The 5 Best Carving and Slicing Knives for Turkey, Ham, and Other Large Roasts

I’m not ashamed to admit that my family members are electric knife people. When the Thanksgiving bird comes out of the oven, the whir of the blade can be heard emanating from the kitchen. Sure, it may go against pretty much everything I’ve learned about knives while working as a professional cook, but it’s not really my place to butt in. So, while I may grimace at the often-shredded slices of dry turkey (sorry, Aunt Jill, it’s true!), I'm there for the stuffing and gravy anyway. 

Can an electric knife do the job? Yes. Are there better options? Unequivocally, yes. There are carving knives that have razor-sharp edges, fine points, and flexible blades and slicing knives that effortlessly glide through softer, boneless cuts of meat and fish. You could force your chef’s knife to work in either situation, but you’ll get much better results with a specialized blade. 

After putting 15 carving and slicing knives (plus a few knife and fork sets) to the test, I’ve come up with a list of my favorites for breaking down all kinds of proteins. 

The Winners, at a Glance

The Best Carving Knife

Wüsthof Classic 9" Carving Knife

$170 at Amazon $170 at Williams Sonoma View on Wusthof.com

This German steel knife is a winner in terms of both performance and usability. It was the sharpest knife and was the right length for carving without being cumbersome.

The Best Slicing Knife

Victorinox Fibrox Pro 12-Inch Slicing Knife with Granton Blade

$86 $57 at Amazon $113 at Walmart

The Victorinox offers great performance in a reasonably priced package. The plastic handle is easy to grip, with a slightly pebbly surface.

The Best Budget Carving Knife

Mercer Culinary 10-Inch Carving Knife

$40 at Amazon $10 at Walmart $40 at Webstaurant Store

This is a more affordable version of my favorite carving knife and it performed well for its price. It has a comfortable, grippy handle and is made of durable German steel.

The Best Carving Knife Set

Wüsthof Classic Two-Piece Hollow Edge Carving Set

$176 $159 at Amazon $176 at Williams Sonoma View on Crate & Barrel

Pair a super-sharp, durable blade with a functional and easy-to-use fork, and you have a great carving set. This set from Wüsthof was my favorite to use for both brisket and ham, and would also do well with poultry or beef. 

The Best Japanese Slicing Knife

Miyabi Mizu Slicing Knife

$230 at Amazon

Sharp, thin, and crafted by hand, this Japanese knife combines form and function. It’s a splurge pick but worth it if you want the best possible results when slicing roast meat, raw fish, and more.

The Tests

• Out-of-the-Box Sharpness Test: I assessed each knife’s sharpness using a professional edge tester. I ran the test three times, averaging the rating.
• Boneless Roast Test: To see how the knives could slice a soft, boneless cut of meat, I cooked brisket and cut five thin slices with each knife (and carving fork, if applicable).
• Bone-In Roast Test: To see how the knives performed with tricky bone-in meat, I cooked a bone-in smoked ham and sliced five pieces with each knife. 
• Usability Tests: Throughout testing, I evaluated how comfortable each knife was to hold and if it was hard to clean. 

What We Learned

Why Do You Need a Carving or Slicing Knife, and Which Should You Get?

A carving knife has a long, narrow blade that tapers to a sharp point. It's used mainly for carving poultry or bone-in roasts, like a leg of lamb or ham. If you're adept with your chef's knife, you might not need a separate carving knife, but its thinner blade and extra length make it easier to maneuver around bones and cartilage. 

A slicing knife has a similarly long and narrow blade, but rather than tapering to a point, it has an even width all the way down, with a rounded, bullnose tip. Its long, straight edge allows you to make even slices from large roasts like a prime rib or boneless leg of lamb. You can also use it to slice super-delicate things, such as terrines. Pretty much all slicing knives have Granton edges, which are little divots on the blade that prevent meat from sticking to it.

