Japanese Yanagiba Knives

Yanagiba knife specifications

Yanagiba knife facts

We stock 65 yanagiba knives, from $161.99 to $8800.00, in lengths from 240 to 300 mm and in right- and left-handed grinds. The single-bevel edge and long, thin blade are built for one thing: clean, single-stroke slices of boneless fish. Keep it for fish and slicing, not for bone or hard vegetables, and store it in a saya to protect the fine edge.

How to use a yanagiba knife

A yanagiba cuts on the pull, not by chopping. Start with the heel of the blade at the far edge of the fish, draw the whole length of the knife back towards you in one smooth stroke, and let the long edge do the slicing without sawing. Keep the flat single-bevel side against the fish, wipe the blade between cuts, and sharpen it on a whetstone matched to its single-bevel edge.

Yanagiba knives in stock

Tsunehisa AUS8 270mm Monosteel Kashi — $161.99
Tsunehisa AUS8 240mm Monosteel — $169.95
Sakai Takayuki INOX Stainless 270mm — $279.95
Hatsukokoro VG1 300mm by Sukenari — $288.99
Hatsukokoro x Myojin Shirasagi Ginsan 270mm — $329.95
Tsunehisa Ginsan K-tip 270mm Monosteel — $349.95
Hatsukokoro x Myojin Shirasagi Ginsan K-tip 270mm — $349.95
Sakai Takayuki Gintan Ginsanko 270mm — $389.95
Myojin Shirasagi White 2 300/330 mm — $389.95
Sakai Takayuki Ginsan 270mm — $399.95
Hatsukokoro x Myojin Shirasagi White 2 270mm — $399.95
Hatsukokoro x Myojin Shirasagi Ginsan 300 — $399.95
Hatsukokoro x Myojin Shirasagi White 2 300mm — $419.95
Hatsukokoro x Myojin Shirasagi Ginsan K-tip 300mm — $419.95
Hatsukokoro x Myojin Shirasagi White 2 K-tip 300mm — $439.95
Hatsukokoro x Myojin Shirasagi White 2 Sakimaru 300mm — $439.95
Masamoto Sohonten Hongasumi White 2 240 mm KS0424 — $467.99
Sakai Takayuki Ginsan 300mm — $469.95
Hatsukokoro x Shimizu Ginsan K-tip 270mm — $499.95
Satoshi Nakagawa VG10 Sakimaru Takobiki 270mm Mirror Polish — $535.99
Sakai Takayuki Gintan Ginsanko Left-handed 270mm with Saya — $549.95
Satoshi Nakagawa VG10 300mm Mirror Polish — $552.99
Satoshi Nakagawa Ginsan Kasumi Kiritsuke Shaped (K-tip) 270 mm — $559.95
Nakagawa Ginsan 270mm Mirror-Polished Ebony — $589.95
Nakagawa Ginsan K-tip 270 mm Mirror-polished Ebony Handle — $599.95
Satoshi Nakagawa VG10 270mm Mirror Polish — $600.00
Hatsukokoro x Shimizu Ginsan Damascus K-tip 270mm — $619.95
Nakagawa VG10 Sakimaru Takobiki 270mm Mirror Polish — $630.00
Satoshi Nakagawa VG10 Kiritsuke (K-tip) 270mm Mirror Polish — $630.00
Satoshi Nakagawa VG10 Kiritsuke (K-tip) 300mm Mirror Polish — $670.00
Hatsukokoro FAXR2 Powdered Steel 240mm Mirror Polish Ebony — $679.95
Masamoto White 2 Kiritsuke 165 mm KS4616 with saya — $699.95
Sukenari SG2 240mm Mirror Polish — $699.95
Satoshi Nakagawa VG10 330mm Mirror Polish — $710.00
Masamoto Sohonten Hongasumi White 2 Kiritsuke 270mm KS4627, with ho wood saya — $749.95
Hatsukokoro FAXR2 Powdered Steel 270mm Mirror Polish Ebony — $789.95
Hatsukokoro FAXR2 Powdered Steel K-tip 270mm Mirror Polish Ebony — $799.95
Sukenari SG2 K-tip 270mm Mirror Polish — $849.95
