchen knife is typically made from stainless steel. These steel knives do their job well but tend to get dull quickly.

Ceramic knives have blades made from zirconia, which is zirconium dioxide (ZrO2). This is a substance that is extremely hard and durable.

Please do not be confused. What makes a ceramic knife “ceramic” is not the zirconium dioxide. Ceramics may be made with a variety of materials, including glass.

However, when we talk about ceramic knives, we are talking about knives with blades made of zirconia.

Ceramic knives are made by using a process known as dry-pressing. This takes the raw zirconia, which is in a powder form and turns it into a knife blade. A grinding wheel made from diamonds is then used to sharpen the newly made ceramic blade.

Do Ceramic Knives Need to be Sharpened?

It is a common misconception that ceramic knives do not need to be sharpened. Ceramic knives, like all kitchen knives, do need sharpening. However, ceramic knives do not need to be sharpened as often as stainless steel knives.

You can purchase special ceramic knife sharpeners or take your ceramic knife set to a professional knife sharpener when it is time to get the blades rejuvenated.

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You may think having a sharp kitchen knife is more dangerous than a dull kitchen knife, but that is not true.

Poor, dull kitchen knives are actually more dangerous than sharper knives because you are more likely to cut yourself with a cheap, dull kitchen knife. Why is this?

Well, when you are trying to cut something, such as tomatoes, with a kitchen knife that is not as sharp as it should be, that dull knife can slip. And that is when you are likely to have a kitchen knife accident.

A good quality ceramic knife set can help prevent accidents that occur from the usage of dull kitchen knives.

Ceramic knives are popular for a variety of reasons. Gourmet chefs often speak highly of these knives.

Ceramic knives are also very popular among people who are into raw food since raw food preparation is all about properly preparing vegetables and more vegetables. Once you try ceramic knives, you might end up preferring them as well.

Here are just a few of the great benefits of knives with ceramic blades:

1. Ceramic Knives are Light

If you do a lot of chopping in the kitchen, a heavy steel knife can become uncomfortable after a while. Ceramic knives are a lot lighter than traditional steel knives.

2. Ceramic Knives Are Really Sharp

Not only are ceramic knives very sharp, they don’t dull as quickly as steel blades do. As we’ve already covered, a sharp kitchen knife is actually safer to use than a dull knife.

3. Steel Knives Corrode and Leave Residue

Acids from foods such as citrus fruits can corrode a steel blade, so, when you chop with it, you can end up transferring knife material to the food. Ceramic kitchen knives do not have this problem.

4. Ceramic Knives Stay Sharper Longer

As we have already mentioned, ceramic kitchen knives do not need to be sharpened as often as stainless steel kitchen knives. You simply do not have to worry about sharpening your blade made with ceramic that often.

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5. Ceramic Knives Come in a Variety of Fun Colors

While this is more of an aesthetic reason to choose a ceramic knife set, why not? If you want to have some knives on display in your kitchen, why not have some fun colors?

Of course, you could potentially get steel-bladed knives with multi-colored handles, but they are hard to find.

With ceramic knives, you can sometimes find the ceramic blade as well as the handle offered in bright, cheery colors.

6. Ceramic Knives Are Easy to Clean

You can throw many brands of ceramic knives right in the dishwasher and they’ll do just fine. (Well, don’t literally “throw” them into the dishwasher the ceramic knife blade is so sharp it just might hurt your dishwasher rack!)

As mentioned above, ceramic knives do not pick up on the residue that steel knives can, and they do not corrode with acidic foods like limes and lemons.

Ceramic knives should be easier to work with when chopping and therefore safer when you are actually using the knife.

However, because these blades are so sharp, you might be a little more nervous about having them out in the kitchen.

1. Keep the Knives Safe from Young Children

Do keep these knives away from young children. This is especially important if you have gotten a set with bright rainbow colors.

Let’s face it those colors can be an invitation for kids to play. In fact, now that we think about it, maybe you should avoid getting brightly colored knives when you still have young kids in the house.

2. Get Ceramic Knives with Blade Guards

Many ceramic knife sets come with blade guards. You can put these on the blades to avoid accidents while storing and transporting the sharp ceramic knives.

3. Be Careful When Walking with a Knife

In restaurants and cooking schools, people are taught to walk carefully with a knife. Point the tip down and don’t walk around like you are getting ready to stab somebody like in a psycho movie.

As you are passing near other people, say the equivalent of “fore” (from golf): SHARP! Or, perhaps more directly: KNIFE!

