Member of The Guild of Food Writers
Member of The Guild of Food Writers

Do Great White Knives cut it for FooDiva? Plus a giveaway up for grabs

Dubai; Now it’s been said that ‘a good craftsman never blames his tools’. But anyone with a remote interest in cooking; amateur or professional, will recognise the need for a good set of sharp knives. If it makes cooking more enjoyable, easier and efficient, then why not? So when FooDiva was asked to test Great White Knives, it was the ceramic material that caught my sharp eye. Yes you heard right, these are no normal stainless steel knives, but ceramic, zirconium oxide to be precise, the second hardest material after diamond. Heads up, you’d better read the whole review, as we also have a giveaway!

I set up about cutting up a whole myriad of produce; fish fillets, turkey, beef, broccoli, asparagus, tomatoes, lemons and hard and soft cheese to name a few, using three different blades (6, 4 and 3 inch). Firstly, very ergonomic to grasp. The sharpness is almost scary; one slap of the handle and it’s off like a guillotine…no wonder the logo resembles shark’s jaws. Certainly the ceramic edge feels sharper than my steel knives. The sharpness was certainly more evident with meat, poultry and lemons than with ‘softer’ produce. I tried dropping one to see if it would break, but not a crack to be seen. A two year guarantee is offered by the way. Great White Knives

Now I only tested them for a few days, but the sales spiel says that even with frequent use, you only need sharpen the knives once a year – with a special ceramic sharpener though. Needless to say ceramic does not rust, unlike steel, so there’s another USP. It’s best to hand wash them though and allow to drip dry in their very own perspex stand. Plus they won’t stain. Now given I don’t aspire to being a chef (FooDiva much prefers eating out), I did ask an amateur chef, Mr K, for his thoughts – here’s what he said;

“Great White Knives are so fun to use; lightweight, thin and smooth so requires less effort to hold and cut. While it cuts its way through veggies, meat and cheese with effortless ease, its delicate silhouette makes it a bit vulnerable to harsh kitchen uses like crushing of garlic cloves or nuts. It may not replace all stainless steel knives, but it will make recipes that require lots of slicing and dicing even more fun. So all in all, a very good kitchen tool for specific uses and easy cutting.”

Great White Knives also produce a ceramic peeler, which is great for slicing a good slither of cheese; not at all fiddly. As for peeling potatoes, call me odd, but I much prefer a small sharp knife.

And here’s what you’ve been waiting for, Great White Knives is giving away a set of three ceramic knives (6, 4 & 3 inch blades) with its very own perspex stand just for FooDiva Friends in the U.A.E. To enter, simply tell us your favourite dish along with your email by commenting on this post. You can also do so by ‘Liking’ and commenting on my Facebook page, and sharing my tweet mentioning @foodivaworld. Remember I need your email. I’ll pick a winner out of a kitchen bowl on May 16th. Best of British luck!

And if you don’t win, Great White Knives will offer you a 20% discount by purchasing online on www.greatwhiteknives.com quoting ‘FooDiva’. Free delivery in the U.A.E.

Set of three ceramic knives (6, 4 & 3 inch blades) with stand AED 399. Now that’s a good deal, FooDiva says – you’d pay more than double for a good stainless steel set. Knives can also be bought separately. By the way even though the company is British, the knives are manufactured in China – but hey ho that’s the next world power so we’d better get used to it.

Ceramic peeler AED 45. Ceramic sharpener AED 74. Aside from their website, Great White Knives are stocked at Organic Foods & Cafe (Dubai Mall & The Greens), Milk & Honey on Palm Jumeirah, Al Diyafa in the Courtyard, Al Quoz, as well as Park & Shop at JLT.

Well even though diamonds are a girl’s best friend, FooDiva may just have to settle for second best – so here’s to slicing away with my new ceramic Great White Knives.

A bientôt.

FooDiva. x

  • Posted under
    Dubai, Knives, Win with Foodiva

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30 Responses to “Do Great White Knives cut it for FooDiva? Plus a giveaway up for grabs”

  1. Natalie May 7, 2011 at 10:55 am

    Thanks FooDiva! 🙂

  2. Nabil May 7, 2011 at 11:18 am

    My friend has these knives and says they are the best!! I wanna win the draw 🙂

  3. Jonathan Castle May 7, 2011 at 11:49 am

    All time favourite dish? Venison liver with beetroot and figs. H//t to Billy the genius at The Kings Wark, in Edinburgh.

    As for the Great Whites, ooh yes please!

  4. ginger and scotch May 7, 2011 at 12:36 pm

    I have never tried ceramic knives before but now I think I might have to get me a pair (if I don’t win this giveaway that is).

    Fave dish (at the moment) – Braised short ribs. Yum!

  5. Abigail May 7, 2011 at 3:46 pm

    Favorite dish would be Beef Steak. I bet using the ceramic knife would make one feel like a chef.

  6. Priscilla May 7, 2011 at 4:13 pm

    Thanks for the review. I need to try this one out. I love ceramic knives, using one by Kyocera, and I don’t think I can go back to the stainless steel ones.

    My fav dish would be pan-fried salmon with cream sauce and mushy peas.

  7. Bernard May 7, 2011 at 6:15 pm

    Love this post. My favorite dish (the one I get right everytime!) red snapper wraped in smoked salmon with a dill sauce – would be great to have these knives so I could skin the red snapper easily. Me want…me want…me want…

  8. Sally - My Custard Pie May 7, 2011 at 6:45 pm

    Giorgio Locatelli’s truffle rissotto comes pretty high up my list. Like the look of the peeler.

  9. Sukaina May 10, 2011 at 7:57 am

    I wanttttt those knives. So anyways, current favourite dish…..Mongolian beef stir fry!

