If you know your way around the kitchen, you fully understand the importance of a sharp knife. While fancy knife skills are impressive, using a dull knife is bad for the knife and a potential safety concern. Fortunately, it is so easy to keep your knives as sharp as possible at home that you will forget your visit to the local knife sharpener.
A sharp knife is crucial whether you are just getting into cooking or are a self-proclaimed MasterChef. You may have heard that good cooks are only as good as their tools, but the reasons for maintaining a sharp knife are important. On the culinary side of things, dull knives can result in sloppy-looking knife cuts, severely hindering your ability to perfectly dice, slice, julienne, and mince any food your heart desires. While this might not matter to some home cooks, the opposite could not be more true for others.
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Top tips to sharpen your knives at home:
Do Not Throw Your Knives In The Sink
When tidying up the kitchen after cooking, it is a common practice for many of us to throw our dirty cooking utensils and pans into the sink to be cleaned after the meal. However, you must not do this with your sharp cutlery. Metal-on-metal interaction dulls the blade. Instead, leave a knife on the cutting board next to the sink to be cleaned after you finish eating.
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Choose The Right Cutting Surface
A knife stays sharper for much longer if you invest in a chopping surface made of a suitable material. Cutting on aluminium, stainless steel, concrete, granite, or marble can dull or damage a blade. Instead, opt for wood, polyethene, or plastic for your cutting board.
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Even within these approved cutting board surfaces, some options are better than others. Avoid a cutting board that is easy to cut into, as this can create the perfect environment for bacteria to thrive especially if you are using the surface for cutting meats, fish, or poultry. A hardwood cutting board is more than worth the investment, even if it is a bit pricey.
Also Read: 6 Knives You Must Have As A Homecook
Regularly Honing Of Knives
What often happens when knives are “dulling” is the metal edge of the blade is pushed to one side or the other. This long rod of coarse steel is not meant to sharpen the knife but rather realign the blade edge back into place, helping prevent significant knife damage and keeping the edge maintained for a longer time. It does not remove a significant amount of metal from the blade as a true sharpening does.
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Do Not Delay Cleaning Your Knives
Another secret to keeping your knives as sharp as possible is to clean them after every use. This prevents any food residue buildup on the blade, potentially causing dullness. Even if you are not planning to clean up the kitchen until after dinner, wipe the knife immediately after using it and then hand-wash it later. It is critical that you hand-wash your good knives. Dishwashing sharp, high-quality knives leads to dullness and damage due to the heat, detergent, and water pressure of the dishwasher, not to mention the potential for the knives to be banged around in there.
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Make Sure To Dry Them
Sharp knives also should not be air-dried on the drying rack as they might rust (depending on the blade material). Rusting dulls the blade and reduces the lifespan of the knife. Even worse, if a knife is put back into a knife block wet, harmful mould and bacteria can grow inside. Towel dry them instead using a clean microfiber cloth.
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Invest In A Sharpening Tool
Even if you are a regular honing rod user, every knife needs an actual sharpening every few months. Sharpening shaves away some metal to create a renewed knife edge. This task can either be done at home or by a professional. If you would like to try your hand at home sharpening, there are a few options. One option is to invest in a tool called a whetstone, sharpening stone, water stone, or diamond.
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So do not throw away your favourite knives, rather try out these tips to keep your knives sharp and highly functioning.