This was prompted by the other thread knife thread, but I felt like this would be a hijack, so I opted to start a new thread.
For Christmas last year I got a set of Mercer kitchen knives to replace the cheapo grocery store knife set I’ve had since right after college. While I’m sure they’re not quite professional grade, they are considerably better than the old ones. Since these are my first “good” knives I’d like to take care of them, and to that end I’m wondering how often I should be sharpening them. I was thinking maybe once a year, but while slicing tomatoes the other day it became evident that they aren’t as sharp as they were when new. So should they be sharpened more often, maybe every six months? I don’t use them every day, but maybe a couple of times a week. And they didn’t come with a honing steel, so I’m thinking maybe I should get one.
Mine are neither the stainless trendy kitchen knives nor necessarily what you’d call el cheapo. They’re an old established but non-trendy brand (or pair of brands: the handles say Old Hickory but the blades are stamped Ontario Knife Works). You have to dry them after manually washing them or they rust. Anyway, I sharpened them about four times a day until they finally got a real edge on them, and after that maybe once every couple months depending on use. Whetstone and water method. Using them is like using a razor blade mounted on a long handle. I can slice rotten tomatoes into skinny strips without denting the gooshy tomato skin. Or butcher a raw chicken into fryer pieces effortlessly.
You need a hand sharpener - example - Amazon.com Amazon/Walmart/Kitchen Supply. Other posters will suggest a whetstone or sharpening stone(s) but for your light usage, one of these is fine.
Also get a sharpening steel (note: doesn’t actually sharpen, just hones/straightens the fine tip of the blade between uses). - example - Amazon.com - Amazon/Walmart/Kitchen supply store.
Use the sharpener to get the blade back in shape, coarse groove then fine groove. Sharpeners come with instructions. I do it every couple of weeks and I use Mercer knives daily. Use the hone after every cutting episode. Wash the blade as usual (by hand), run the steel over it (see youtube videos), wipe and put away. The wash/hone/wipe takes less than 30 seconds while the food is cooking. I can shave hairs off my arm with my knives - not recommended while cutting food
I hone a knife before every use, and sharpen it when I start to notice it’s getting dull or I can see nicks in the edge. I’d say that for knives I use almost daily, I sharpen about once every 2-3 months. I can sharpen on a whetstone but it’s a delicate and slow process, so I usually use this Trizor sharpener.
Serrated knives are a different kettle of fish. Because they cut more like a saw, they will continue to cut even when dull, but they’ll tear rather than slice. You can sharpen them, but you need to sharpen each serration individually.
As noted above, a steel is a straightener, not to be confused with sharpening rods.
There are, however, diamond-coated sharpening rods that look a lot like steels and are used in a similar manner. I got a 14" diamond rod at Rakuten*, particularly because I use a long stroke when sharpening some of my weapons (not kitchen cutlery). A rod, by the way, is better-suited (than, for instance, a flat stone or a wheel) for sharpening those individual cerrations – provided you know what you’re doing. If you don’t know how to sharpen a cerrated blade, take it to a pro and have it done for you (and ask if you can watch and learn ).
Anyway, the basic answer is whenever it’s necessary and there’s no set time or interval. It really depends how often (and on what) you use the blade(s); if you notice it’s not doing as well as it used to, sharpen it. Both my old shop teacher and my mother (who was a professional cook) used to remind me that the safest knife is a sharp knife because A) It’s clear it’s not a toy, and B) a person should not have to struggle to get the blade to do its work. If you’re struggling at all, it’s time to sharpen that blade.
–G!
Now the circle is broken
In a spellbinding rage
Better see if you’re holding
The wrong edge of the blade.
. --Steve Perry (Journey)
. Edge of the Blade
. Frontiers
*of all places, but that was before the company changed formats and was selling a lot of their own stuff. Now they seem to be a gateway for other sites.
Probably good advice, and I’ve heard it before. But I would question the statement that a sharpening steel doesn’t really sharpen – it definitely does, but AIUI, the knives don’t stay sharp nearly as long as when properly sharpened with a good sharpener, and I should probably get one.
I have two of the pro-grade Henckels knives, a large chef’s knife ideal for chopping and a smaller utility knife. I also use the chef’s knife for carving roasts. I’ve had them both for many decades. My other frequently-used knife is a cheap serrated bread knife from IKEA, and it works great for that single purpose, and never needs sharpening. It was an inspired purchase – my friend has a similar set of Henckels knives as I do, including an expensive bread knife, and claims he likes my cheap IKEA one better. But we both love our main Henckels knives.
The sharpening steel I have (also Henckels) or sharpening rod or whatever it is, really does sharpen, but as said, it doesn’t seem to last all that long. How often? I use it (mostly on the big chef’s knife) either before a dinner that will involve carving a large roast, or when I notice that trying to thinly slice tomatoes or some such thing demonstrates a need for it to be sharper – typically only every few months.
As an aside, the chef’s knife is so old that the handle is made of wood, which I occasionally treat with olive oil and avoid dishwashing. Henckels switched to synthetic material for handles a long time ago, and the smaller utility knife is like that, so that’s the one I use if I have deal with cutting raw meat, because it and the synthetic cutting board that I use for such purposes can both be sanitized in the dishwasher.
We don’t sharpen our knives too often. We buy good quality knives whose steel stays sharp for a long time. My wife doesn’t like our knives very sharp for fear we may accidentally cut ourselves.
Several months ago I decided to sharpen a couple of knives. Soon afterwards I cut myself quite badly while I was making a salad. One needs to be extra-careful with sharp knives.
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