Sharpen Those Knives!!!

Have you ever used your "supposedly sharp" and expensive kitchen knives while slicing onions or chopping tomatoes and sworn you were using a butter knife? Now don't take me the wrong way. Butter knives have a good and rightful place in our kitchen. That's right, they are great at spreading butter on sliced bread, but they have no business being in your hands while cutting and slicing. In all honesty, having a dull knife can make prepping food dangerous if the knife slips and nicks or cuts you. I'm sometimes guilty of having dull knives too and it really does make cooking much harder than it has to be. If you don't want your nice knives to be the equivalent of a butter knife then you must take care of them and that involves sharpening them!!

Depending on how often you use your knives you may have to sharpen them quite a bit. That

will depend on you. Two must-have items in your home should be a knife sharpening steel and water stone (pictured). The steel should be used every time you

use your knife. Running your knife a few times along the steel rod keeps the sharp edge on the blade nice and straight. At least every few days you should sharpen your knives with a water stone. You can check out videos on youtube which are very helpful in showing how this is to be done. It's not hard at all; just time consuming.

If you don't have the time to sharpen your knives with a stone or you simply don't have one, don't worry. You can bring your knives to a professional knife sharpener who will do an excellent job. Ask for their prices. You should be able to get a good deal.

Come to think of it... my knives are a bit dull right now and if I don't sharpen them soon my new chef/boss will be wringing my neck. To make sure they are extra sharp I will bring them to Chelsea Market, here in Manhattan, and have them professionally done. There is a woman there who has a "mobile cart" (www.samuraisharpening.com) who does great work. Even better she charges only $5 per knife. Not a bad deal in return for some very sharp knives!!!