The knife is the extension of every cook’s hand, or as we say the chef’s right hand. With knowledge and experience, you can shred a large piece of meat, fillet a fish and chop vegetables and herbs with rhythmic movements.
An unsharpened knife is less effective, a well-sharpened knife is easier and much safer to use. The way we work, wash and store it is also important. In order to sharpen our knives correctly and quickly it is important to understand the reasons why our knife does not cut.
Many amateur and professional chefs invest in expensive knives for their quality and effectiveness, but an expensive knife does not guarantee how well it will cut. In order to keep your knives in their best condition, the right tools and the right sharpening technique are required.
For how to take care of your most important tool of the trade, we’ve put together some of the most common ways to sharpen and maintain kitchen knives.
A knife that hasn’t been sharpened for a long time should first be passed through a hard stone and then polished on a finer one. Touch the tip of the knife with a slight tilt and raise them up to the top left and diagonally so that the entire tip of the knife passes through the surface of the stone. There are water stones that need to be soaked in water thoroughly before using them and wet them during our work. Similarly, the oil stones are oiled before sharpening. The quality of the stone, the diamonds and its structure influence the final result. The hardness and type of knife is a factor to keep in mind when you want to buy a sharpening stone. After continuous use, the sharpening stones acquire an uneven surface which must be re-sharpened to become perfectly flat again.
Very important is the sharpening angle you choose. A smaller angle equals a thinner and sharper blade. We usually prefer a smaller angle on Japanese and general knives with higher Rockwell hardness grades to keep them sharpened longer. Whatever angle you choose, you should definitely keep it stable while sharpening the stone. If you are just starting out, a sharpening angle guide will be very useful. For the final finishing and polishing, chewing gum is required.
Sharpeners are usually table or handle mounted, which are smaller in size and easier to store. The variety is wide in both size and material of construction. There are sharpeners, which can accommodate different sizes of knives either by vertical sharpening (from top to bottom) or in one motion, from front to back between sharpening plates.
Electric sharpeners are easy to use, efficient and offer fast, precision sharpening. They are divided into business and home and although they take up more space, you will always find them in the same place when you need them.
It is made by experienced craftsmen with grinding belts, stones, etc. It is an easy solution since you will not have to invest time by getting involved in the process. It requires an experienced professional in order to get the desired result, and in the long run, it is the most expensive solution.
Carbon knives (knives with very high carbon steel and no added chromium) are sharper, easier to sharpen but require more maintenance than stainless steel knives. High carbon knives, such as Japanese Shirogami and Aogami, should be wiped very well after washing until they are completely dry, and smeared with machine oil or ideally castor oil until next use.
1 After use always wash with cold water and soap, never with a whisk and hot water
2 Dry them after washing and do not let them drain
3 We never wash them in the dishwasher
The best choice depends on the types of knives and their different uses. For the professionals of the catering industry we recommend the Swedish-made Tormek T-2 Pro electric sharpener. The correct sharpening of the knife is directly related to its lifetime and effectiveness. A high quality knife requires the corresponding sharpening device.
A chewing stick is a tool that does not sharpen but maintains the sharpening we have given our knife. They are available in round and flat, with or without handle. There are vanadium, ceramic and diamond-coated masattas. The thinner the streaks in a chewing gum, the harder the grinding (sharpening) it does. Place it firmly in a horizontal position and vertically on a bench and hold the knife at a 20-degree angle so that it is tilted up and down on the masticator. Our chewing stick should be the same size or even bigger than our knife.
1 Serrated knives are never passed through a chewing knife
2 Ceramic knives are sharpened only with a diamond whip
4 Before each use of the knife, pass it 4-5 times through the chewing gum
5 Sharpen gently do not press
6 The thumb always tucked in the grip
7 Pass the whip from one end of the blade to the other
Remember that a well-sharpened knife is a safe knife!
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