3 Kitchen Cutlery Tips

Well, you've made it this far -- you've realized that real knife people use real kitchen knives, and you're tackling your food-prep tasks with fine kitchen cutlery.

Good for you. Now here are a few simple suggestions to make the experience even better.

1. Store your knives properly. Tossing your kitchen knives into a drawer is a no-no -- they can chip or dull, and you risk cutting yourself when you reach for them.

We recommend storing your fine kitchen cutlery in a wood block. It's organized, safe and protects the blades. Just remember to always hand-wash and dry the blades before putting them away.

2. Know how to use your sharpening steel -- and how often. Properly using a "sharpening steel" (sometimes called a "honing steel") realigns the micro-edge of a kitchen knife. You gently pull the blade across the rod at a shallow angle, realigning this very fine edge.

How often you "steel" your knives depends on how often you use them, of course. In addition, relatively soft German knife steels can benefit from honing after each use, while harder steels used in Japanese knives may need attention only about once a week.

3. Use the right cutting surface. Doing your cutting (or your chopping, or your slicing) on the wrong surface is the fastest way to dull a kitchen knife.

You should never cut on glass, ceramic tile or plates, marble, granite countertops or acrylics -- those hard surfaces will quickly dull (or even chip) your blades. Always do your cutting on surfaces that "give" under the edge.

We recommend choosing a cutting board made of polypropylene or wood. If you have any doubt about a surface you're using, check to see if the knife leaves a cut-line in the material -- if it does, you have a proper cutting surface.