Are you looking forward to steak dinner nights in your home?
For many years, steak has been one of the superstar dishes you can do at home. It’s also one of the staples for a traditional Christmas dinner. Of course, you can’t have premium cut beef without a robust steak knife.
A steak knife is one of the best kitchen tools that can set you up for a life of cooking. Read the article below to get the must-knows when shopping, using, and cleaning your steak knives.
Buying Steak Knives: What You Need to Consider
Despite the name, a great steak knife isn’t only good for cutting up steak. They can also act as small kitchen knives. Although it’s not something you can use for deboning, a steak knife is handy for other preparations.
That said, buying your set of steak knives is a serious business. Here are the three major considerations you need to keep in mind when shopping for a steak knife.
1. Blade Style
Like any other kitchen knife, choosing the blade style of your steak knives is critical. By making the right choice, you’ll avoid getting a set that can get blunt fast.
Steak knives have two kinds of blades that buyers can choose from. They’re serrated blades and non-serrated blades.
Serrated steak knives have a scalloped blade edge and are often used in steakhouses and BBQ joints. Steak knives with serrated blades may also double as bread knives. These knives are best for slicing fruits and vegetables with hard exteriors but soft insides.
But the thing about this kind of blade is that you need to take it to a professional for routine sharpening.
Meanwhile, non-serrated steak knives have a straight-edged blade. They’re the most traditional choice but not exactly the best choice. Although, a lot of steak enthusiasts prefer to use steak knives with serrated blades.
These blades grow dull faster than serrated blades, but you can hone them at home with the right tools.
2. Material
Most steak knives are often made from either stainless steel or carbon steel. When you’re shopping for kitchen tools, you often run into these choices in the cutlery section.
Keep in mind that while stainless steel may be less maintenance, it can also dull faster. Carbon steel steak knives need more knife care and upkeep. However, these knives tend to stay sharp longer and are easier to sharpen.
3. Construction
Construction boils down to personal taste. For instance, buyers choose their knives by their preferred handle shape and color.
What’s important is that you check if the blade and handle have one or two pieces of metal. Often, higher-quality steak knives have a blade the runs up to the handle. This results in a more balanced knife due to its weighty body.
Using a Steak Knife
Steak knives play a major role in meat and steak etiquette. Using a steak knife on formal dinners the right way is essential. Not only will it reflect on your manners, but it also prevents you from falling into the wrong position.
There are two styles that you need to keep in mind when using steak knives. These are the American and European styles.
In the American style, the steak knife is in your dominant hand while the fork is in the other. Once you cut the steak, you switch and get hold of your fork with your dominant hand.
For the European or continental style, you need to put a certain amount of pressure on your knife to get a clean cut. Unlike the American style, you cut your steak and eat it instead of slicing the meat in one go.
Safeguarding Your Kitchen Tools: Steak Knife Maintenance And Care
Like any other kitchen tool, there’s a lot going into knife cleaning and maintenance. To keep your steak knives in pristine condition, you must follow certain knife maintenance tips. Here are some of them.
- Steak knives must get stored in airtight containers or wooden handles
- Store your cutlery with dry ice to cool it and avoid rusting
- Try using wall-mounted magnetic strips to keep your cutlery clean and organized
- Buy quality serrated knife cleaners to prevent ruining your blades with oil
Aside from that, you also need to avoid using kitchen utensils that can scratch and damage your knife. It’s best to store your steak knives and hone tools in wooden drawers. Make sure that the drawers aren’t humid or exposed to moisture.
You can also consider making use of flavored juicers. Flavored juicers can help you get more flavor out of your steak knives.
By doing that, you enhance your knives’ quality and flavor. You can also enjoy using them without the fear of damaging your knives.
When it comes to storing your cutlery right, you can start using knife blocks. These are triangular-shaped blocks with individual compartments. Some knife blocks also have adjustable shelves that make your knives easier to find.
Keep in mind to clean your knife blocks after you use them.
Knife guards are also a great way to store your steak knives. For storing knives with a knife guard, you need to soak your blades in warm water first. After that, you can place them over in your sheath.
The purpose of knife guards is to protect your blade while keeping them in place. When your knives aren’t placed tight enough, they could scrape against each other during use.
Your Ultimate Kitchen Tools Guide on Steak Knives Shopping, Use, and Care
Keeping your kitchen tools in pristine condition is essential for your meal preparations and use. More so with your cutlery. To do that, you have to make considerations from shopping for the best set to maintaining them.
Are you looking for more kitchen and cooking tips? Don’t stop here! Check out our other blog posts to discover some great recipes and must-have tools.
