The emergence of ceramic knives is an important revolution in modern kitchen knives. If you are a cooking enthusiast, then a new functional knife will definitely attract your attention.
With the development and application of ceramic knives, it has been well received by many people, but of course there are some limitations. Through this ultimate guide, you will fully understand ceramic knives and know whether it is suitable for you.
Quick Links
What is a ceramic knife
Most ceramic knives on the market are made of “zirconia”, a ceramic material. The metamorphic toughened zirconia TTZ is pressed into a mold at a high temperature of 2000℃ and a pressure of 300 tons. After forming, it is polished with diamonds, and a brand new ceramic knife is made.
Most ceramics have a Mohs hardness of 9, which is very hard and more durable and sharper than common steel knives.
However, hardness is not the same as toughness. Ceramics are brittle. If they fall to the ground or hit or chop harder ingredients during use, they are likely to break. Ceramic knives are not suitable for chopping, smashing, prying, and picking, but are more suitable for handling softer ingredients.
Ceramic knives are hard but fragile and require professional care. So is it really worth buying a ceramic knife? By analyzing its advantages and disadvantages compared to traditional steel knives, you will have the answer.
Ceramic Knives vs. Traditional Knives
Performance Comparison
- Sharp: Ceramic knives are very sharp and have a strong ability to stay sharp, more than 10 times longer than ordinary steel knives.
- Corrosion resistance: Ceramic is an inert material that does not easily react with food, which means that ceramic knives will not rust or oxidize. In the process of cutting food, using a ceramic knife will not transfer metal ions to the food, produce a metallic taste or cause the fruit to oxidize and brown, ensuring our health!
- Lightweight: Ceramic knives are lighter than steel knives. Generally speaking, ceramic knives weigh only about half of steel knives of the same size, making it easier for you to use.
Black Zirconia Ceramic Knife
- Fragile: Ceramic knives are fragile and are more suitable for handling some delicate slicing work, while steel knives can be used for chopping, cutting, twisting, smashing, and prying. It can be seen that ceramic knives cannot completely replace all the functions of steel knives.
- Sharpening: Ceramic knives are sharper and last longer, and they need to be sharpened less frequently than steel knives, but when they need to be sharpened, the process will be complicated - ordinary whetstones cannot meet the needs of ceramic knives, and more professional diamond whetstones are required.
|
Tool Type |
Suitable for handling food |
Not suitable for handling food |
Pros and Cons |
|
Ceramic Knife |
•Vegetables (tomatoes, onions, carrots, greens, cucumbers) •Fruit (apples, oranges, grapes, kiwis) •Fish (boneless fish fillets, shellfish, soft seafood) Bread (no hard nuts) |
•Meat (bone-in, fatty meat) •Frozen food (frozen fish, frozen pork) •Hard-shelled food (nuts) •Heavy hard objects (bones, hard-skinned fruit) |
•Advantages: Sharp, suitable for processing delicate ingredients, does not affect the taste of the ingredients, such as sashimi and other ingredients that need to be cut delicately •Disadvantages: Fragile, not good at processing hard materials, easy to break if not handled properly |
|
Steel Knife |
•Meat (bone-in meat, fatty meat, bone-in fish) •Frozen food (frozen meat, etc) •Hard food (nuts) •Large vegetables (pumpkin, winter melon) |
•Soft fruits (tomatoes, strawberries) •Fragile ingredients (seafood, some vegetables) |
•Advantages: Durable, suitable for all kinds of food, some bone-in meats •Disadvantages: Easy to oxidize, may contaminate food, such as some easily oxidized fruits |
Rusty steel knife
How to Use a Ceramic Knife?
Cutting Various Delicate Ingredients
Ceramic knives perform excellently when handling fruits and vegetables. When cutting soft vegetables such as tomatoes and cucumbers, its sharp blade can easily cut them with a gentle squeeze without excessively damaging the tissues of the vegetables and fruits, maintaining the integrity of the ingredients.
In addition, when cutting apples, pears and other easily oxidized fruits, the chemical inertness of the ceramic knife itself can also significantly delay the browning process of the pulp, thus maintaining the fresh appearance of these oxidized fruits.
Not only that, ceramic knives have significant advantages in applications that require fine knife skills. When chefs are preparing sashimi, making decorative cuts, or making fine shreds, ceramic knives are an ideal cutting tool. Its lightweight design and long-lasting sharpness can better achieve even, precise cuts. Precisely because the ceramic knife is lightweight and easy to operate, it can be very effective in relieving the fatigue of your hands caused by long hours of fine cutting.
Ceramic knives are also great at handling fresh ingredients. Its excellent performance not only maintains the original cleanliness and hygiene of fresh food materials, but also has a certain anti-corrosion effect. For example, in the cutting of salad ingredients or the preparation of sushi dishes, ceramic knives perform excellently. Compared with other metal knives, ceramic knives do not cause metal transfer due to contact with ingredients during the cutting process. This plays an important role in maintaining taste and flavor. Many gourmets pay great attention to this issue.