Sukenari SG2 Ni-mai (2 layer) 300mm Mirror Polish — $849.95
Nakagawa Ginsan K-tip 300 mm Mirror-polished Ebony — $869.95
Nigara Anmon Kurozome Blue 2 Damascus 270mm — $929.00
Nigara Anmon Kurozome Blue 2 Damascus Kiritsuke 270mm — $959.00
Hatsukokoro FAXR2 Powdered Steel 330mm Mirror Polish Ebony — $998.00
Nakagawa Ginsan K-tip 330 mm Mirror-polished Ebony — $999.95
Nigara Anmon Kurozome Blue 2 Damascus Kiritsuke 300mm — $1039.00
Nigara Anmon Kurozome Blue 2 Damascus 300mm — $1049.00
Nigara Anmon Kurozome Blue 2 Damascus 330mm — $1099.00
Nakagawa White Steel Honyaki 270mm Mirror Polish — $1249.95
Sukenari SRS-13 Damascus 270mm Mirror Polish with Saya — $1349.95
Nakagawa White Steel Honyaki K-tip 270mm Mirror Polish — $1349.95
Nakagawa White Steel Honyaki 300mm Mirror Polish — $1399.95
Sukenari SRS-13 Damascus 300mm Mirror Polish with Saya — $1499.95
Nigara Anmon Ginsan Damascus K-tipYanagiba 300 mm with Heart Shape Handle — $1499.95
Sukenari SRS-13 Damascus K-tip 300mm Mirror Polish with Saya — $1649.95
Sukenari SRS-13 Damascus 330mm Mirror Polish with Saya — $1699.95
Nigara Anmon Troll Killer Blue Steel Damascus Kirisuke 300mm with Corian Handle — $2399.00
Sukenari SG2 Honyaki K-tip 300mm with Saya — $2499.95
Yoshikazu Ikeda White 1 Wave Hamon Mizu-Honyaki 300mm Blade Only — $3000.00
Exotic: Genkai Masakuni (玄海正國) White 2 Mizu-Honyaki Sakimaru Takohiki 270mm Old — $3200.00
Exotic: Yoshikazu Ikeda Honyaki Mt. Fuji Hamon Sakimaru Takohiki 300mm Hand Shar — $3700.00
Exotic: Genkai Masakuni (玄海正國) White #2 Mizu-Honyaki Mt. Fuji 330mm — $3900.00
Exotic: Yoshikazu Ikeda Blue #1 Mizu-Honyaki K-tip 300mm with Blood Groove Ebony — $4000.00
Nigara Blue 2 Honyaki 330mm Tobiyaki Sword Hamon — $4300.00
Exotic: Yoshikazu Ikeda Blue #1 Mizu-Honyaki K-tip 300mm with Blood Groove — $4600.00
Exotic: Genkai Masakuni (玄海正國) Mizu-Honyaki Maguro Kiri 450mm Mt. Fuji Hamon — $8800.00

Yanagiba knife questions

What is a yanagiba knife used for?

It slices boneless fish for sashimi and sushi in one long pull stroke, leaving a clean, glossy cut. It also slices other proteins and cured meats, but it is not made for chopping or cutting through bone.

What is the difference between a yanagiba and a sujihiki?

A yanagiba is single-bevelled and traditional, made for slicing raw fish; a sujihiki is a double-bevelled, Western-style slicer that is easier to use for meat and fish and needs less technique.

What is the difference between a yanagiba and an usuba?

Both are single-bevel Japanese knives, but the yanagiba is a long slicer for fish while the usuba is a flat-bladed vegetable knife. They are built for opposite jobs.

Is a yanagiba good for beginners?

It takes practice. The single bevel needs the right angle and its own sharpening technique, so many beginners start with a double-bevel sujihiki and move to a yanagiba as their skills grow.

Related Japanese knife ranges

Related ranges: sujihiki slicers, deba knives, saya sheaths and Japanese whetstones. See our guides on yanagiba vs sujihiki and single bevel vs double bevel.