What will dull a knife

A sharp knife "bites" the surface more readily. Cutting on a metal stovetop, on a plate, or on a tile or Formica counter dulls your blades. It's best to use a plastic or wood cutting board. To safely cut a bell pepper, cut it in half first, and then slice or chop it with the meaty side up. This decreases the problem of cutting through its waxy skin. It's easy to cut yourself when halving a bagel — if you try to hold the bagel in your hand.

Here's the trick: Place the bagel flat on a cutting board, put your palm on top to steady it, then slice parallel to the cutting board. Cut about halfway through the bagel. Finish either by rotating the bagel with the knife in place, or stand the bagel on end and "saw" through to the end.

Knives are tools, and it's best to use the right one for the job. A good knife will have a carbon or carbon and stainless steel blade that runs all the way through the knife handle. It should feel balanced and comfortable in your hand.

Here's a look at the cutlery of a well-stocked kitchen:. Chef's knife. With its 8- to inch blade, this knife is good for slicing tomatoes and dicing carrots. Never store them unprotected. Knifes are delicate, they should never end up in a drawer unprotected. Other knives or forks and spoons can nick your them and render them forever blemished. Instead use a knife blocks or a magnet strip to keep your knives safe and sound. Just remember to clean your knife block. Never use glass cutting boards.

We're not even sure why people make them in the first place: Chopping on any surface that's harder than your knife will hurt the blade.

Always opt for a wood cutting boards to ensure you are treating your knife with adequate respect. Be sure to use a cutting board this is the right size for your knife too! You can measure your cutting board by laying the knife you want to use across it at a diagonal. If the cutting board is 2-inches longer than you knife, you have the right size cutting board to use with that knife. Never use them when they're dull. A dull knife is a dangerous knife.

You know how hard you have to work to get a dull knife through a piece of food Enough said. Never let your knife sit with food residue. Acid can corrode the metal, so it's important to rinse and dry! Never scrap up your food with the knife. Seems harmless, but you should never use your knife to scoop your chopped onions into your hand or your food scraps into the trash. Avoid abusing your knives!

When knives begin to dull it is usually a result of the sharp cutting edge rolling over, not actually being dull. Using a steel is very simple and fast. It literally takes seconds and should be done every few days or as needed. Diligent use of a steel to maintain your knives can drastically increase time between sharpenings. Many professional chefs who use their knives all day long only sharpen every couple of weeks. They achieve this by caring for their knives properly and using a steel at least once every day.

In home kitchen use, a knife may see an hour of use per day, probably less. Professional chefs use their knives many times as much. Eventually even the highest quality, best cared for knives no longer respond to steeling and cutting performance drops off. It is at this point that a real sharpening using abrasives is required. However, if you treat your knives as described you will significantly increase the time between sharpenings and decrease the difficulty of sharpening when it is required.