Knife Sharpening and Knife Maintenance

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Did you know that a dull kitchen knife is more dangerous than a sharp one? This is because you have to use more force to get that dull piece of metal to cut! The blade does not actually get dull instead what happens in the mechanics of a dull knife blade edge is that the sharp edge begins to fold over on itself over time when cutting or chopping.
There are also many reasons that cause any knife over time to become dull.
Your cutting board, for example, may be causing your knife to become dull over time.
Wood cutting boards showing the end grain are the best to help maintain the knife blade edge.
A wood cutting board that shows the end grain makes it possible to cut or chop in the grooves of the end grain thus preserving the blade edge.
Even using a wood cutting board can cause a dull knife blade over time and many households have moved to other materials besides wood.
In many households with plastic, ceramic or tempered glass cutting boards the knife blades can require maintenance more quickly than ever before.
Dishwashers also help to dull knife blades.
The hot water, chemicals, and movement in a dishwasher can damage even stainless steel cutlery.
It becomes even more important than ever to have a knife sharpener in your kitchen to re-orient the cutting edge back to its proper or unrolled position restoring the sharpness of your knife.
Part of being a good chef in command of your kitchen includes looking after the maintenance of your knives.
Knife sharpening is a very useful skill and it can be very easy to sharpen your own knives at home, as long as you have the proper sharpening tools for your type of knife.
When searching for the best types of knife sharpeners on the market today try to find the two-stone type of sharpener; the primary reason being that the two-stone sharpener is the better design is because it can be very difficult to sharpen a knife evenly using only one stone.
The types of two-stone sharpeners are electric knife sharpeners and manual knife sharpeners.
The electric knife sharpener consists of two stones inside the device that spin around.
With a two-stone electric sharpener the best and safest way to sharpen is to place the knife into the sharpener up to the handle with the blade edge down and away from you.
Draw the knife handle back towards you in a smooth and not jerky motion.
A smooth firm motion provides an even result as it works on both sides of the knife at the same time.
The manual knife sharpener has a cross shape where you place the knife.
Place the knife into the sharpener up to the handle with the blade edge down and away from you.
Draw the knife handle back towards you in a smooth and not jerky motion.
A smooth firm motion provides an even result as it works on both sides of the knife at the same time.
To prevent injuries use these safety precautions whenever handling a knife and in particular when sharpening a knife.
Always be aware of the blade edge at all times.
Use utmost caution being very careful that as the knife slips through the sharpener that it does not then slip towards the operator as it exits the sharpener.
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