Opinel - Les Forgés 1890 Fully-Forged Bread Knife – Ultra-Premium 21cm Artisan Kitchen Saws

Opinel - Les Forgés 1890 Fully-Forged Bread Knife – Ultra-Premium 21cm Artisan Kitchen Saws

The Opinel Les Forgés 1890 Bread Knife represents the absolute pinnacle of traditional French cutlery craftsmanship, masterfully engineered to deliver flawless slicing symmetry, exceptional weight distribution, and lifelong mechanical durability. Belonging to Opinel's prestigious flagship collection, this heirloom-grade culinary instrument is completely hot-forged from a single piece of premium European steel. This process ensures optimal structural density, perfect physical balance, and a seamless transition from the blade tang to the handle bolster. Equipped with a heavy-duty, aggressively scalloped 21 cm serrated edge and an ergonomic, water-resistant beech wood handle, it saws effortlessly through thick, artisanal crusts, dense sourdoughs, and robust tropical fruits with smooth, sweeping control.

Best For Professional chefs, artisan bakers, luxury home entertainers, and culinary purists seeking an unyielding, fully-forged master bread knife that provides superior hand balance and slices soft crumbs or hard crusts cleanly without crushing the interior food structures.

Key Features

• 100% Hot-Forged Construction: Forged from a singular, glowing-hot rod of steel at 1200°C, delivering an unbreakable, continuous grain alignment that creates unmatched structural rigidity and a perfectly balanced weight in the palm.

• Premium X50CrMoV15 Stainless Steel: Forged from elite European alloy steel enriched with Chromium, Molybdenum, and Vanadium, ensuring maximum resistance to organic food acids, oxidation, and heavy mechanical wear.

• Optimized Hardness Rating: Precision tempered to achieve an impressive structural hardness rating between **57 and 59 HRC**, providing a durable cutting edge that stays sharp under intensive daily workload demands.

• Stabilized Thermo-Heated Beechwood Handle: Crafted from premium European beech wood that undergoes a natural, high-temperature baking process, making the timber exceptionally water-resistant, structurally stable against shrinkage, and comfortably secure to hold.

• Aggressive Scalloped Serrations: The wide, razor-sharpened wave teeth bite effortlessly into ultra-hard bakery crusts or slippery fruit skins, executing uniform slices with a gentle pull motion instead of forced pushing.

Specifications

• Blade Length: 21 cm

• Handle Length: 12 cm

• Overall Length: 33 cm

• Blade Profile: Deep Scalloped Bread / Curved Serrated Profile

• Blade Construction: Full-Tang, Fully Hot-Forged from a Single Piece of Steel

• Steel Composition: X50CrMoV15 Premium Grade Stainless Steel

• Rockwell Hardness: 57 - 59 HRC

• Handle Material: Natural Heat-Treated (Stabilized) European Beech Wood

• Manufacturing Origin: Masterfully Crafted by Opinel France

Ideal For (Uses)

• Artisan Loaves & Heavy Sourdoughs: Gliding seamlessly through thick, crunchy wood-fired bakery crusts, hard rye loaves, and country miches without snagging or compressing the delicate, airy crumb structure inside.

• Soft Buns & Delicate Breakfast Pastries: Slicing light croissants, buttery brioche buns, tender panettones, and flaky puff pastries cleanly across without tearing the delicate layers or leaving messy countertop crumbs.

• Robust Thick-Skinned Fruits: Safely sawing through dense, slippery tropical produce including whole pineapples, heavy cantaloupes, watermelons, and large squash varieties with complete tracking stability.

• Large Roast Carving & Sandwiches: Neatly cutting cleanly through tiered club sandwiches, crusty pork belly crackling, or baked hams, ensuring a crisp, presentation-ready line every time.

Pro Tip & Les Forgés Maintenance: As a fully forged, premium artisan tool featuring a natural wood element, this bread knife requires traditional culinary care to protect its structural integrity. It should never be placed inside a dishwasher or left sitting inside a damp kitchen sink. Simply rinse the blade under warm running water after use, use a soft non-scratch sponge to clear away crumbs or fruit starches, and dry immediately with a fresh tea towel. Storing it safely on a magnetic wall strip or inside a protective knife block prevents the sharp serrated teeth from clinking against other steel surfaces. An occasional light rub of food-safe mineral oil onto the beautiful beech handle will lock out moisture, nourish the wood fibers, and preserve its luxurious satin finish for generations to come!