  10. sheryl May 10, 2011 at 9:36 am

    Never thought that ceramic knives exists until now! I’m so excited about this because I LLLLOOOOVVVEEEEE COOKING! This would be a great post-mother’s-day gift to me!!! yey!!! My all time favorite food is “squid in spicy coconut milk sauce”. I’ll hear from you soon! ciao!

  11. Sharon May 10, 2011 at 9:39 am

    My favourite dish??? There are too many to chose from! It would depend which cuisine. For example: Chinese would be a beef in blackbean, Indian would be a Rogan Josh, Mexican would be fajitas… and so the list goes on. However, my firm favourite would be a childhood favourite and that would be a good Roast Beef dinner with all the trimmings. Something that I would need a nice set of ceramic knives to recreate ;0)

  12. v f john May 10, 2011 at 10:14 am

    in a lifetime one favourite dish is too little..too few!
    but definitely there’s nothing to compare with the chicken curry dish that my mom makes….that gets the entire family’s gastronomic juices flowing.
    just writing it brings water in my mouth…..
    and am for sure rushing home to god’s own country (kerala, india) to partake of the dish in the coming hols.

  13. afzia May 10, 2011 at 10:34 am

    wowww!! ceramic knives !!!thhats interesting!!

    my fav. dish is…italian spaghetti with veggies n shrimps…yummm!

  14. Jill Higham May 10, 2011 at 10:42 am

    Bought one of these knives from Taste of Dubai this year and its brilliant! Would recommend them to everybody. So would be fab if I won the set!!!! My hubby would be pleased as he wouldnt get me out of the kitchen then!!!!! 🙂 My all time favourite dish is the soft ginger bread with icing on the top that my mum used to make 🙂

  15. Anna May 10, 2011 at 1:32 pm

    Hello, FooDiva!
    Here is Anna and my favorite dish is Borsh a healthy traditional Russian soup from my granny’s secret Cooking book. Making Borsh involves a lot of cutting and I am so bad at that. Maybe the Great White Knives will do the trick 🙂

  16. Mark Higham May 10, 2011 at 9:33 pm

    I Love cooking using good ingredients and to have these knives would be fantastic! My fav dish is beef wellington. Thanks Mark

  17. Svetlana Solomina May 11, 2011 at 5:10 pm

    I love cooking especially when my whole family comes over! My favorite dish is meat dumplings – pelmeni, which I make from scratch and takes around 1,5-2 hours. That’s why we usually get together to cook!

    Cheers, Lana

  18. Rajani@eatwritethink May 15, 2011 at 7:57 am

    thanks for the review… i would lurve to own these beauties! my fav. dish would be avial a mishmash of assorted vegetables in a cumin, coconut, yoghurt sauce.

  19. Suzanne May 15, 2011 at 7:58 am

    I saw and tried these knives at the Ranches Easter Bazaar and have to say that I was seriously impressed. Being a foodie and having my own food based business I am always in search of good knives and these are brilliant.

    As for my favourite dish, I would have to say it’s Tournedos Rossini. In fact I may have to make it tonight now that I’ve mentioned it!

  20. radia May 15, 2011 at 8:15 am

    i know the ceramic knives, they are great!
    i wish i had bought a set with me before we moved to dubai as i really think the kitchen gadgets are more expensif here than in the us.
    i wish i can have them… 🙂

    thanks

  21. @fanofamd May 15, 2011 at 8:25 am

    My alltime favourite is Wiener Schnitzel! Simply the best. and good knifes come in handy for that 😉

  22. Geordie Armani May 15, 2011 at 8:38 am

    My favourite dish is a Sunday Roast!! it’s got to be the best dish ever, Roast Beef, Yorkshire Pudds and crispy roast potatoes with lashings of gravy!

    Great White Roasting Knives 🙂

  23. Susan May 15, 2011 at 10:00 am

    The other great thing about ceramic knives is that food doesn’t oxidise because they cit so cleanly – so they are a health option too!
    My favourite dish – slow braised pork belly and prune roulade at the Eaglevlei Winery in Stellenbosch! Heavenly setting and divine food!

  24. Keren Bobker May 15, 2011 at 10:43 am

    Just one favourite dish? Tricky! A Laksa with prawns would be my desert island dish.

  25. Elizabeth Bain May 15, 2011 at 11:06 am

    fantastic knives – they look wonderful. Not a great cook/chef just starting out but would be fab to have a professional set of knives.

    Fav dish…too many – love
    Stuffed chicken breast wrapped in pancetta
    or
    Lamb chops with saffron, pine nuts and cauliflower

    or just a good hearty plate of fish and chips!!
    served with mushy pies and good selection of sauces.

  26. Simon Clough May 15, 2011 at 11:56 am

    Knives look very impressive, I’d love to try them. My friend has one so to win THREE would be very cool.

    Favourite Dish – Rivington Grill’s Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding Salad with pickled mushrooms and Horseradish dressing is something I could eat every single day…

  27. Monique Miles May 15, 2011 at 8:14 pm

    Would love a set of new knives. Favorite dish at the moment is the black footed chicken I had at La Petit maison, it came with a piece of foie gras and a piece of baguette in a ceramic bowl. The baguette soaked up all the pan juices and had a lovely taste from the liver, delish!

  28. Carole Macpherson May 16, 2011 at 10:59 am

    I have never tried ceramic knives but heard how good they are from friends..
    Favourite dish would have to be a healthy stir fry… lots of chopping involved!!

  29. NW May 16, 2011 at 11:24 am

    Love those knives! My favourite dish would have to be a simple risotto with truffle oil & parmegiano reggiano!

    • FooDiva May 17, 2011 at 8:55 am

      We have a winner – Keren Bobker! Congratulations Keren, and heartfelt thank you to all participants. Remember you can still purchase the knives online with a 20% discount. Cheers! x

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