You’re ready to expand your kitchen cutting options, but should you get a ceramic knife? Finding out if a product is any good before you buy is one of the wonders of the digital age. With a little internet-savvy and some common sense, you can save yourself a ton of stress and money with the right goods. Moreover, you can’t usually have them dropped off at your door, reducing wear on your car, and saving even more when you don’t pay for gas. A high-quality ceramic coated knife is perfect for thin slices of fruits and veggies. I’ll walk you through the uses and everything you need to know before you pick out your new knife so you can get the best option to fit your needs.
Are ceramic knives safe? Ceramic knives are perfectly safe. If used properly, there’s nothing quite like an excellent ceramic blade to get those wafer-thin slices you can’t seem to cut with a steel blade. Additionally, you won’t need to worry about rust, which is a serious benefit. Plus, ceramic knives stay sharp unless you plan to cut diamonds or other ceramics with them.
Why Ceramic Knives are Safe
Not only are ceramic knives safe, but they consistently make the top of the list. When researching cookware in general, I came across dozens of articles about health. Many of them mention the chemicals in Teflon because heated non-stick Teflon pans aren’t great for humans and have even injured and killed pet birds.
Although few knives are Teflon coated, it’s still noteworthy as dangerous cooking materials go. Where ‘normal’ blades are concerned, each category has its benefits and downsides. Here are some of the problems with the top three non-ceramic knife materials.
Plastics
Plastics are iffy at best. Some contain BPE chemicals, which are certainly not healthy for humans. Moreover, plastic knives wear down and leave microplastic particles in our food. Microplastic consumption is incredibly unhealthy.
Aluminum
Aluminum is another popular choice generally considered ‘safe.’ However, numerous scholarly articles have shown that an excess of dietary aluminum can cause serious side effects. Some knives are made from high-quality aluminum, but stainless steel is by far the most popular substance.
Steel
Stainless and carbon steel knives are relatively safe for people. Unfortunately, they require far more sharpening than ceramic, and you can use ceramics to hone the edges. The downside is that both carbon-steel and stainless-steel are chemically active. While it’s rare, both chemical interactions and allergies can be a problem with these types.
Choose Ceramic
I recommend ceramic knives. Because it is chemically inert and maintains an edge well, ceramic coated knives are both safe and highly effective. Every kitchen should have at least one ceramic blade, if only for cutting fruits and veggies.
Opt for a high quality ceramic coated knife like the Berghoff Ron Paring Knife from Amazon. This sleek and simple black knife is ergonomic for ease of use. The titanium ceramic is both durable and lightweight. At six inches long and a mere point-six pounds, you could use this knife all day, and it would still be sharp when you put it away. Find out more by clicking here.
Maintain Ceramic Knives Safely
Safe ceramic knives are exceptional in the kitchen. Moreover, they’re effortless to care for. The nonporous surface is easy to wash. Some people prefer to use only hot water because they fear flavors from the soap will soak in, but there’s no scientific evidence to support this theory.
Instead, hand wash your ceramic knives with a mild detergent (dish soap). Then, let them air dry before putting your blades away. Make sure you do not put ceramic knives in the dishwasher. Unfortunately, because the high-pressure water can sometimes cause small items to come loose and move around, a dishwasher can chip your good ceramics.
Do not use ceramic knives on tough foods. Using the ultra-sharp blades on a thick rind or frozen food might seem like the right way to slice, but it can damage your blade edge. Additionally, you need to use a softer wooden or plastic cutting board to avoid chipping when you press down too hard.
While it will often take years or even decades before a ceramic blade begins to dull, someday you will need to sharpen yours. Fortunately, you can do this at home with a diamond file or rotary wheel. Alternately, you can always opt to go to a professional instead and have them sharpen your knives for you.
The Kyocera Advanced Ceramic Revolution Santoku Knife holds an edge up to ten times longer than steel knives. Rustproof and acid resistant, you can slice citrus fruits with ease, unlike a carbon steel knife that may react when used in such a manner. You’ll love how this wickedly sharp blade handles meats like thawed steak quickly. Have yours delivered when you order from Amazon.
