Shun Premier 5.5" Santoku Knife - Blonde Santoku (which means 3 virtues) knives are knives that are equally adept at mincing, slicing and dicing. The shun premier santoku knife is no exception. With a 5.5-inch blade it is a work-horse for all your kitchen prep, chopping and slicing its way through all your tedious tasks. Shun pronounced "shoon" in Japanese, means- "at the peak of perfection". Each knife is handmade by skilled specialists and requires at least 100 handcrafted steps to complete one knife. Shun Premier knives feature a VG-Max super steel core encased with a Damascus clad 34-layers of SUS410/SUS431 stainless steel, 17-layers on each side. The Damascus steel supports and protects the core, which provides toughness, and is stain resistant. The hammered tsuchime design acts as a hollow-ground and releases the food easily from the blade when slicing. Each Shun knife provides a Japanese blade angle of 16. You will enjoy the ease of cutting the thinnest slices without bruising or tearing the most delicate foods while prepping; this ensures the ingredients to stay intact, retain flavor, and stay fresh. The blade is complimented by a contoured for comfort and control handle, made out of stylish blonde PakkaWood. Made in Japan. All cooks have certain tools that really work for them. That's one of the reasons Shun makes so many different types of kitchen knives; so you can always find the ones that work best for you. The Shun Premier Blonde 5.5-in. Santoku is a case in point. Smaller than our full-sized santoku, this one is an in-between size and weight that make it perfect for most medium-sized kitchen tasks. Slicing baby carrots, dicing shallots, cutting butter or chocolate?all are perfect jobs for the Shun Premier Blonde 5.5-in. Santoku. If you have smaller hands or simply prefer a compact knife, this one is sure to become one of your favorite kitchen go-to knives. VG-Max steel core, Damascus clad with 34-layers of SUS410/SUS431 stainless steel Full tang, provides strength balance Hammered Tsuchime finish, helps release the food from the blade easily when slicing Rockwell Hardness: 60-61; traditional Japanese blade angle- 16 (each side) Stylish blonde PakkaWood handle accommodates right left-handed users Made in Japan Lifetime Manufacturers Warranty