Even in the event you spring for a top-of-the-line chef’s knife, if it dulls, chips or turns into riddled with dings and dents, it’s going to be no higher than a $20 finances purchase. While specialists warn in opposition to these bloated knife units, spending a while discovering an ideal arsenal of knives is vital for any house prepare dinner. But simply as necessary is caring for them, and meaning avoiding widespread kitchen knife-care errors that can spoil them in a rush.
One of the largest errors house cooks make is storing their knives improperly. But there are much less apparent habits which might be damaging the blade typically past restore, comparable to scraping it sideways on a slicing board or oversharpening which might trigger blade attrition.
If you are in search of an ideal new knife, we have examined greater than 10 to search out the very best chef’s knives for 2024. If you’ve got acquired one you like, beneath you may discover a listing of the commonest kitchen knife use and care errors that can spoil even the best high quality knife very quickly.
Read extra: Want Your Kitchen Knives to Stay Sharp for Longer? This Simple Trick Will Help
These dangerous habits can spoil your kitchen knives
1. Scraping it sideways on the board
Using your knife as a scraper is a tough behavior to interrupt, however the blade will thanks.
Knives are made to chop in solely two instructions, forwards and backwards and never aspect to aspect, so strive to not use your good knives in a scraping method. It could also be intuition to maneuver and collect all that chopped meals on the board with the blade of the knife however it is going to harm the sting over time. If you’ll be able to’t break the behavior fully, not less than try to do it gently and with out a lot downward drive.
2. Using it on something aside from wooden or plastic
Even one slice on a glass or marble floor can do irreparable harm to your chef’s knife.
There are boards and blocks constituted of all types of supplies however a lot of them will not be knife-friendly. Stone or marble boards and glass surfaces ought to be reserved for serving meals, not getting ready it (not less than not with a knife) since they may uninteresting your blade sooner than virtually the rest.
Bamboo and plastic are the softest — and sometimes least expensive — slicing board supplies and will likely be light in your blades. Most different forms of wooden slicing boards, nonetheless, have sufficient give to not harm the blade.
3. Storing it free in a drawer
Not solely will this setup spoil your knife, however you are certain to harm your self finally.
This might be the largest mistake of us make with their kitchen knives. I’ve seen it extra occasions than I can depend and it hurts each time. Letting your knives clink round in a drawer with different knives and metallic instruments will uninteresting or chip them over time. It’s comprehensible to not desire a clumsy knife block on the counter, however there are some fairly modern choices today like this and this
You also can purchase in-drawer picket knife racks or sheath your knives in plastic instances. The coolest possibility could also be to retailer the knives on one among these magnetic knife racks and showcase your shiny blades to dinner friends. Just be light when inserting knives on and eradicating them from the magnet in order to not scrape the blade.
4. Letting it sit within the sink or placing it within the dishwasher
Try to get that chef’s knife out of the sink and dry it off earlier than you sit all the way down to eat.
For many causes, your knives ought to by no means go within the dishwasher. It’ll probably harm the handles, and the blades ought to by no means be uncovered to water for that lengthy. Speaking of which, by no means let a knife sit moist within the sink or wherever else for that matter. That means no soaking, ever, and once you’ve completed washing it by hand, dry it instantly or the metallic will turn out to be inclined to rust and corrosion.
5. Cutting nonfood objects or utilizing your knife as a normal software
Don’t use a great chef’s knife to open your Amazon bins.
Good knives could look like a multipurpose software however they need to solely be used for meals prep. Try to not reduce any nonfood objects like plastic, cardboard or different packaging. And do not even take into consideration using your knife as a screwdriver or lever to pry open one thing caught.
6. Using a metallic scrubber or tough sponge to scrub it
Steel wool is nice for some dishwashing jobs however will spoil your knife’s edge in seconds.
It should not come as a shock that utilizing metallic or one other tough materials to scrub your knife blade might result in large issues. Instead, use sizzling water and a gentle sponge or material. Your knives ought to by no means be so soiled that these aren’t sufficient to get them clear.
7. Oversharpening the blade
Sharpening is nice. Oversharpening is dangerous.
There comes a degree at which a knife blade cannot be sharpened anymore, and in the event you proceed to pound it on a metal or whetstone, you may solely be shaving off the blade itself and shortening the knife’s life span. Here’s a information to sharpening your kitchen knives.
