Here’s the thing about Knives: They’re not all created equal. A dull knife requires more pressure, which can result in an accident with consequences much worse than just some cut fingers (or even blood). To avoid this problem, you need something that will stay sharp no matter how often it hits its target. In this blog, we will discuss How to Sharpen a Knife Properly with a Whetstone?
How To Sharpen A Knife Properly With a Whetstone?
A great quality chef knife is essential if going into professional kitchens because of course most people don’t want their food handled by someone who doesn’t know what they are doing. But at-home or shop-tested basics still apply.
There are three methods of sharpening a knife, but it is recommended that home cooks sharpen their knives at least twice a year. In case you use your kitchen knife every day and find yourself using the same spot on its blade more often than not, then you may want to consider having it professionally sharpened once a month or even once a week if you use it every day.
Method 1: Use An Electric Sharpener
When you first start, sharpening a knife use an electric sharpener. But I strongly discourage this for a few reasons- primarily because they remove so much material from your edge and leave us with knives that may not work as well anymore due to lack of balance or even Pointy ends.
In addition, though, even the best models provide only adequate shaving capabilities which means if all else fails just replace them every few years until we figure something else out – like how cool our lives are.
Method 2: Send It To A Professional
There is a very important part of having quality kitchen cutlery that is often overlooked, but that is the sharpening of knives. The best knife valet will give your blades that professional touch every time, even if you don’t have a grinder or stone nearby. It all depends on how often one desires their knives to be honed. If it’s only once per month then go ahead with getting just this item.
However, if there are several uses left before they’re replaced due consideration should also be given to whether investing in new utensils instead might better suit certain types of demands more so than others depending.
Method 3: Use A Sharpening Stone
This is the most efficient way to keep your blade sharp. Not only will it give you an edge that can cut through anything. But this process also removes less material than other methods do and with a fine enough guts level, there’s no need for stones or whetstones since they won’t leave any burrs behind on contact. To make sure things go as planned and ensure respect from both yourself AND the knife alike you’ll want some expertise in hand-sharpening iron chef prestige knives too.
Step 4: Maintain Angle
As you pull the knife across the stone, keep the angle between 15 and 20 degrees as you pull the blade across the stone. The pressure should be firm, but gentle at the same time. As you pull the blade across the stone, it should glide smoothly across the surface. There are angle guides that can be used if you need to help to maintain your angle.
Step 5: Repeat The Stroke
When you’re done, set the knife down and use both hands to carefully remove any residue from touching or cutting on stone. Give it a quick wipe with your cloth if needed before moving onto another surface.
Step 6: Check For Silty Water
The process is so simple, that anyone can do it easily. All you need are some water-washed stones and a knife. As the blade goes through each stone’s layer of grit, this thin film should gather on top attaching itself with every passing stroke until there isn’t an inch left unsharpened.
Step 8: Sharpen The Second Side
To sharpen the second side, place your heel near the base of the stone and maintain a 15-20 degree angle. Gently push away from you while simultaneously dragging across the surface towards the tip for sharpening success.
Step 9: Fix Stones
When used repeatedly, your stones will develop grooves in them which can hinder their sharpening power. To fix this problem use a low-grit stone fixer and place the flat side against one of these dulled surfaces; push it back and forth until you have ground off any bumps or marks left by the previous sharpening on that particular piece.
Conclusion
It’s important to have a sharp blade when cooking. Not only is it safer, but it also makes the cooking process easier and faster. We hope that you’ll consider trying our Shark knife sharpener – your knives will thank you For reading.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do whetstones and Waterstones differ?
Names for stones can be confusing, but this one is easy. A whetstone sharpens and polishes tools while Waterstones do both.
Are whetstones hard to use?
To be a successful cook, one must learn how to use knives properly. A good tutorial (like the one above) will help you get started with sharpening your kitchen utensils and avoid damaging them in the process! Investing on some whetstone equipment is worth it for those who want their cutlery looking its best at all times – not just when serving guests or family members but also during preparation work itself where cleaning tools can make sure everything stays clean longer than usual.
Does a whetstone need to be wet?
Yes, you need to wet your stone before use. Soak it for at least 45 minutes and then sharpen the blade on one side only – never both sides.