Usage Tips and Precautions
You need to pay attention to safety when using knives, so how can you use them safely and achieve better cutting results? Don’t worry, the correct way of holding the knife can help you very well.
When we use ceramic knives, we should pay special attention to the strength to control the knife grip. Unlike steel knives, ceramic knives cannot be used with excessive force, otherwise it will cause damage to the knife. We should be more gentle in applying force and let the sharp blade cut through the ingredients naturally. Understanding cutting techniques can better help you. We recommend that you always keep the cutting action forward in the cutting action and avoid swinging left and right or twisting the blade.
Of course, the choice of appropriate cutting board is also essential. We recommend using a wooden or plastic cutting board. In addition, in the process of cutting, for safety reasons, you should not be too hasty or too fast. You should maintain an even and stable rhythm to let the sharpness of the blade work naturally.
In addition, incorrect use is likely to reduce the life of the ceramic knife. First of all, try not to use ceramic knives for chopping or slashing, which can easily cause damage to the knife. Please try to avoid such actions.
Secondly, we should not use ceramic knives to pry or pick up ingredients, but should use other professional tools instead. Finally, please remember not to put ceramic knives in the dishwasher to avoid collision with other utensils and cause damage.
Ceramic Knife Maintenance and Care
Proper care and maintenance are essential to the life of ceramic knives. Although ceramic knives have excellent wear resistance, daily care and maintenance are still very important.
Daily Care Advice
Ceramic knives require special attention for daily cleaning. They should be cleaned immediately with mild detergent and warm water after each use. You should avoid using a dishwasher because mechanical flushing may cause the knife to collide with other utensils and cause damage. When cleaning, you can gently wipe the blade, especially the blade. Do not scratch it hard. After cleaning, you can wipe it with a soft towel immediately to prevent water stains from adhering.
In addition, you should try to avoid exposing ceramic knives to extreme high temperatures. Although ceramic materials have good high temperature resistance, sudden temperature changes may cause stress on the blade, increasing the risk of breakage. Therefore, it is best not to use ceramic knives to cut frozen ingredients that have just been taken out of the refrigerator, and do not expose them to high temperatures for a long time.
Professional Maintenance Advice
For professional-grade ceramic maintenance, we recommend that you regularly send it to a professional repair station for inspection and maintenance. Many well-known brands offer special maintenance services that can help detect the overall condition of the knife and detect potential problems in time. If there is a small chip on the blade, professional maintenance personnel can use special tools to repair it in time for you to avoid further deterioration of the problem.
For high-end ceramic knives that are frequently used, we recommend that you have a professional evaluation every 6-12 months. This regular inspection can not only detect problems in time, but also ensure that your knife is always in the best condition.
Notes on Sharpening
As mentioned in the limitations of ceramic knives, it is difficult to sharpen ceramic knives. If your ceramic knife blade is blunt, it is best to use professional diamond sharpeners when sharpening the knife, or directly ask the manufacturer to provide sharpening services. Do not use ordinary whetstones or sharpening rods, which will not only fail to restore the sharpness of the blade, but may also damage the knife.
However, you don’t have to worry too much. In daily use, ordinary ceramic knives can be used for a very long time, fully reflecting their due value. If they are blunt, you can also consider replacing them with new ceramic knives.
Storage Method
Reasonable storage is an important part of protecting ceramic knives. The best storage method is to use a special knife storage box or knife holder. If you use a knife holder, it is best to use a wooden or plastic knife holder with appropriate spacing to avoid collisions between blades.
Never place ceramic knives in kitchen drawers at will, as this can easily cause damage to the knives. If you must store them in a drawer, it is best to use a special knife cover or sheath to ensure that the blade is fully protected. At the same time, the knife should be placed flat to avoid the tip of the knife facing up or uneven force.
Ceramic Knives FAQ
My ceramic knife is broken, what should I do?
If it is just a small crack, it can be eliminated by sharpening the knife, but if it is a large crack, we recommend that you wear thick gloves, handle the fragments carefully or dispose of the knife properly, wrap the fragments in a cardboard box or tape, and discard them.
Can I sharpen my knives at home?
Ceramic knives cannot be sharpened with ordinary whetstones. You need to buy professional sharpening tools, but these professional sharpening tools are often relatively expensive. Many ceramic manufacturers offer professional sharpening services. We would recommend that you send your knife to a professional for care, or buy a new ceramic knife when the ceramic knife is seriously worn.
Can ceramic knives be cleaned in the dishwasher?
We do not recommend that you use a dishwasher to clean them. This is likely to cause the ceramic knives to break. There is a risk of breaking them in the dishwasher.
Are ceramic knives expensive?
Ceramic knives are relatively expensive, of course, this also depends on the brand, quality and design. The average ceramic knife is between $20-150, and a high-end ceramic knife may cost more than $200.
Summary
The above is an introduction to ceramic knives. Thank you for reading and I hope it can help you. Get more high-quality ceramic information.