The GSI Outdoors Santoku Knife Set

TEXT AND PHOTOS BY JERRY TSAI

Who else is guilty of packing a much-too-old kitchen knife to use as your one and only sliceand- dice food prep tool while on outdoor adventures? I am, for sure! To add insult to embarrassment, said knife lives in a cardboard-and-duct tape sheath to boot.

I finally realized it was time to upgrade my mobile food prep knife two trips ago. The knife had become way too blunt to even cut a banana through its peel, and the “sheath” had pretty much disintegrated into a tired wad of sticky duct tape (Eww, gross! is right).

So, I made a trip to my local outdoor shop (the one whose name starts with “R” and ends with an “I”) and looked around for a compact knife that’s suitable for camping use. I wanted a knife that came with a sheath that wasn’t made of sticky cardboard, was easily stowed away and one that didn’t cost a bundle.