Pomodorista: The Sharper Your Knife...

How many of you have never sharpened a kitchen knife? Based on my own experience, and what I have observed in the kitchens of my friends and family, I would say it's a pretty high percentage of you. I'd guess 90 percent.  Removing culinary school grads and professional chefs from the equation, I'd bet the number is closer to 99 percent. 

My first several days of culinary school revolved around knife skills, and I imagine that's pretty standard. Unfortunately, like many amateur chefs, I didn't have any.  If you are considering enrolling yourself in a professional program, and like, me, did not have any professional experience, I would recommend taking a knife skills class before school starts. And practice a lot.

Knowing how to handle your knives before school starts will benefit you in a couple of ways. First, you will be faster at completing slicing and chopping tasks than most of your classmates, and therefore you will likely be a) less stressed about hitting time deadlines and b) able to spend more quality time on understanding the "hows" and "whys" of the dishes you are preparing instead of racing to finish your prep work. Secondly, you will save yourself money on band-aids by avoiding sometimes gruesome and often painful knife wounds. (The tiniest incisions are the most painful.)

Even if you never intend to become a professional, some basic knife skills can make your time in the kitchen more pleasant and productive. It's amazing how much faster and easier you can cut with a sharp knife, and it's actually safer, too. There are a couple ways to sharpen a knife: with a stone, and with a sharpening steel. I was pretty intimidated by this process for many months, and I was really good at getting other people to do it for me. My friend Virginia was a pro at it at, and often volunteered to help when she saw me with a sharpening steel in hand and an unsure look on my face.  In fact, I didn't get the hang of it until I was well into my internship in Italy, after I had several co-workers politely explain out how to use the steel correctly. 

You will only need to use a stone periodically, when your knife is need of a thorough sharpening. How often is periodically? My chef brother says, "as needed." Not the kind of precise answer I'd like, but that's the kind of vague advice that's often dispensed in the professional kitchen. Let's say when your knife is really, really, really dull you should use the stone. For daily maintenance, you can use the sharpening steel.

Here are some references to get you started on, um, sharpening your knife skills:

• How to use a sharpening stone

• How to use a sharpening steel

• Reference guide to basic culinary techniques

If you have little intention of sharpening your own knives, my brother recommends bringing your knives into the cutlery store at your local mall. They usually sharpen and polish your blades for somewhere around $5 a pop. I'd also check the meat department at your local grocery store--mine does it for free.

Image credit: Andy Warhol, Knives, ca. 1981-2

--StellaCadente*

Comments

[SeattleSchmitt on December 21, 2009 at 03:44 PM]

I watched the Ramsay clip (about using the steel) to see what he was talking about, but as someone pointed out in the comments, what he is doing is honing (which maintains a sharp edge), not sharpening.

How my local knife shop taught me to hone is completely different from this technique. I'm sure everyone's methods vary, but Ramsay is making it way more complicated than it needs to be.

[StellaCadente* on December 21, 2009 at 05:12 PM]

Hi SeattleSchmitt,

Thanks for your feedback. I am curious to hear what your knife shop said. What Ramsay is doing in the clip is essentially realigning the edges of the knife (sort of a fine tune-up), while the stone actually *creates* the edge on the knife. Does that make sense? All of the chefs I worked used the technique Ramsay uses in the video for daily knife maintenance.

[StellaCadente* on December 21, 2009 at 05:13 PM]

Hi SeattleSchmitt,

Thanks for your feedback. I am curious to hear what your knife shop said. What Ramsay is doing in the clip is essentially realigning the edges of the knife (sort of a fine tune-up), while the stone actually *creates* the edge on the knife. Does that make sense? All of the chefs I worked used the technique Ramsay uses in the video for daily knife maintenance.

[Cicciolina on December 22, 2009 at 08:26 AM]

I have a few very nice knives I inherited from a friend who went off to cooking school (uhmmm hmmmm), they are duller than dull.....I use them to open up letters, since they are so dull I will not cut myself. Thanks for the tips, I will get out the sharpening stone - and get those babies sharpened ASAP....hopefully my culinary friend will not want them back the next time she is over when she sees how shiny and sharp they will now be.

[StellaCadente* on December 22, 2009 at 10:49 AM]

Cicciolina, she just might want them back once they are sharpened up! ;)

[Janet from Tucson on December 22, 2009 at 11:08 AM]

Ramsay says 45 degrees in that clip for using the steel. The second clip says 20 degrees. That's a significant difference.

[StellaCadente* on December 22, 2009 at 11:17 AM]

Hi Janet, What I learned in class is to use more of a 20 degree angle. We were told to estimate the width of a penny. Hope that helps.

[Brian on December 26, 2009 at 07:26 PM]

I don't think its possible to replace a good water stone and lots of practice when it comes to sharpening knives. You'll just be cheating yourself in the long run by sending your knives off to someone else.