Cut-up

As I blogged about a couple of months ago, I got a new santoku knife, and I love it. I use it a lot. And in the past couple of weeks, I've noticed that it has lot some of its original sharpness.

I have a lot of other knives, too, and many aren't as sharp as they used to be. Some were not that sharp to begin with.

I have tried to keep them pretty sharp with the steel rod I have, but it just doesn't do the job I'd like. I had been considering buying some whetstones to aid in the edge-finishing task, but it's such work that I decided to start checking out electric sharpeners.

I did quite a bit of research and decided on the Chef's Choice 130 sharpener. I had a set of Henckel's knives that we bought a number of years ago. They weren't the most expensive Henckel's knives, but they weren't the cheapest, either. They were better than most of the other knives I had, but compared to the santoku I bought recently, they were pretty useless. I followed the instructions for the sharpener to put an entirely new edge on them. I was doubtful of their ability to be cleaned up, but I was wrong. They are sharper now than when new.

I have a "Le Gourmet Chef" Chef's knife that I really like. It was Jess' mom's. It was always one of my favorites, but when I got the santoku, I discovered it wasn't as great as I thought it was - but it was infinitely better than any other knife I had at the time. Then I ran it through the sharpener, and I was so happy with it again. Even though it's not the same as the santoku, there are tasks for which it is well-suited, and so I 'll be using it a lot more.

I have a set of oak-handled knives my dad bought for me when I graduated from college. They've never been my favorites - they have spent most of their lives in drawers, rarely being used. I sharpened them on the sharpener. I can now cut anything from wrapping paper to chicken with very little effort.

I have a pair of Fiskars scissors that I have been unhappy with for quite a long time. They lost their edge and I had tried to bring it back with the rod, but with little success. I ran them through the sharpener and they are back to their old selves...cutting paper just by gliding the scissors through the paper in a single motion rather than having to work the handles.

If you cook a lot, good, sharp knives can save you a lot of time. And this sharpener will really do a great job of keeping your knives in tip-top shape.

I bought mine at Bed, Bath and Beyond with one of the 20% off coupons they routinely send in the mail. After the discount and tax, it was about $119. Best money I have spent in a loooong time.