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4. Learn Proper Cutting Techniques

You can find many free videos on the Internet that teach basic knife skills. These include the best way to hold a sharp knife in your dominant hand, and what to do with your guide hand.

For example, you do not want to hold the knife with your index finger stretched out across the top of the blade. This can lead to instability with the knife.

Also, your non-dominant hand is best protected by assuming the “claw” position. Curl the fingers under when holding the meat and vegetables that you are chopping. Do not expose your fingertips to the knife blade.

Following some of these basic safety tips will make your kitchen a much safer place to be once you get your brand-new ceramic knife set.

Like all kitchen knife sets, you can find a variety of ceramic knife sets for varying prices. The good news is, that you can get a decent set of ceramic kitchen knives for less than $25.

Of course, the more you spend on your ceramic knives, the better the quality (usually). However, many of the cheaper ceramic knives offered in the sets below get fabulous ratings.

Cuisinart 12-Piece Kitchen Knife Set

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This is one of those fun, multi-colored ceramic kitchen knife sets you will either love or hate. This knife set by Cuisinart includes 6 ceramic knives. The “12 pieces” in the set are the blade guards. The knives included in this set are:

• 8" Chef Knife
• 8" Slicing Knife
• 8" Serrated Bread Knife
• 7" Santoku Knife
• 6.5" Utility Knife
• 3.5" Paring Knife

This ceramic knife set gets really good reviews on Amazon, and it sells for less than $20! Some of the positive comments on this knife set include the following:

“I often reach for these over my ‘expensive’ knives! Worth every penny and then some.”

“I love this Cuisinart set! I'm updating my kitchen and needed a basic, all-around knife set and this one is pretty perfect. I love the color coding and the fact these all come with protective sheaths.”

“They are good, heavy knives. The handles are, while not rubbery, fairly non-slip. The blades are very sharp, and combined with the weight of the knife, make a good, solid tool.”

However, some people have complained that the knives are cheap (well, technically, they are) and break easily.

Also, some have reported the color coating coming off. Consider, when buying a set with colored blades, whether this coating could possibly have some ingredients that might not be healthy. You just don’t know.

Still, overall, this is a great set for the price.

Rocknife Black Ceramic Chef's Knife

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You can purchase Rocknife ceramic knives without any colors or fancy patterns. Still, if you aren’t concerned about possible toxic residue, you might very well be enamored by their ceramic knife set with a psychedelic checkerboard pattern on the blade.

This knife line includes an eight-inch bread knife, a six-inch knife for big veggies like cabbage, and a five-inch ceramic blade for things like melons and grapefruit. You will also get four-inch and three-inch smaller knives in the series.

You can buy these knives individually or in a set of four. Unfortunately, if you are in the United States, you may be looking at international shipping. The cost is listed in pounds. The set of four knives also comes with a stand.

Coiwin Kitchen Ceramic Knife Set with Sheaths

Here is another great cheap set, advertised as “Super Sharp and Rust Proof and Stain Resistant.”

You won’t find any fancy designs on these ceramic knives they look a lot like steel knives with a grayish silver blade and black handles. The knives that come with this ceramic set include:

• Six-inch Bread Knife
• Six-inch Chef Knife
• Five-inch Utility Knife
• Four-inch Fruit Knife

The bread knife comes with a serrated edge and a French-style point. All the other knives in the set have triangular points.

Each blade also has its own safety cover. You can also get a variation on this set with colored handles (the blades are still the same grey-silver color).

5 Piece Ceramic Knife Set with Knife Block

This ceramic knife set costs a little more than some of the cheaper ones at $49.99, but it is still in the more affordable range of prices.

This is a really great deal considering you get blade covers as well as a knife block.

These are also not brightly colored but look similar to stainless steel knives, with a sleek design and black handles.

The set includes, according to their product description:

• A seven-inch chef’s knife for chopping, dicing, mincing, and slicing
• A six-inch serrated knife for cutting bread or slicing other foods with waxy or tough exteriors
• A five-inch Santoku knife for chopping, dicing, mincing and slicing
• A four-inch paring knife for paring, peeling, slicing, and mincing fruits and vegetables

A ceramic knife set is a great set of tools to have in any kitchen. Once you use ceramic knives, you may never want to go back to stainless steel.

Fortunately, ceramic knife blades come in all shapes and sizes, from Western-style carving knives to Japanese Santoku knives.

You can always add to your ceramic knife set to have a great selection of knives for all your kitchen cutting needs.