Have you ever noticed that nicely cut fruits and vegetables can actually change the presentation of the food? It can make the food look pleasing but no matter what fruit or vegetable is it, if it is not cut properly then you would not want to eat it also.
Everyone has that one perfect knife at home which they use to cut everything. That is the one knife which you trust for cutting everything but it breaks our heart when that knife starts giving us a hard time.
After every few months, our knives become less sharp and they are not able to cut the fruits or vegetables precisely. It is definitely an annoying situation but it can also be dangerous.
You may harm yourself while cutting if your knife is not good. So, it is very important to keep your knife in a good shape. You can sharpen the knife every few months using a knife sharpener and you can hone it with steel rod to maintain the edge of the knife.
Now there is not only one way to sharpen your knife. There are actually different ways available for that. Knife sharpening every few months is really important to maintain the shape and edge of your knife.
Let us try to find the best way to sharpen a knife.
- Sharpening it with a whetstone
A whetstone is basically stone which is specially used for sharpening knives or any tools that are used for cutting. It is a rectangular block and it is used like a sandpaper.
Firstly, you have to soak the whetstone in water. It will be better if you keep it for more time. During the process of sharpening also, you will have to keep wetting the whetstone.
Now, you need to hold the knife and keep it at a 20-degree angle at the whetstone. Just pull the sides of the knife at the whetstone a few times.
Usually, the whetstones have two sides that are coarse grind side and the fine grind side. Pull the knife against the coarse side first if it is very dull and then take it to the fine grind side.
In case, you hone your knife frequently, then you do not need to go to the coarse side as it will probably be in a good condition. In this case, you can directly switch to the fine grind side.
Keep putting the water on the whetstone if you notice that it is drying.
- Sharpening it with a knife sharpener
Using a knife sharpener to sharpen your knife is very easy. Knife sharpener is like a go-to solution for your dull knife. You just need to hold the knife and press its blade on the coarse side of the sharpener.
Then pull it towards yourself a few times and move to the fine side of the sharpener. There are so many types of knife sharpeners available in the market. There is a manual knife sharpener as well as an electric knife sharpener.
Yes, using a knife sharpener sounds quite easy and simple but still it is not considered as the best way to sharpen your favourite knife. You can use a knife sharpener to sharpen a less expensive knife but do not use it for your favourite and expensive knife.
It is better to stick to the whetstone to sharpen your expensive knives.
Now that you have sharpened your knife with a whetstone, the question is that how would you maintain its edges?
The answer to this question is honing the knife with a rod. It may sound a little complicated but it is actually very easy to do so.
- Honing the knife with a rod
First of all, it is important to know that you should hone your knife every week or every two weeks to keep its edges intact. You do not need to worry about honing causing harm to edges of the knife.
Sharpening can still wear down your knife but honing will not do that.
Now to hone your knife, you need to take the rod and keep its tip on the surface. Hold the handle of the rod properly. Press the thickest part of the blade of the knife against the rod.
This should be done at a 15-20-degree angle. First, pull the knife down and then bring it towards yourself. Keep the knife in the same hand and repeat the same process on the other side of the rod as well.
Take care of your knives
Now it is very important to take care of your knives after sharpening and honing them. Yes, these processes of sharpening and honing are not very difficult but still they are time consuming.
You should not let your efforts go waste if you are spending so much time on something. So it is very important to store your knives correctly and take proper care of them.
You should also consider repeating the same process of sharpening and honing the knives after every few weeks if you want to maintain your knives in the same condition.
Here are some tips to maintain your knives after honing and sharpening them:
- Wash them immediately after using them. If knives are left dirty for a very long time, it can harm the blade of your knife and all your efforts will be wasted.
- It is a better idea to wash your knives with your hands rather than washing them in a dishwasher.
- It is always advised to dry your knives with a cloth right after washing them as it minimizes the chances of harming the blade.
- It is important to store your knives at a safe place as it protects them from dirt.
- Always use a wooden cutting board to cut as using something metal or ceramic as a base to cut things can damage the edge of the knife.
By following the above tips, you can definitely minimize the damage to your knives and increase their life. It will also reduce your time on sharpening and honing them.
