If you are a newbie or someone with little experience, we recommend that you go over our informational guide on how to use an electric knife sharpener.

What is an electric knife sharpener?

When looking at electric knife sharpeners, the most critical question to ask is what the device is. This question will help us understand how the product functions and how to use it better. An electric knife sharpener is a highly advanced tool that most professionals use to sharpen knives and equipment of all sorts.

Most experts use electric options because they the best sharpening results no matter how old the knife is or how much it is in use. The unique aspect of an electric knife sharpener is that it offers 3-in-1actions, including honing, sharpening, and fine polishing of your blades.

The plus side? You won’t have to buy separate finishing equipment, whetstones, and coarse sharpening steels. Your sharpening process will be more straightforward and less of a hassle than before!

Is an electric knife sharpener better than traditional methods?

Apart from electric knife sharpeners, there are also two traditional methods to opt for! The first is, of course, a whetstone! These are the original method and also the simplest. All you need is a rectangular stone that is double-sided. One side is coarse while the other is fine!

While the whetstone is undoubtedly quite an accurate method to sharpen your knives, there are also manual knife sharpeners. These manual knife sharpeners are Pull-Through Sharpeners as you pull the blade through them. The best part is that they are user-friendly but also quite affordable!

So, should you opt for an electric sharpener? If you are a regular user, we do not recommend it! On the contrary, we recommend you stick to a whetstone instead! Electric sharpeners can take their toll on your blade and can sometimes shave away too much of the blade.

That’s why we recommend that only professionals with heavy-duty knives use these electric variants! Of course, if your local knife sharpener has the skills, they can sharpen your knife with one too!

Now, we are going to proceed on how to use an electric knife sharpener!

How to use an electric knife sharpener?

Next, you will place the blade into the slot. Make sure it is at an angle of about 15 to 20-degrees. The benefit of an electric sharpener is that it can automatically fix the angle of the knife handle as it goes down and through the slot. It will also connect it to the grinding stone below.

You will then slide the blade on the slot at least twice and make sure you sharpen it on both sides. We do not recommend passing the knife over the space more than this since electric knife sharpeners are pretty efficient. Anything above this might damage the blade more than reshape and sharpen it.

Once the blade is adequately sharp, you will repeat each of these steps on the fine stones. In this way, you will begin the honing process, which is essentially the last fine-tuning of your knives.  Make sure to pass the blade no more than twice on each side. You can then wash the knife and let it dry naturally.

We recommend washing the knife as it gets rid of any metal shavings and bits that you shaved off.

Key factors to keep in mind with electric knife sharpeners

Just as sharp knives are dangerous, so are electric knife sharpeners! Most professionals are engaging with them, and for a good reason! These electric sharpeners are pretty compact, so users will not need to worry about having less space to accommodate them.

However, you need to make sure that they are out of reach for kids and pets. You should also wear protective gear such as gloves and eye goggles!

One of the most important factors to consider is how your electric sharpener is powered. If it plugs into a power socket, then you need to switch it off or unplug it with each use! If they are battery-powered, then your need to switch them off, so it saves power.

Why is a sharper knife better?

We all are aware that the sharper your knife, the better it is! However, you might wonder why this is true! Well, for starters, the most critical factor has to be user safety. When you are wielding a knife, you hold a great responsibility. You need to get the job done but being careful and safe is vital!

The sharper your knife, the safer it is should be every chef’s motto! If you use a dull knife, it won’t have as much grasp and hold so that it might slip. This act can lead to mishaps and accidents which we want to avoid.

Another reason why a sharper knife is better has to do with precision and accuracy. If your knife is more pointed, so will its cuts be! Clean and accurate! As all professionals are aware, the kind of cuts your food has will determine how long it will cook and be ready to consume!

That’s why the angles at which you cut your food become highly crucial. A sharper knife also cuts your workload in half. You will finish in less time than before!

Conclusion

We are now at the end of today’s thorough and informational article on how to use an electric sharpener! We hope that by outlining the main precautions and steps, our readers feel more confident and can effectively utilize electric knife sharpeners on their own! We leave you with our guidance and hope it has been an insightful journey for you!

Recommended Reading: Discover the SIMPLE WAY of how to make a knife handle yourself!

In this article we will examine the advantages of Santoku Knives with a careful look at benefits and use.

You must have heard the name of the Santoku Knife. Because of its splendid benefits, people are getting quite excited over this trendy kitchen essential. But what really is a Santoku knife? Where did it come from? What are the uses and how to use them correctly? Don’t worry, we’ve all the information you want. So let’s dive into the fun analysis of Santoku Knives.

What Is A Santoku Knife?

Santoku is a Japanese word that means Three Virtues or Three Uses. It’s used for general kitchens in Japan. People prefer Santoku knives over other conventional knives because of their unique design and multiple uses.

