Sharpening a Knife

At a certain point, honing the blade will become ineffective as the blade edge degrades from use (usually several months). At this point it should be sharpened using a sharpening stone or other sharpening tool

Knife sharpening is an art and a science. Steels are used to realign the edge on a knife. Stones are used to sharpen the edge once it has grown dull through ordinary use. Most good stones come with a coarse side and a fine side. If your knife is dull, use the coarse side first. Place the sharpening stone on a damp cloth or rubber mat to keep it from moving. Then draw the blade toward you using a 20 degree angle and applying an even moderate pressure. Make strokes of equal number on each side of the blade. After about ten strokes on each side, flip the stone over and move on to the finer grit. Wash the particles off and finish by honing your knife on a steel. A quicker and easier way to sharpen knives is with an electric knife sharpener.

Honing Knives

Knife sharpening grinds the blade while honing is done to keep the edge of the knife straight. Unlike sharpening, which removes material and actually sharpens the blade, honing is more of a “fine tuning” of the blade and should be done often. Most professional cooks "steel" their knives every day. There are several ways to hone your knife, but they all share the same fundamental elements. Draw the entire blade across the honing steel at a 20 degree angle. Use a small amount of pressure evenly across the whole blade as it cuts across the steel.

At a certain point, honing the blade will become ineffective as the blade edge degrades from use (usually several months). At this point it should be sharpened using a sharpening stone or other sharpening tool