Cutting with a poorly sharpened knife can not only be frustrating, but it can also be dangerous. Indeed, the more you force with your knife, the more you risk cutting yourself. And cutting with a badly sharpened knife is no picnic!
To properly maintain your knives and take full advantage of them, you must remember to sharpen and sharpen them regularly. There are several techniques for sharpening a knife, and all require the use of a tool specifically designed for this purpose.
Of course, you could leave the task of sharpening your knives to a professional, but if you have the necessary equipment, you will find that it is easy and economical to do it yourself. So here is a guide on how to properly sharpen a knife.
Why are knives dull?
Daily use in the kitchen wears out the blade of our knives and this is absolutely normal. The duration of a knife sharpening will depend on the quality of the knife’s steel, the type of steel and the use to which it is put.
The main reasons why a knife can become damaged or dull can be:
- cut on hard surfaces
- exert excessive lateral pressure on the blade
- corrosion by acids such as lemon, tomato, or others
- be subjected to high temperatures (for example in the dishwasher)
- get nicked by colliding with the blade of another knife
Before sharpening your knives, visually evaluate the blade: if you see nicks or deep indentations, you will probably need the assistance of a professional sharpener to recover your knife. If you don’t notice anything unusual, you are ready to know how to sharpen your knives.
1. Tools for sharpening a knife
To properly sharpen or sharpen your knives, you will need the right tool. Here are the most commonly found on the market:
- The whetstone: available in several grain sizes, from the softest to the most abrasive, the whetstone is the most efficient tool and gives the most lasting results. However, it requires a longer adaptation period than other tools for sharpening a knife.
- Manual sharpener: this tool for sharpening knives is surely the easiest to use, even by beginners. This sharpening tool is provided with a slot in which the knife blade is inserted. The disadvantage of the manual sharpener is that it does not fit all knives. For even more convenience, the manual sharpener is also available in an electric version.
- The sharpening gun: Efficient and fast, it is the sharpening technique most widely used by kitchen professionals. The sharpener will be used primarily to maintain a blade, not being designed to restore the edge of the blade.
Find below in the guide the best sharpening stone, the best manual sharpener as well as the top sharpening blade for the knife.
2. Can you sharpen a knife with a water wheel?
It is quite possible to sharpen a knife with a grinding wheel, preferably a wet grinding wheel because the water prevents the blade from overheating. This tool designed to effectively sharpen all cutting tools, however, requires a certain skill when it comes to sharpening kitchen knives.
If you are a woodworking enthusiast, you probably already have this tool in your arsenal for maintaining the blades on your tools. So you could, with a little practice, use it to sharpen your kitchen knives.
However, it is not worth getting a water grindstone if only to sharpen kitchen knives.
3. How to sharpen a knife with a stone?
The best way to sharpen a knife is to use a whetstone. There are other methods and devices available for sharpening knives, but most of them tend to wear too much of the blade.
Take a double-sided whetstone, with coarse grain on one side and a fine grain on the other. Different knives require that the knife-edge be applied to the stone at a different angle, depending on the manufacturing specifications. Typically the angle is around 22 degrees. Then, follow these steps:
- Place the whetstone on a cutting board or counter, with the coarse grain facing up.
- Grasp the knife by the handle and hold the edge of the knife against the stone, the edge meeting the stone at an angle of about 22 degrees.
- With moderate pressure, slide the blade forward over the whetstone, covering the entire length of the blade and keeping the blade level with the stone at a constant 22-degree angle.
- Repeat 10 times, then turn the knife over and hit the other side of the blade 10 times on the whetstone.
- Turn the sharpening stone over to the fine-grained side and hit each side of the blade 10 times.
4. How do you sharpen a knife with a manual sharpener?
The manual sharpener is very easy to use. Here’s how to use a manual sharpener in a few easy steps:
- Place the manual sharpener on your counter or work surface.
- Hold the handle firmly with your non-dominant hand, to prevent the sharpener from moving while in use.
- Insert the blade into the slot, and pull the knife gently towards you, exerting slight pressure.
- Lift the handle as you approach the tip to follow the contour of the blade. Each pull should only last 1 or 2 seconds.
- Repeat until you get the desired result, usually about ten times.
5. How do I sharpen a knife with a sharpening gun?
The sharpener is not really a sharpener. Rather, it is a tool that allows you to hold and realign the edge of a knife blade. It helps straighten out the dips and twists that naturally occur on a knife blade when in use.
The sharpening gun, also called rat tail, will therefore be useful for maintaining your knives. To do this, follow these few tips:
- To start, set your cutting board on the counter and cover it with a tea towel.
- Next, grab the sharpening gun by the handle and position it perpendicular to the board, so that the end of the handle is facing up.
- Hold the handle firmly with one hand and make sure the tip of the rat tail is resting firmly against the towel-covered cutting board.
- Pick up the knife with the opposite hand. Starting at the top of the rat tail, gently hold the edge of the knife 20 ° to the steel of the gun shaft. Be careful not to move the blade in any way.
- While maintaining this angle, slide your knife down one side of the shaft, from heel to toe, while pulling the handle towards you. Then do the same with the other side of the blade.
- Repeat 4 to 5 times per side.
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