Carving and Slicing Really Were Separate Tasks

While I’d love to recommend a knife that does equally well at both carving and slicing, the two tasks require totally different qualities. What makes a knife great for carving can hinder it when it comes to slicing and vice versa. The slicing knives I tested all ranged in length from 10 to 12 inches, which allows you to use the full length to your advantage for clean slicing. They had rounded tips, as the tip isn’t necessary when slicing boneless cuts.

On the other hand, the carving knives measured around nine to 10 inches, which made it easier to maneuver around bones and irregular sections. Knives that attempt to be a hybrid of both end up not performing well at either. You’ll need to evaluate what kind of protein you tend to cook most to determine which one is the right pick for your needs. If cost is a factor, I’d opt to get a decent budget slicing knife and use something more versatile for bony roasts, like a boning or petty knife. 

Grippy Handles Were Convenient

The shape and texture of the handle on a slicing or carving knife can make a significant difference in performance. High-end knives often feature smooth handles made of materials like pakkawood and can have a straight shape with no bolster or butt. While that may work just fine if your hands are clean and dry, it can become a challenge when dealing with greasy or fatty foods. In my tests, rubber or textured handles offered a much better grip. If you can’t have that, then a nice bolster and an ergonomic handle will be more secure. All of our winners, except the Japanese Miyabi, have one of these two handle designs.

Slicing Fish Needed a Delicate Touch

While we didn’t test any of the knives on fish, this task requires a specialized type of knife. Japanese slicers are designed to get razor-thin slices of raw fish and sashimi. This is one area where some of my previous statements might contradict themselves. While slicing sashimi isn’t carving, you’ll find that these knives have pointed tips. The sharp tip of this type of knife offers more precision and control and can help easily pierce the fish’s skin. These knives will likely be thinner in profile, may have a single bevel, and are likely to be some of the sharpest blades you’ll ever find (which makes them worth the hefty price tag). Our favorite Japanese slicing knife, the Miyabi Mizu Slicing Knife, hits most of these points, but could still slice your brisket or Christmas ham. 

The Criteria: What to Look for in a Slicing or Carving Knife

When talking about any kind of knife, sharpness is obviously a key factor. For slicing knives, thinness also plays an important role. The more slender the blade, the less drag and resistance there will be while cutting. Both slicing and carving knives will be longer than your typical chef’s knife; I didn’t test anything shorter than eight inches, and some were as long as 12. The knives in carving sets tended to be closer to eight, like our winner. This size is easiest for navigating the many curves and bones in something like a turkey or a roast chicken. For slicing through a protein like brisket, you want a longer 11- to 12-inch blade so you can really utilize the cutting edge. 

Finally, handle comfort and grip are key.  Does it feel comfortable and balanced? Is the design of the handle suited to your palm shape? If you plan to cut fatty meats, like smoked brisket, you might want to opt for a rubber or textured handle. 

Our Favorite Carving and Slicing Knives

The Best Carving Knife

Wüsthof Classic 9" Carving Knife

$170 at Amazon $170 at Williams Sonoma View on Wusthof.com

What we liked: The Wüsthof Classic has everything you would want in a carving knife: a comfortable handle, sharp edge, and flexible blade. Whether I was slicing super-soft brisket or turning the point around the bone in a glazed ham, this knife was a dream to use. In previous testing, we used this knife to carve both turkey and chicken, as well as lobes of foie gras, bone-in lamb legs, and prime rib. It excelled at everything.

What we didn't like: It comes with a hefty price tag, especially if you plan to use this only once or twice a year.

Key Specs

• Blade material: X50CrMoV15 Steel
• Handle material: Composite
• Blade length: 9 inches
• Care instructions: Hand-wash only

The Best Slicing Knife

Victorinox Fibrox Pro 12-Inch Slicing Knife with Granton Blade

$86 $57 at Amazon $113 at Walmart

What we liked: Before starting this test, I talked to Drew Harper, pitmaster and owner of Harper Barbecue, to get his take on slicing knives: “I like a 12-inch non-serrated Granton edge slicing knife—big enough for any of the traditional barbecue cuts and creates a nice clean cut for the pretty brisket slices. Of course, you can have an amazing custom knife made but for the money, you can’t beat the Victorinox. Keeps a sharp edge and feels good in the hand.”