Steel Vs. Ceramic Knives
While both steel and ceramic knives are safe to use, what’s the big difference. Well, steel is made from metal ores, and ceramic is a type of clay for one thing. Hence they’re both minerals. There are four main differences between the two; hardness, ductility (brittleness or flexibility), longevity, and sharpening.
Hardness
The Mohs scale of hardness is relatively universal. At a ten, diamond is among the hardest substances on Earth. Meanwhile, talc only rates a one, which is one point five degrees less hard than a human fingernail.
Typically steel rates between seven-point-five and an eight on the Mohs. That’s a fairly impressive level of hardness. However, ceramic comes in at eight-point-five, making it the harder of the two by a fair bit.
Ductility
Ductility measures how much tensile strength something has. How well does it flex and stretch when pushed or pulled from two sides. Because of bonds between the atoms, some substances have more flexibility and movement, while others have tighter or firmer bonds forcing breakage instead of stretch. There are definite benefits to both.
Steel is more ductile, and you can tell with a simple test. Because steel can be pulled out into wire, that means the covalent, ionic bonds are less intense. This gives steel more flex before it chips or breaks. Meanwhile, ceramic has incredibly strong bonds, and that means it has little to no stretchability making it more brittle.
Longevity
Regrettably, longevity isn’t a fair test when comparing ceramic versus steel. Each has its strengths and weaknesses. Hence it all depends on how you use them. For example, steel, even stainless steel, will eventually rust when exposed to oxygen, and ceramic does not. Alternately, ceramic is more subject to thermal shock or breaking when it’s temperature changes rapidly and chipping.
Sharpening
How you sharpen these two types of knives is a significant difference. Steel knives typically need sharpening after a few uses. Meanwhile, a ceramic knife should hold its edge for a decade or more when used correctly.
Moreover, it’s relatively easy to sharpen a steel blade at home. You can use a metal or diamond rod, but ceramic sharpeners work best. Ceramic blades require a diamond sharpener. Most of the time, professionals use diamond dust coated rotary wheels to reshape a worn ceramic blade.
Which Type do You Need
When it comes to steel versus ceramic blades, I recommend having both. An excellent ceramic coated blade will last practically forever. Plus, it will make thin slices as long as you use it to cut thawed food without a tough rind. You never know when you’ll need to make a slim cut.
Additionally, ceramic blades are chemically inert. That means you should use them on foods like apples, avocados, and lettuces that are prone to browning. Unlike metals, ceramic won’t exacerbate the browning. Also, ceramic lasts much longer and is far sharper than the plastic knives made for the same purpose.
Another superb option for ceramic knives is the Gayle’s Kitchen Ceramic Knife Set. You’ll have ten color choices to match any kitchen decor. Plus, you get the three knives and a ceramic vegetable peeler to reduce browning when you work with potatoes or apples. Read the outstanding Amazon reviews here.
Steel blades are also essential. You need them to do the jobs your ceramic can’t or shouldn’t handle. For example, separating bones or slicing watermelon is a steel knife job.
What to Conclude about the Safety of Ceramic Blades
There’s no need to worry about how safe your ceramic knife is when you treat it right. Although you can chip and wear down the blades if you’re rough on them, there’s no real reason to worry about regular use. Ceramic is clay that’s ‘forged’ in a kiln at incredible temperatures, so ti comes out sterile.
Sure, they aren’t good for frozen food or tough stuff like pumpkins, but what you get is better for many types of cooking. When you want those picture-perfect, wafer-thin slices, a ceramic blade is the way to go. Plus, they stay sharp practically forever if you use a soft cutting board.
Avoid marble cutting surfaces that harbor contaminants when the surface gets scratched. Instead, get a renewable-resource bamboo cutting board that’s easy to sterilize in boiling water for your ceramic coated knives so they’ll keep their edge.