Whether for a 5-star chef or a hobby cook in the home kitchen: only sharp, well-maintained knives are helpful for the numerous chopping tasks involving fruit, vegetables, fish, and meat. Anyone who treats their knives correctly and gives them a good level of care will enjoy their cutting tools for a long time.
Proper care for knives
Wooden boards instead of plastic boards
Cutting on plastic boards makes kitchen knives blunt. Wooden boards are therefore the more suitable material for the knife, although it is more difficult to keep wooden boards properly clean.
Knives should be rinsed immediately after use
Do not leave the knife lying dirty in the sink for hours. It is best to wash it off with lukewarm water immediately after use and dry it thoroughly. This is the best way to avoid rust and other stains. Because even if the knife can shine with the label “stainless”, one should still exercise caution. Some acidic foods, such as citrus fruits, can definitely leave clear corrosion damage on knife blades over time upon contact. Therefore, you should always clean any knife tool after finishing work.
Knives do not belong in the dishwasher!
One of the most important rules regarding knife use is that knives do not belong in the dishwasher, even if the knife is supposed to be “dishwasher safe”. Professionals view this product description extremely critically and advise against it. The water jet in the dishwasher is simply too hard and can damage the cutting edge. In addition, the use of salt usually causes further damage: flash rust can form on knife edges, and the handle also does not benefit from treatment in the machine.
Knife care with oil
Knife handles can be made of various materials. If the handle is made of wood, for example, the material often becomes dull over time or even swells up. Therefore, rub the knife handle with a little olive or rapeseed oil from time to time. The oil prevents the penetration of dirt and hand sweat and revitalizes the wood.
Steel knife care
Other knife handles also want to be cared for. Therefore, steel knife handles should also be rubbed with oil regularly after cleaning. To do this, take a cloth soaked in oil and treat the knife handle evenly. This protects the material from corrosion, rust, and discoloration. However, you should not use cooking oil here, but rather resort to an acid-free oil that does not have any resin residues. Food-safe blade oil is ideal for this.
Proper storage is essential
Far too often, high-quality knives are simply carelessly placed and stored in drawers. Yet this location is anything but suitable. The good knives come into contact with other cutlery, which makes the sharp blades blunt over the long term and leaves scratch marks on the stainless steel. In these scratch marks, in turn, dirt and rust can easily accumulate.
Therefore, chefs and experts recommend storing high-quality knives better in knife blocks or on magnetic strips. Here, the knife tool has enough space and does not bump into anything.
Those who do not want to do without drawer storage can get a blade guard for the knives or create custom-fit compartments in which the knives are protected.
Observe proper cutting technique
It is best to use your knives only for cutting. For manual work or other activities, there are special tools.
Grip the knife with your whole hand and avoid placing your index finger on the back of the knife. Increased pressure is not necessary because good quality knives only need light and targeted pressure.
If nothing helps, then new knives should be purchased. Nowadays there are many different types of knives: for bread, meat, vegetables, tomatoes (!) and much more. You can browse here: Knives on Amazon
Read also:Â These kitchen knives are a must-have in every kitchen
Photo by Janine, meinhaushalt.at
