Our 20 Favorite Kitchen Items from German Brands

Wüsthof Classic 10-Piece Knife Set

This Wüsthof knife set has almost everything you need in your cutlery collection, from a chef’s knife to kitchen shears. The moderate price and quality of the knives earned it the Best Overall title in our knife set testing. 

The meat fork and carving knife combination are a great pair, and the set comes with two serrated knives: a double-serrated bread knife and a utility knife that could double as a steak knife if needed. The only drawbacks we found were the footprint of the knife block, which takes up more counter space than others we tested, and the kitchen shears, which could be stronger.

Wüsthof Classic 9-inch Hollow Edge Carving Knife

This 9-inch high-carbon stainless steel slicer from Wüsthof is our Best Overall-rated carving knife based on our testing. The scalloped blade makes slicing smoother and is long enough to carve most roasts without venturing into unwieldy lengths. The blade features a full-tang design for extra strength, and the triple-riveted polypropylene handle is comfortable and easy to grip, even when greasy. The high-carbon steel blade is easier to sharpen and maintain than strictly stainless steel, and the slightly curved edge and sharp tip help when carving poultry or any time you need to cut close to a bone.

Messermeister Avanta 2-Piece Carving Set

This two-piece carving set from Messermeister consists of a 9-inch carving knife and a straight, round-tined meat fork. The set’s pricing and quality earned it our Best Value Set rating in our testing.

The knife’s hollow ground edge (the blade is concave above the edge before joining the knife’s body) reduces friction and makes slicing easier. The knife and fork are both high-carbon stainless steel, making maintaining sharpness easier and helping them resist rust. I’m a fan of the fork’s straight tines, as they make carving easier while holding the meat in place, with less knife-on-fork contact.

Zwilling Pro 9-inch Bread Knife Z15 Serration

A good bread knife doesn’t garner as much enthusiasm as a chef’s or carving knife — until you encounter a bad one. A bad bread knife will frustrate you while cramping your hand and smashing your formerly pristine loaf of bread. You probably don’t want to know what it could do to a tomato if it does that to bread. The Zwilling Z15 Pro Bread Knife easily handled baguettes, boules, and tomatoes in our testing, garnering the title of Best Overall bread knife. The sharp serrations and rounded tip made it easy to slice through even the crustiest bread, while the metal and plastic handle design prevented fatigue while doing so.

Wüsthof 8-Inch Classic Chef’s Knife

This 8-inch carbon and stainless steel chef’s knife is heavier than many of its contemporaries. But the balanced, classic Western design makes it suitable and durable enough for many kitchen tasks, from julienning vegetables to breaking chicken bones. It has a sturdy, slip-resistant handle and a half-bolster to protect your fingers while doing precision work. This knife easily handled all of our tests, including cutting dense squash, and its heft and reliability earned it our Most Durable rating. If there’s a design flaw, it lies in the fact those with smaller hands might find the handle cumbersome.

Wusthof Classic Ikon Paring Knife

It might seem extravagant to spend northward of $100 on a paring knife, but the Best Splurge winner from our tests is a solid choice if you do. The Wusthof Classic Ikon Paring Knife easily peeled and minced shallots and turned out orange segments with equal aplomb. This knife has a comfortable grip and a heavy-duty blade that is simultaneously effortless to use. This knife should last years if treated well, which justifies the splurge.

Messermeister Steak Knife Set

A bad set of steak knives will do the job, eventually, but a good set will “set” the tone for an enjoyable meal by taking the work out of slicing your steak. We tested nearly two dozen steak knife sets, some approaching $600, and found the Messermeister Steak Knife Set to be the Best Value proposition for quality and price. This set of steak knives has 5-inch blades with upturned tips that make working around a bone to get all the meat easy. The knives are well-balanced, comfortable, and sturdy, with a full-tang design.

Zwilling Henckels Knife Set

My wife and I accidentally arrived at two sets of his and her steak knives. She prefers a wide, smooth blade, while I prefer a thin, finely serrated blade. For those in my camp, our testing showed the Zwilling Henckels Steak Knife Set as the Best Serrated set. These knives are lightweight but sturdy and machine-washable. The blades made short work of thick meat and gristle, and the price is affordable for a quality set of knives.

J.A. Henckels 6-Inch Meat Cleaver

I used to do a lot of butchering when I was a chef. I don’t mean trimming and cutting steaks, although that’s part of the process. Rather, I bought whole hogs and quartered cattle and cut them into usable pieces. In that, I found the value of a good cleaver when I needed to break through stubborn joints. I don’t see the same frequent need at home, but I do spatchcock a few chickens every month, and a cleaver helps that process immensely. The Henckels 6-Inch Meat Cleaver is smaller and lighter than what I used professionally, but the size only increases its usefulness. The thinner blade lets you use the cleaver for slicing and chopping vegetables and meat, or, in a pinch, it can double as an impromptu meat mallet. 

