Meat cleaver

The function of the meat cleaver is to cut through bones, tendons, and very thick meat. It has a wide, thick, rectangular blade. And it’s heavy. It can weigh more than a pound. Given its weight, size, and thickness, the meat cleaver’s job is not fine slicing. Its job is to cut large pieces of meat and bones into smaller ones.

Why not just use your chef’s knife to cut through bones? Yes, a chef’s knife can easily go through some bones, as with chicken or most fish. But beef bones in particular are very dense. You’d need very strong arms to cut through a beef bone with a chef’s knife. The cleaver has the advantage of both its weight and momentum, because you swing it down from at least 12 to 18 inches above the cutting board to gain more heft in the cut.