We all them. But do you have a favourite one? Is there one you'd be lost without?
I have a 7" chef's knife that I use for pretty much everything. Being a foodie, I've taken courses and know the value of a really good sharp knife. Because it gets a lot of use, I sharpen it at least once a week on my whet stones. During the week, it gets honed on the steel...that's the long round thing that comes with knife sets. The finer the grooves, the better it is. When your knife is used constantly, the edge of the blade curls. Honing it will only straighten it. Using whet stones will take that off and smooth it out. I have one stone that is 1000 grit. That is relly smooth. There are higher, but for my kitchen, this one is fine.
I also have one other knife I love to use. It's a paring knife with a ceramic blade. I bought it last year and I love it! It can cut through anything as if it were butter. Since the blade is white ceramic, I wash it constantly so that it doesn't get stained. A plus with ceramic blades is that it never needs sharpening. If it does, then it's not really a good one.
For tomatoes and breads I use my serrated knife. I have one that I bought for about $7 Cdn 5 years ago. It still perfectly cuts both breads and tomatoes.
Your turn!!

I've just invested in a 7" santoku knife. I've wanted one since they first came out. It's got nice balance, the knife and handle are one. I'll let you know how it cuts and handles.

My Henkels 7" and 9" chefs knives are pretty much the only ones I use and I rarely even sharpen them. My mother-in-law was mad at my husband when he bought me knives as my Valentine's gift many years ago. But when I opened them, I almost cried because I had wanted them so badly. He actually called up his mom right then so she could hear me exclaiming for joy. Until that time, I hadn't really known how much difference a good knife makes. My biggest concern is that I really don't know how to hone & sharpen properly and eventually they may not work as well as I would like. Also, I have recently started putting them in the dishwasher--is this a big mistake?

I too am concerned with knife care. I use my steel after every few uses, and I've noticed a few of them aren't sharp at all any more. I'm either doing it wrong, or my knives are garbabe. They are supposed to be restaurant grade, but I guess McD's is a restaurant too, eh? haha.

I have a kapoosh knive block that lets me keep whatever knives I want in there, and I'm a fan of that for sure.

I've never put any of my good knives in the dishwasher. I wash it by hand and dry it as soon as I've finished using it. My sister-in-law is a home studies teacher and she also washes her knives by hand. My son, on the other hand, puts his in the dishwasher. But as soon as the rinse cycle is done, he removes it, dries and puts it away. I guess it's a personal preference.
What kind of surface do you usually cut your meats and veggies on? Glass cutting boards can make your knife dull rather quickly, as does marble and plastic. Wood is really the best for cutting. The edge of the knife will remain sharper for a longer period of time. You should have one board just for veggies/fruit, one for poultry, and one for meat. I always wash mine in hot, soapy water that has javex in it. That helps to kill any salmonella. Instead of drying the boards, I sprinkle them with coarse salt and rub that into the wood. I let it sit in the wood for about 1 hour. Then I rinse and let it air dry. The salt will kill any little hangers on that the javex didn't get.