Commonly, its blade comes between 13 and 20 cm, along with a flat edge and a sheepsfoot blade going down an angle of 60-Degrees. Santoku becomes a successful kitchen essential, replacing a causal cook knife excellently. Even some top-level chefs prefer to use it instead of premium knives. But why? To answer this ,first, let’s dig into the history of the Santoku knife.

Where Did Santoku Knife Come From?

Santoku knife or All Purpose Kitchen Knife originated in Japan. The word Santoku shows its three major uses for kitchen. When they introduced it in the market of Japan, it changed the history of knives. Because they did not make it with casual techniques. Japanese use the Traditional Forging Technique by blacksmiths and swordsmiths.

Before santoku, Japanese people were using three specific knives to do three major jobs.

• Gyuto knife for cutting meat.
• Nakiri knife for cutting vegetables.
• And Deba knife to cut fish.

Once santoku was introduced, people found it an extremely restful kitchen utensil. Why buy three knives when you can just use one for all purposes? That’s the exact reason for the Santoku knife’s renowned image.

What Does “Three Uses” Mean?

Most often people who aren’t aware of the Japanese language, wonder what santoku means. Is there any reason for which they name this knife Santoku? As we said earlier, santoku means Three Virtues or Three Uses. Because you can use this all-purpose knife for Mincing, Dicing, and Slicing. The straight edge with the foot blade does the job perfectly well, beating the best chef’s knives effortlessly.

Mincing

Mincing is the procedure of cutting thin layers. In mincing, people cut a possible tiny amount of food to make it almost disappear into the sauce. Here santoku knife comes in the food game, the Straight Edge acts as a major hero in the mincing process.

Mincing the boneless meat and cheese with a santoku knife comes very handy. And needs some time for your valuable day.

But: Don’t cut frozen meat, santoku doesn’t work effectively on frozen items.

Dicing

We all love decorating cooked food because presentation matters in every aspect of life. Customizing food requires cutting vegetables, meat, and fruits in specific manners. A Santoku with a 18 to 20″ blade is the perfect choice for the job. It keeps the dicing process straightforward.

But: Don’t peel off vegetables with it, as it takes exceptional effort and increases kitchen work.

Slicing

Slicing depends on the task you’re doing, whether you want thick slices of meat or vegetables to cook an extra variety of foods or you’re trying a new dish, comprising thin meat slices. Using a santoku knife comes with Various Pros. It helps you in cutting and slicing fish and meat into precise pieces.

But: If you’re making sushi, it’s quite different. It’s recommended to use sushi knives.

What Are The Best Advantages Of Santoku Knives?

Although this All-Purpose Knife holds amazing features to be suitable for every task. But what are some particular uses of a santoku knife? Following are some of the best uses of a santoku knife, according to the expert’s opinion.

• Cutting Thin Slices Of Meat
• Slicing Cheese
• Best For Slicing, Dicing, or Chopping Various Vegetables, Fruits, And Nuts
• Mincing Meat And Herbs
• Scooping The Vegetables Off The Cutting Board
• Cutting Fine Slices Of Seafood And Vegetables

Some Do’s And Don’ts Of Santoku Knife 

Do: Always Dry Out The Knife

Whether it’s a santoku knife or a chef’s knife, keeping the knife dry extends the shelf life and improves the performance. Don’t forget to dry the knife once you wash it, excess water on the blade degrades the quality of the blade.

Don’t: Cutting Frozen Food

Undoubtedly Japanese blade is extraordinarily strong, but it’s not designed to contact frozen food, hard bones, and ice. Always keep the knife away from such tasks, as it can crack the blade, making the knife incapable of use again.

Do: Keep The Blade Covered

Covering the knife with a protected piece prevents the unfortunate situations of rust. Experts recommend covering the blade with a wonderful quality sheath, that way your santoku knife will be protected from harmful elements.

Don’t: Put The Santoku Knife In Dishwasher

We can’t emphasize enough on this point. Never put your knife into the dishwasher. You must wonder about the reasons. Here they are:

• Extremely Harsh Chemical In Dishwasher Detergents
• Intense Heat
• Unlimited Water Pouring On Wooden Element Of The Knife

Using mild soap and some warm water to wash the germs out of the knife is pretty effective.

Do: Sharpen The Blade

Some people neglect this factor as they think sharpening the blade will remove metal. It’s a bizarre myth. Even sharpening the blade realign the apex of the blade, resulting in a fast action of the edge.

Don’t: Use Glass Or Plastic Boards

Don’t cut vegetables, meat, and fruits on the glass or plastic cutting board with a santoku knife. It can harm the blade greatly. Prefer using wood or cork cutting boards.

Some Words 

Hope you’ll have the perfect vision of the Advantages Of Santoku Knives. Indeed, advantages are unlimited. From mincing, cutting to slicing and dicing, you can do a lot with santoku knives. That makes it necessary to have in our kitchen. What do you think?

Want more cool articles about knives? Discover which are the best knives with wooden handles right here!