How does Knife Sharpening Works?

Do you have an expensive knife in your home for daily purposes? Then I am sure that you wanna know how to sharpen your knife? or how does its work knife sharpening? keep continuing with us. We will give top to bottom ideas about knife sharpening.

Knife Sharpening is the technique of sharpening the edges of a knife or any other similar tool by rubbing or pounding it against a rough, flat and hard surface. The surface is commonly a stone or sandpaper. Razors and Strops are also used for finishing touches. The edges are sharpened and then polished which gives them a shiny look. Sharp and shiny knives help you to cut things more precisely and lessen your kitchen time so you can spend more time with your loved ones.

This is a technical process and many things are needed to focus while sharpening a knife. One of those focus points is the angle between the surface and the knife. A smaller angle between the edge of the knife and the surface provides better sharpening. This angle is known as the “edge angle”. There are other important things too like included angle and holding angle which is different for each material. These angles vary with the types of knives. Normally, hotels and restaurant knives are sharper than normal kitchen knives so it’s mandatory to sharpen them regularly. let us give you an idea of how to sharpen your knife. so you will be able to do it by yourself very easily and within a couple of seconds.

Why Sharpening of Knives is really Necessary?

Before we give an accurate process of how to sharpen a knife, you must have to know why sharpening is so necessary? Knives and other cutting tools are used in kitchens all over the world. Sharp knives are definitely more precise and less time-consuming. Here are some points to answer “Why Knife Sharpening Is important?”

Saves Time

The world is moving and changing very quickly. It demands everything to be done quickly. A blunt knife is unable to cut things in less time. The professional chefs in restaurants always prefer sharp knives as they’re in a hurry to make dishes. A sharp knife has sharp cutting edges that quickly cut anything. In household kitchens, people also prefer a sharp knife as it saves their cutting time.

Makes Cutting Effortless

A sharp-edged knife can easily make deep cuts without putting in much effort. It provides comfort to the users. They just place the knife over the surface and by just very little force, the knife makes cuts for them.

Accurate Cutting

It makes more sleek and accurate cuts because of its sharp edges. so it’s very important to sharpen a knife. Most professional chefs use these techniques in garnishing their dishes when they have to cut herbs and tiny leaves to sprinkle over the dish. It also makes it easy to cut large blocks of meat into smaller ones. The cuts are exactly on the desired points. It helps in making straight-lined cuts.

Ensures Safety

A sharp knife easily cuts the product by just sliding it over the surface that making it safe to use. If the knife is not sharp, users have to rub it over the surface to make cuts which can easily lead to some serious injury or cut. It gives you full control over your food.

Tools Used in Knife Sharpening:

There are many methods and tools used in the sharpening of knives. There is a vast list of tools that are used to carve the perfect edges. We usually rub the knife with those tools or slide over the tools to sharpen the knife. There are also some procedures in which proper machines are involved in sharpening the knives but that only happens on an industrial scale. Traditional methods, as well as modern methods, are used in this process. There are also some Japanese specialized tools and methods used in this process. Before sharpening, the surface is made totally clean and rust-free. Some of the techniques used in knife sharpening are discussed below:

Handheld Tools:

These tools are available in the markets for the sharpening of normal kitchen knives. They are easy to use and can be used regularly. They usually have steel roads or diamond cuttings that sharpen the knife when it’s rubbed with the tool. These are just standard tools. If you want your knife sharpened at perfect angles, then there are other techniques as well.

Whetstone Sharpening:

Whetstone is a stone used to sharpen knives, blades, and other cutting tools by grinding or sliding their edges over its surface. This is considered one of the best ways to sharpen the knife. It’s the most efficient and money-saving method. The only thing you need is a Whetstone and you’re ready to go. As mentioned earlier, the “edge angle” determines the sharpness of the edge in this technique. Normally the angle used for most knives is 20 to 22 Degrees. This method is also termed “Grinding”.

Here is the procedure of Knife Sharpening Using Whetstone:

• Whetstone is needed to be placed on a flat surface. Make sure that Whetstone is unable to slide while sharpening.
• Slide the edge of the knife on Whetstone at an angle of 20 to 22 degrees by applying gentle pressure and force.
• Slide or rub one side for 10 to 15 times and then change side.
• Use some other tool to Hone the surface and then clean it.
• Wash the knife to remove any particles from the edges.

Sharpening Using a Sharpening Steel:

This technique is often applied after using Whetstone as it leaves rough edges and stone particles stuck in those edges. It is a two-step. It’s one of the safest methods as well. In this technique, the knife and its edges are not pointing towards you at all. It’s a long rod-like tool and the knife is rubbed over it to make smooth edges. This process is also named as “Steeling” The process involves:

Stropping:

It is usually the last step in the sharpening of knives. This process polishes the edges of the knives and removes any kind of particles left by the Whetstone or sharpening steel. Strops are blocks made of leather. There are many materials used to make strops but leather is the most commonly used material. A polish or compound is applied at the surface of the strop to give a shiny look to the edges of the knife. The strops can be used without compound as well. In this case, the leather provides the required shine and removes the particles or burr from the surface. It’s just a simple process in which the cutting edge is moved on the strop. One thing must be in mind that the cutting edge must always move away from the strop in every stroke otherwise it’ll give dull surface shine to the cutting edges.

How Often Do You Need to Sharpen a Knife?

The average time a knife performs well after sharpening is 3 to 4 months. But it is always better to sharpen your knife as soon as you feel it’s blunt. This time interval depends upon your usage and the materials you use your knife upon. You must have household sharpening tools in your kitchen to sharpen your knife without any discomfort.

How to sharpen knife by avoiding any danger:

Sharpening of knives is a very useful process but you’ve to be very careful while doing it as it can cause some serious trouble. There are certain precautionary measures that are needed when sharpening a knife. These safety measures ensure the safety of users.  The edges of the knives are very sharp so you must take precautionary measures to avoid any mishap.

These precautions include:

• Wear plastic or rubber gloves to avoid any kind of cuts on your hands.
• Place the tool away from your body so the risk of hurting yourself becomes less.
• Avoid talking to others as distractions can cause tools to slip from your hands.
• Don’t use too much force as it can also make the tools slip from your hands which can lead to injuries.
• Use less powerful stroke while performing on stones as there are more chances of being injured because your fingers are close to the edges.

Sharpening your tools really carries worth?

The normal household cutting tools are usually made of metals and they become blunt over time. Sharpening the knives and other tools is very necessary as it increases their working strength and they perform well. Sharp-cutting tools are always better than blunt and time-consuming tools. A blunt knife slows your pace whereas a sharp knife saves your time. Whenever you feel trouble in cutting your favorite items, use the above techniques for easy sharpening of your tools. if you are interested to buy a knife sharpening you may visit here

To conclude, we can say that the maintenance of kitchen utensils is very important if we want the best outcomes. Knives are the most important utensils. A perfectly sharpened knife works better than a blunt knife so we must sharpen our knives after 3 to 4 months or depend upon its usage. The sharpening of knives is a very technical and tricky process. It must be performed carefully. If you’re not an expert in knife sharpening, just use the handheld sharpening tools available in the markets. They’re easy to use and safe.