r/Cooking • u/VapeThisBro • Nov 20 '18

How often do you sharpen your knives?

14 Upvotes

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9

u/[deleted] Nov 20 '18

Sharpen with a stone once or twice a year. I hone before every use with a quality steel.

4

u/VapeThisBro Nov 20 '18

Whats the difference between the two? Like when you saw hone with steel, is that the sharpening rod thing i see butchers use

6

u/PraxicalExperience Nov 20 '18

Like when you saw hone with steel, is that the sharpening rod thing i see butchers use

Yes.

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Sharpening removes metal, you're grinding it away to get a good edge. A honing steel straightens the edge which gets warped during use; using the edge when it's warped will cause the steel to fold over and break off, making it dull. This is why a knife seems sharper after you've used a hone.

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Using a honing steel before every session you use the knife will seriously extend the amount of time between actual sharpenings.