Wüsthof Easy Edge Electric Sharpener

After testing 10 knife sharpeners, we chose the Wüsthof Easy Edge Electric Knife Sharpener as our Best Overall pick. It’s effortless to use and features settings for shaping (repairing knicks and chips), sharpening (basic), and refining (fine-tuning an already sharp knife). The non-slip layer on the bottom made it easy to pull a knife through the machine to sharpen, giving good sharpening results that enabled the knives to shine in the performance portions of our tests.

Rösle Stainless Steel Salad Spinner

Where I live (Florida), any salad greens I buy from the farmers market are equal parts greens and sand by weight. Washing the greens is simple, but drying them to remain crisp and separate requires some help. A salad spinner dries your greens by centrifugal force, which is gentle on the greens and collects the excess water without making a mess. We tested eight salad spinners, and this model from Rösle was our Best Splurge model. The Rösle has glass and stainless steel construction with a tight rubber seal. The hand crank lets you regulate the speed, which is good when spinning more delicate herbs, greens, and flowers.  

Merten & Storck Carbon Steel Frying Pan

A good, well-seasoned, carbon steel pan can be as good as any nonstick pan on the market. When we tested nine top-selling carbon steel pans, the Merten & Storck Carbon Steel Frying Pan was the Best Overall while also the most affordable of the lot. The pan came pre-seasoned, so it was ready to cook, and that we did. After cooking eggs, baking skillet cookies, and searing chicken thighs, the Merten & Storck cleaned easily with a little hot water, but a dry towel could have sufficed, as nothing stuck to it at all. 

The Zwilling Madura Plus Nonstick Fry Pan stood out in a field of 13 pans we tested, taking the Best Overall honors. Pancakes slid in the pan without the help of a spatula, salmon seared, and marshmallows caramelized, all without sticking, and the pan was easy to clean afterward. The nonstick coating is PFOA-free and scratch-resistant, and the pan is dishwasher safe. The only drawback is that the pan is only oven-safe up to 300°F.

AMT Gastroguss I-524 Induction Frying Pan

This 9.5-inch nonstick frying pan is a favorite among Amazon customers. The AMT Gastroguss I-524 Induction Frying Pan has an induction-friendly, cast aluminum body with a thick bottom that evenly distributes heat across the pan’s cooking surface. The nonstick coating holds up well, though the manufacturer recommends using a high-heat-friendly oil to extend the coating’s life and avoid resin buildup over time.

Fissler Original-Profi Collection Stainless Steel Cookware Set

Fissler crafts its Original-Profi Collection set from high-quality stainless steel with thick, induction-friendly bases. The set consists of three graduating-sized stock pots with laser-etched metric and imperial measurements, a saucepan, and a 9.5-inch frying pan. The stock pots all come with matching lids, and people like the ergonomic handles.

Schott Zwiesel Prizma Stemless Wine Glasses

When we tested stemless wine glasses, these striking glasses from Schott Zwiesel took our Best Splurge title. The brand’s Titan glass blend is resistant to chipping and breakage, making the glasses some of the sturdiest we tested while still being lightweight. The glasses’ ribbed design gives them texture and visual appeal, and while they’re not for the fans of balloon glasses, we found the size comfortable to hold for extended periods. Just add German wine.

Spiegelau Perfect Serve Double Old Fashioned Glasses

Any glass with whisk(e)y and ice in it is technically a rocks glass, but there’s more to experiential imbibing than a couple of ice cubes in a Scooby Doo collector’s cup. This set of Old Fashioned (or rocks) glasses from Spiegelau is on our recommended list as the Best Overall. These etched, lead-free crystal glasses have heavy bottoms and good balance, combining good looks with durability. The glasses are dishwasher safe, but the manufacturer recommends hand washing and avoiding harsh chemicals to extend their lifespan.

Spiegelau Hefeweizen Glasses

Just as with wine, proper beer glassware can help enhance your beer’s aroma, temperature, and flavor. For those who enjoy wheat beers, this set of hefeweizen glasses is perfect for getting the most out of the beer’s aroma and flavor while allowing sediment to fall to the bottom. Germans are particular about their glassware. These glasses optimize your hefeweizen experience, though you won’t find them particularly useful for other beers. If you’re not a wheat fan, another glass style will better serve you.

KRUPS Silent Vortex Electric Grinder

I own a loud, blade-style coffee grinder, and I cringe when I make coffee in a quiet house. I’ll wrap it in a kitchen towel and hold it against my body to muffle the sound, with mixed results. No matter how unobtrusive I try to be, I still startle a dog or cat who was having an otherwise pleasant morning before I woke up. Silent coffee grinders make the towel and body contortion sound dulling routine unnecessary, and I wish I had known about them earlier. When we tested coffee grinders, the Krups Silent Vortex was the only blade grinder that made our list, delivering consistent grounds without the need to shake the machine while it ran. True to its name, it was quiet, too.