Yanagiba Sashimi Knife Long Blade

Japan (Osaka Sakai production centre traditionally dominant; Seki Gifu competing centre; Edo-period sushi shop origins)

The yanagiba (柳刃, 'willow blade') is the specialised single-bevel Japanese knife used for slicing raw fish for sashimi and sushi — one of the most technically refined knives in any culinary tradition. The blade is exceptionally long (typically 27–36cm) and thin, single-bevelled on one side (ura-ura flat on the reverse, micro-hollow to reduce food adhesion), with a distinctive asymmetrical cross-section that creates a razor-sharp edge capable of making a true drawing cut through fish without compression or tearing the cell walls. The name 'willow blade' refers to the profile shape: gently tapering from heel to tip. The single-bevel construction requires that the knife be sharpened only on the right-side bevel (for right-handed knives); the reverse is periodically flattened on the ura. Great sashimi technique depends absolutely on the yanagiba's specific geometry: by drawing the blade toward the body in a single long stroke (hikizukuri), the sashimi chef creates clean, smooth, compression-free cuts that express the fish's natural translucency. Attempting the same cuts with a double-bevel Western chef's knife produces crushed, opaque cross-sections. Premium yanagiba are forged by named blacksmiths in Sakai (Osaka) and Seki (Gifu), using laminated steel construction — a hard hagane cutting edge steel welded to a softer jigane body steel.

The knife does not contribute flavour but determines texture — a clean cell-structure-preserving cut produces translucent, smooth sashimi that expresses the fish's natural quality rather than compressing and clouding it