Knife Sharpening

Let's start by finding out how to test to see if your knife is sharp or not. Most people run the edge of the blade across their thumb to see how the edge grabs the skin as it tries to cut. My grandfather used to sharpen his knives and then wet the hair on his arm and shave it. This edge would be called shaving sharp. Both those methods could be somewhat misleading if the edge has a bur or wire edge because an edge with a bur will become dull quickly as the knife is used. If you have a good eye you can see a dull edge by holding the edge in line with a bright light and just rock the blade a little. Burs and nicks in the blade will cause a small glint of light in the blade. The most accurate and most expensive method is to buy an Edge Tester.

The next consideration has to do with the edge angel. Very thin blades, such as a filet knife, will use a 17-degree angle for the edge. From there you go up to a 34 degree angle for knives that are used for heavy chopping of vegetables and cutting rope and things such as that. One of the best manual systems I have found is the "rod-guided stone system" with a clamp to hold the blade. Lansky makes one of the best systems in this category and I will include a link to Amazon.com and ebladestore.com both of which handle the sets.

I will post more information on knife sharpening in the future but it is very important to remember that a dull knife causes most cuts by kitchen knives. A sharp knife must be handled carefully but the blade is much more controllable if it is slicing through products as opposed to being forced through by brute force. Also keep checking back with our website, free family favorite recipes to see what new recipes we have added.

Santoku Knife

A Santoku knife is somewhat comparable to a chef knife but much more flexible in its uses. The Santoku blade is wide like a chef knife but it is thinner and usually shorter in length. The blade has a gradual curve at the end, which creates a straighter cutting edge. Because of different steel compositions used and processes such as forging or stamping the knives the prices vary widely. Since the Santoku knife is thinner it can cut precisely and smoothly through dense vegetables and does so with less effort then a chef knife because of the thicker blade on the chefs knife.

The edge put on a Santoku knife can be either a straight angle ground edge or a hollow ground or granton edge. The hollow ground edge is to help keep particles from sticking to the knife as you chop small pieces of food and also reduces friction for faster motion and less drag from the foods being cut. In my opinion the best Sandoku knife has the granton Sandoku edge on it.

The Sandoku knife is available in lengths from 5 inch to 9 inch and have become a popular addition to the standard knife set in the kitchen. My advice is to buy a lower cost Sandoku first to see how you like it and upgrade later if you want to. You should always buy what you can afford. There are also many knife sets that include a Santoku knife and you can usually save some money by purchasing a complete set.

Like all knives, treat them with respect, handle with care, hand wash and dry thoroughly, store properly and they may only require occasional touch-up with a sharpening steel. For your family favorite recipes click on the words!

Who Makes The Best Kitchen Knives: part 2

This article will finish the remaining parts of a kitchen knife and then we will go into best rated kitchen knives and then show some kitchen knife reviews. We will in the future go into proper use of each style of kitchen knife and tips on sharpening your kitchen knives.
SCALES: This is the material that goes on the outside of the tang, usually wood or plastic and sometimes metal. The scales are held on by rivets usually. The scales should fit tightly behind the bolster and the rivets should be flush with the scales. If not it is impossible to clean the knife properly.
BOLSTER: The collar that joins the blade to the handle. Most forged knives have the bolster as a built-in part of the knife. Most stamped knives have a bolster attached to the blade. Technology has allowed the bolsters on the stamped knives to be as durable as the forged knives. The bolster is right in front of the scales and adds balance, stability and some safety.
BUTT: Also called the handle head is the terminal end of a knife.
BLADE HEEL: The blade cutting edge furthest from the tip. This part of the blade is used for heavy cutting like bones and hard vegetables when weight and force are needed to cut.
SPINE: The spine is the top part of the blade and is not sharpened. A thick spine improves stability but creates a more wedge shaped blade.

POINT: Where spine and edge meet and is usually used pierce or stab a product.

TIP: The first third of the cutting edge is called the tip of the blade.

EDGE: The sharpened part of the blade that extends from point to heel. There are several types of edges used on knives. Taper ground is a v grind edge. Hollow ground is used on many slicing knives and has convex curves ground into the edge for a thin and fine edge.

This will end the article on parts of a kitchen knife. As you can see the construction of a good kitchen knife is complex and that is why a good quality kitchen knife is not cheep but should be considered an investment and if well cared for will easily last a lifetime. Please visit our website for free family favorite recipes and more handy information!

Who Makes The Best Kitchen Knives?

Before we start reviewing kitchen knives I think it is important to be able to identify the different parts of a knife so we will start there.

BLADE: The knife blade is build by either cutting the shape out from stamped steel or by forging. Forged knives are made from a heated bar of steel which is softened by the heat and placed into a mold. The steel is then pressed or beaten into the shape of the mold and any extra steel is trimmed. Next the knife is tempered, which is a series of heating and cooling steps used to improve the steels hardness and durability. Next the blade is sharpened, polished and burrs are removed.

Stamped blades are cut from sheets of metal that have been flattened and then are ground down to provide the proper shape of the knife being produced. With new technology both types of blade can be superior quality. The main consideration really needs to be how the knife feels in your hand when using it.

TANG: The tang is the opposite end of the knife from where the blade is and is what the handle scales are attached to. There are several different types of tangs available. The full tang is cut to the same shape as the handle and is the most secure method for attaching the handle to and is also the most durable. The Half tang is just what you expect and in many cases the tang is inserted into the handle. Most of these knives are cheaper and do not hold up as well.

My next post will include the remaining parts of a knife which are: scales, rivets, hand guard, butt, heel, return, spine, bolster, bolster lip, finger guard and of course the parts of the blade: Point, Tip, Edge and Heel.

The best rated kitchen knives are going to be in a wide price range but they will be the best performing for a variety of cooking uses. Please visit our website for free family favorite recipes and other useful information!

New Reviews For Kitchen Equipment

This blog will be used for reviewing all types of kitchen equipment, from knives and measuring cups to electric mixers and pots and pans. Much of our reviews will be from our own experience and a lot will be from other review sources. We will try to keep things simple and not get into technical aspects of products. We would appreciate any comments or tips from you and we hope you will visit us often in the future.