During testing, I had to agree. While pricier knives looked like they were going to outperform this budget model, the Victorinox surprised me, slice after slice. Overall, this knife is comfortable to grip, won’t slip in your hand, and just performs amazingly well. It particularly showed its colors when slicing brisket, where the knife didn’t drag or tear the meat while cutting. Even when moving through delicate, super-soft spots, the blade sliced like the meat was butter. It’s durable and ultra-flexible, too.

What we didn't like: This long blade can take a little getting used to, especially if there’s a bone to work around. 

Key Specs

• Blade material: High carbon stainless steel
• Handle material: Thermoplastic Rubber 
• Blade length: 11 inches
• Care instructions: Dishwasher-safe (though we wouldn’t recommend this)

The Best Budget Carving Knife

Mercer Culinary 10-Inch Carving Knife

$40 at Amazon $10 at Walmart $40 at Webstaurant Store

What we liked: The Mercer carving knife is made of the same steel as the Wüsthof, but at a fraction of the price. While it wasn’t quite as sharp out of the box, it performed well. The textured handle is very grippy, even when coated in slippery substances like rendered fat. 

What we didn't like: As I already stated, this knife isn’t super sharp upon first use, though you could certainly sharpen it yourself to fine-tune the edge. It’s not as long or flexible as other carving knives and the blade itself is smooth and flat, so pieces of meat tend to stick to it. The large bolster interfered with my grip slightly and the smaller handle length could cause issues for larger hands. 

Key Specs

• Blade material: X50CrMoV15 Steel
• Handle material: Textured plastic
• Blade length: 10 inches
• Care instructions: Hand-wash only

The Best Carving Knife Set

Wüsthof Classic Two-Piece Hollow Edge Carving Set

$176 $159 at Amazon $176 at Williams Sonoma View on Crate & Barrel

What we liked: It wasn’t a surprise that the blade in this Wüsthof set performed well, considering that our favorite carving knife is also a Wüsthof. The one in this set is an inch shorter than our winner but otherwise virtually identical. The shorter length comes in handy for bony roasts, like roast turkey or chicken, that require a lot of intricate cutting and carving.

While the three other carving sets I tested had forks with longer tines, I actually preferred the shorter length on this fork. It held onto meat just as steadily but wasn’t so unwieldy and allowed my hand to be closer to the actual protein, resulting in more control.

What we didn't like: Some people buy (or gift) carving sets to be show pieces, meant to be brought out for special gatherings. This particular set is less stylish and more functional. 

Key Specs

• Blade material: X50CrMoV15 Steel
• Handle material: Composite
• Blade length: 8 inches
• Care instructions: Hand-wash only

The Best Japanese Slicing Knife

Miyabi Mizu Slicing Knife

$230 at Amazon

What we liked: While this knife is a great pick for slicing through roast meat, it would also excel at achieving razor-thin pieces of sashimi or smoked salmon. This knife represents some of the best aspects of Japanese knife design. The edge is sharpened to a bevel of around nine to 12 degrees (compared to Western knives measuring around 20 degrees), giving it scalpel-like sharpness. Not only is the edge ultra-sharp, the surface is rippled to prevent sticking. It’s a visibly thin blade, which helps reduce resistance and drag when slicing. 

What we didn't like: I can’t lie: This is a splurge pick. Because the exterior is stainless steel, as opposed to carbon (a difference editorial director Daniel Gritzer breaks down here), it will take more work to sharpen it once the blade dulls. 

