Japanese Petty and Paring Knives
Japanese petty and paring knives are the small, agile blades that handle everything too fiddly for a chef knife. The petty is a utility knife that bridges a paring knife and a chef knife, working on the board and in the hand, while the paring blade is the compact specialist for peeling and detail. Our range runs to 68 petty and paring knives, from $98.95.
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$178.99
$209.95Hatsukokoro Hayabusa SG2 Migaki Petty 120mm
$178.99$209.95 -
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$220.99
$259.95Yoshimi Kato Aogami Super Kurouchi Petty 120mm
$220.99$259.95
Types of small Japanese knife
| Knife type | Detail |
|---|---|
| Petty | A 120 to 150 mm utility knife for slicing and detail work |
| Paring | A short blade for peeling and in-hand tasks |
About these knives
We keep 68 small knives here, from $98.95 to $989.95. These blades handle the fiddly jobs a chef knife is too big for, and the thin, hard Japanese steel keeps them precise. Keep them off bone and frozen food and finish the edge on a whetstone.
How to choose a petty or paring knife
Choose a petty if you want one nimble second knife: at 120 to 150 mm it slices shallots and herbs on the board and peels and trims in the hand. Choose a dedicated paring blade if most of your small work is in-hand peeling and coring. Many cooks keep a petty as their everyday second blade and add a paring knife for fine detail.
Small knife questions
What is the difference between a petty and a paring knife?
A paring blade is short and used mostly in the hand for peeling; a petty is longer and works both in the hand and on the board, so it covers paring tasks plus light slicing it is too small for.
Do I need both a petty and a paring knife?
Not necessarily. A petty covers most small jobs on its own, so many cooks start there. Add one if you do a lot of in-hand peeling and detailed work.
What size petty knife is best?
A 120 to 150 mm petty suits most kitchens: long enough to slice on the board, short enough to stay agile in the hand. Smaller petties lean toward paring tasks, larger ones toward light chef-knife work.
Related Japanese knife ranges
Related ranges: chef knives, gyuto knives and Japanese whetstones. For more, see petty and paring knives compared.