Chef's knife

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In cooking, a chef's knife, also known as a cook's knife, is a cutting tool used in food preparation. The chef's knife was originally designed primarily to slice and disjoint large cuts of beef and mutton. Today it is the primary general utility knife for most Western cooks.

A European chef's knife generally has a blade 20 centimetres (8 inches) in length and a broad 4 cm (1½ in.) width, although individual models range from 15 to 36 centimetres (6 to 14 inches) in length and may be as slender as 2 cm (¾ inch). Longer and wider knives are more frequently called chef's knives, whereas shorter & more slender knives have a tendency to be called cook's knives. The shortest and narrowest knives overlap into the general utility kitchen knife category that are too narrow to have a heel to the blade, like the smaller paring knife.

A modern chef's knife is a multi-purpose knife designed to perform well at many differing kitchen tasks, rather than excelling at any one in particular. It can be used for mincing, slicing, and chopping vegetables, slicing meat, and disjointing large cuts.