The biggest problems with knives and cutlery

Looking back, knives were first used millions of years ago as essential tools, first made of stone and flint. It was through technology that has developed blades made of copper, bronze, steel, ceramic, and titanium along with the practicality of flint as an effective cutting instrument. These have inspired the production of a wide range of different patterns and styles of modern blades that we know of today.

Generally, we see different versions of a knife depending on the culture and origin, but still, the useful feature of the knife made it the best tool that passes the time in the hands of cooks and chefs. Different types of kitchen knives provide different efficiency and precision when cutting different types of food, but we didn’t know that the biggest problem in almost every home kitchen is dull knives. Many people find it the biggest hurdle in the kitchen.

In almost every kitchen of my friends that I go to, I see different types of knives, but very few are sharp. The only kitchens I’ve been in where there are sharp knives are those of meat stewards who are selling meat and those where no one cooks and where knives and cutlery are kept inside drawers. If most of your kitchen knives are dull and you don’t sharpen them regularly, even on high-end cutlery, your knives are almost certainly dull.

The myth says that a sharp knife is safer than a dull knife. This is because using a dull knife requires excessive force to cut through the food, which may slip and cause injury to the user. A sharp knife cuts food finely requiring only a little force, so cutting becomes much easier along with good knife control, and the user is more likely to be safe. Since kitchen knives dull over time, you just need to take better care of them by sharpening them regularly. It is also one of the ways in which we can make our knives useful and durable.

Another thing that the knife myth says is that it should have a full tang. This probably works for heavy-duty knives forced to cut through thick leather and firewood, but not for kitchen knives that are generally only designed for delicate cutting of soft food ingredients. On the contrary, it will give you trouble getting full tang knives, as these are rarely high-end kitchen knives, or even full tang stainless steel knives. In short, learn the types of knives you need most so you don’t fall for the marketing hype.

Another thing that is both true and false is that knife sets are better than individual knives. Although you do get more metal in a set compared to buying the same pieces individually, large sets usually come in a large number of knives that you won’t be using. On the other hand, you can use the other metals when the tools become dull, dirty or break. So, you can buy a set of premium knives, cutlery, and accessories or get individual pieces of premium chef’s knife, small paring knife, carving knife, and bread knife, both of which can be considered the best deals.

Having a professional array of knives, cutlery, graters, and mandolins in your kitchen, I don’t think you’ll ever have a problem working with them. That is if you spend most of your life in the kitchen.