Key Specs

• Blade material: Micro Carbide powder steel with a hammered Damascus stainless steel finish
• Handle material: Black micarta 
• Blade length: 9.5 inches
• Care instructions: Hand-wash only

The Competition

• Hammer Stahl German Forged High Carbon Stainless Steel Carving Knife and Fork Set: Both the knife and the fork are awkward to hold, with sharp angles. They were also very heavy and the blade wasn’t that sharp. 
• Messermeister Avanta Kullenschliff Carving Set: The knife in this set is decently sharp and a good budget pick if you want something more stylish than our winner. 
• Shun Premier Blonde 2 Piece Carving Set: While I like this brand, it’s a very expensive set and the knife felt more like a chef’s knife than a slicer or carver.
• TUO Slicing Knife: I liked an older version of this knife in my previous testing, but the current version wasn’t sharp at all and the length felt really unwieldy.
• Shun Cutlery Classic Hollow Ground Slicing Knife: This knife is a nice runner-up to our favorite Japanese slicer that’s just a smidge less sharp. 
• Mairico Brisket Slicing Knife: It’s a bargain at $28, but it’s just not quite sharp enough to be useful. It could work for very basic tasks but failed to give me razor-thin slices. 
• Cutluxe Slicing Knife: Nothing really stood out to us about this knife. It didn’t perform very well and isn’t super sharp.
• Dalstrong Slicing Knife: Design-wise this knife is very nice to look at and performs well, but you don’t need to spend this much to get a great slicer. Our winner out-performed it for a fraction of the price.
• Kessaku 12-Inch Slicing Knife: It has a pretty design but is not very sharp. 
• Mercer Culinary Granton Edge Slicing Knife: While we liked the Mercer carving knife and it’s an affordable pick, it has a very low sharpness out of the box and was outperformed by our winner.

FAQs

What kind of knife do you need to carve a turkey?

You want a carving knife for cutting up whole turkey. They're slighter shorter than slicing knives, and have a pointed tip. This makes them better at maneuvering around bones and joints. But if you want to cut turkey breast into thin pieces, a slicing knife is a better bet.

How do you sharpen a carving knife? 

You sharpen a carving knife the same way you sharpen any other knife. We recommend sharpening on a whetstone for best results and honing as needed.

What is a slicing knife used for? 

Slicing knives can be used for slicing large roasts of beef, pork, or poultry, among other proteins. They can be used to get thin slices of raw or smoked fish and even cured meat like country ham or prosciutto. Beyond protein, slicing knives can also come in handy for cutting soft fruits and vegetables, like ripe heirloom tomatoes. 

What types of carving blades exist? 

Depending on your definition of a carving blade, this style of knife has a long, slender shape with a sharp point and is different from a slicing knife (though some will apply the same name to both). Slicer knives could be considered carving blades, and are also long and slender but have a rounded end. If we’re getting really liberal with the definition of carving blades, ultra-thin and flexible fillet and boning knives could be considered carving knives as well. 

How much should you spend on a carving knife?

In general, the more you spend, the better the quality of the knife, though I found great options at all price ranges. If you host and serve large roasts often, a higher-end blade in the range of $150 to $200 will pay off in terms of edge longevity and durability. If you’re looking for something to serve for special holidays once or twice a year, something around $50 should be more than sufficient.

Why We’re the Experts

• Taylor Murray has been working in food and food media for over 10 years, including in award-winning restaurants like Eleven Madison Park. She has written extensively for Serious Eats (including reviews of carbon steel pans and carving boards).
• Taylor tested 15 slicing and carving knives, including four carving sets. She used each knife to slice boneless beef brisket and bone-in ham. She also tested each knife’s sharpness on a specialized tool. During testing, she evaluated the knives' performance, usability, and design.
• Taylor spoke to Drew Harper of Harper Barbecue in Costa Mesa, California, to discover what slicing knives are preferred by professional pitmasters.
• J. Kenji López-Alt originally tested carving and slicing knives for Serious Eats.