A cleaver is a large knife that varies in its shape but usually resembles a rectangular-bladed hatchet. It is largely used as a kitchen or butcher knife and is mostly intended for splitting up large pieces of soft bones and through thick pieces of meat. ... Cleaver used to be spelled clever in the late 17th Century.

What are meat cleavers good for?

Meat Cleaver

Meat cleavers can be used to chop through carcasses, bone-in poultry and meat, whole lobsters and crabs, and tough vegetables such as butternut squash. They can also be used to crack open coconuts or to dice and mince meat.

What is the difference between a butcher knife and cleaver?

Today, the butcher knife is used throughout the world in the meat processing trade. The heftier blade works well for splitting, stripping and cutting meat. ... The cleaver is similar to the butcher's knife, but has a lighter and thinner blade for precision cutting.