Picture the ultimate cheese board before you. You spent hours selecting all the pairings, visiting your local cheesemonger, and finally, curating your masterpiece. Only one issue: standard cutlery simply doesn’t cut it—literally.
Your chef’s knife is too large and unwieldy, and your dinner knife doesn’t have the power to cut through dense parmesan or the finesse to gracefully glide through a soft, creamy blue. Fortunately, there’s a solution. Enter the world of cheese knives.
The basics of cheese knives
Cheese tools come in an astounding number of varieties. Short, long, pointy, rounded—whatever you’re seeking, there’s likely a cheese knife out there for you. As a novice, it can be difficult to know which cheese knives are utilized for what. That’s why we curated this guide so you can wrap your head around the different options and the cheeses they complement, featuring our handcrafted Cheese Accessories.
Types of cheese knives
Soft cheese knife
Whether you’re savoring a fresh mozzarella or slicing off a wedge of gorgonzola, the Soft Cheese Knife (featured in our Twirl Hammered collection) is the correct tool for the task. Soft cheeses naturally cling to your utensils, so soft cheese knives are strategically designed to minimize the surface area that cheese can adhere to. By being exceptionally thin or having holes—not unlike Swiss cheese—these knives are key to a fluid, stick-free cheese cutting experience. Your days of needing to use a second knife to scrape cheese off the first blade are finished!
Offset cheese knife
If you only wish to purchase one cheese knife, this is it. Offset cheese knives are robust enough to get through firm cheeses like alpine-style, but feature a slender blade that won’t stick to delicate soft cheeses. The offset handle that lends this knife its unique lightning bolt profile provides space for the user’s hands and knuckles, allowing for precision, leverage, and consistently clean cuts. (For a refined alternative, consider the Butter Knife/Spreader from our Amora Polished set for your softer spreads).
Traditional (Pronged) Cheese Knife
This multi-purpose cheese knife is a necessity for any cheese enthusiast. A classic Traditional Cheese Knife, like the one found in our Laurel Polished sets, can cut everything ranging from firm, aged cheddar to soft feta. It’s not quite tough enough to go toe-to-toe with hard cheeses like parmesan, though, and may be a tad thicker than desirable for soft cheeses. It’s the jack-of-all cheese knives but the specialist of none. The pronged tip can be utilized for serving or just gazing deeply at the cheese of your preference—we won’t judge.
Cheese cleaver
Yes, it looks exactly like a miniature meat cleaver—which is almost reason enough to add this to your cheese tool drawer. The cheese cleaver is what we reach for when slicing firm or semi-hard cheeses like gouda or brick. It makes dividing up substantial pieces of cheese a breeze. (Our Gilded Helical Hammered sets often feature robust blades perfect for these tasks).
Cheese Plane Knife (Flat cheese knife)
The Cheese Plane Knife, also known as a cheese chisel, is ideal for shaving or chipping aged hard cheeses like aged gouda or cheddar. As the name implies, the blade is flat and short so you can apply force straight down on a tiny area and cut small morsels without crushing surrounding cheeseboard accompaniments. You can find exquisite examples of these in our Helix Hammeredcollection.
Spatula cheese knife (or Cheese spreader)
Some cheeses are better spread than sliced, and for that, you’ll want a Cheese Spreader on hand. This essential cheese tool will reinvent the way you spread cream cheese on a bagel. Once you attempt it, there’s no going back. The spatula blades are intentionally crafted to gently flex as you apply pressure so that you have even more command over your cheese smearing skills. Every cheeseboard deserves a spatula knife, like the Butter Knife/Spreader available in our Whorl Polished sets.
Parmesan knife
We know what you’re thinking: it’s totally unjust that parmesan gets its own knife. This knife originates from Italy where it’s referred to as a “tagliagrana.” It also goes by almond knife or spade knife. Whatever you choose to call it, the Parmesan Knife (available in our Twirl Hammered sets) is the tool of choice for cutting hard, granular cheeses like parmesan. The sharp tip effortlessly slices into even the toughest cheeses.
What cheese knives should you get?
While every Cheese Lover dreams of a drawer full of every cheese knife they could imagine, it makes sense to prioritize your purchases for maximum utility. We’d recommend starting with the three cheese knives we couldn’t exist without, often found in our curated 3 Pcs. Sets:
- Soft Cheese Knife
- Traditional Cheese Knife (Pronged)
- Stilton Scoop or Cheese Cleaver
These three tools cover everything from soft to hard cheeses while having enough overlap to ensure you’re never left waiting while someone else is holding the knife you require. For smaller gatherings or petite hands, don't miss our Mini Cheese Accessories collections, perfect for compact boards.
Other cheese tools to know
Cheese plane
The finest way to get consistent, razor-thin slices is a cheese plane. Although many four-sided cheese graters have one built-in, having a hand-held cheese plane can be a superb addition to your cheese tool arsenal when you want the convenience of a smaller, more specialized tool..
Cheese wire
For ultra-delicate cheeses that might get squished with a blade, the cheese wire can be a splendid way to make cuts without crushing your precious ball of mozzarella. Many cheese boards even have attachments so your cheese wire can connect directly to the board itself!
Ready, set, cut!
Armed with the proper tools, you’ll be slicing and dicing artisan cheese with ease. Find the cheese board to match your new cheese knives with our guide to all things cheeseboards.
If all this talk of cheese has you feeling peckish, try our selection of handcrafted recipes featuring gourmet cheese. Share your creation with us on Instagram or Facebook and become part of the largest cheese community in the world.
Try out your new cheese knives by getting your favorite artisan cheeses and cheese gift baskets delivered right to your door. Award-winning Inox Artisans cutlery is just a click away and makes for a memorable Wedding gift that lasts a lifetime.
FAQs
Q1. What do you use the differently shaped cheese knives for?
Just as the chefs acquired in kitchen have particular knives intended for dicing fruits, veggies or meats; cheese aficionados literally use a variety of cutlery for varied cheese. Soft cheeses need perforated or slender blades to keep the cheese from sticking, while hard cheeses such as parmesan need a stout blade to chip off small portions. Each form has its own purpose.
Q2. Are cheese knife sets a good gift?
Absolutely. A Handmade Cheese Knife Set becomes an elegant Wedding gift for newlyweds establishing their home. They're also an unforgettable foodie’s gift for a special birthday or celebration of life – or even an experience they'll never forget on their anniversary.
Q3. How do I take care of my Inox Artisans cheese knives?
For long lasting care of your handmade tools we do recommend hand washing after use in soapy water and towel drying. Get rid of abrasive cleaners and dry with a soft cloth to keep the style shine & glisten.
Q4. What is the best knife for cutting cheese?
And if you don’t have any cheese knives at home, we’d recommend a small paring knife for firm- to-hard cheeses and kitchen (or butter) knives for soft cheeses. These aren’t going to replace a dedicated Inox Artisans cheese knife, but they do the trick in a pinch.
Q5. Why do cheese knives have a hole?
Have you ever been annoyed by cheese that won’t come easily off of your knife? Some cheese knives are designed so that doesn’t happen. The hols means less surfaces area for the cheese to stick on to so your cheese will be able to just come off from the blade instead of sticking too much and having you claw away at it with another tool
