This special purpose knife from Wusthof is built for shaving perfect thin slices from what was used to be my favorite snack food in the years before the price of smoked salmon went up to around fifty dollars a pound. Now that it’s in the same class of food as truffles and free range Prosciutto ham, this old Northwestern American delicacy needs more care than I used to give it.
Salmon is big game fish, and to work with it, even smoked and cured, you need big tools. The Salmon Slicer, with a twelve inch round tip blade meant for efficient slicing, not piercing, is stiffer than a filet knife and able to make flat slicing cuts across wide fillets of cured salmon, without wandering or tearing. The multiple hollow grinds in this long blade aid that delicate procedure by reducing friction, but even more important is the taper grind of the edge and the razor sharpness you absolutely must maintain if you want this knife to work well.
Guaranteed for life by Wusthof, this forged blade has a durable polymer wrap-around handle securely fastened to a rat tail tang by a single decorative stainless steel rivet. The alloy holds an edge well and is easily sharpened. Hand washing and hand drying are recommended and the blade should never be put away if still damp.
Other blades are more suited to common tasks than the Salmon Slicer, but for that noble fish nothing else will do. Unless like me, you didn’t know it was gourmet food and just carved off a chunk with a pocket knife before hitting the trail. I got smarter about it when the price went up.
