by J. Michael Wheeler
How to Keep Your Knives Sharp
Did you ever notice that the chefs in their tall white toques at the banquets, brunches, and museum openings you’re always going to, seem to sharpen their knives a lot? They’ve got a knife in one hand and a sharpening steel (pictured here) in the other. But while they may be making their knives sharper using the sharpening steel, they’re not really sharpening their knives!
“Picky, picky, picky,” you say. Well, yes, but let me make a point. (Sorry.) To actually sharpen a knife you need to use a knife sharpening tool, an electric sharpener, or traditionally, a sharpening stone. Whichever tool you use, it reshapes the knife’s cutting edge by grinding away tiny amounts of the blade. If you’ve carefully sharpened the blade at a 20 degree angle, you’ve got a sharp knife.
But while your knife may be sharp, the edge of your knife will be left rough and uneven. A sharpening steel aligns the blade and tiny burrs. And just a few minutes of slicing can knock your knife’s delicate edge out of alignment, and even microscopically bend or fold the edge. Time, again, for the sharpening steel.
Knife designer Adam Simha has these tips on maintaining your knife’s sharpness by using a sharpening steel. And please, be careful.
1. Hold your knife at an angle so the steel is parallel to the bevel of the knife’s cutting edge, about 20° for large knives and 17° for smaller ones.
2. Pull the blade across the abrasive surface as if you were slicing. Start near the handle and finish at the tip. Keep the pressure, speed, and angle constant.
3. Do the same on the alternate face of the knife. Again align your knife carefully to the surface of the steel.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 as necessary, using slightly less pressure with each repetition.