Tessa Arias, owner of the fabulous blog “Handle the Heat” is one of the more talented bloggers we know- especially considering she’s only a college student! This girl writes with so much detail and enthusiasm that each of her post’s are loaded with valuable insight and useful tips on everything related to healthy, organic cooking. If she’s not on the Times “Best Cooking Blogs” list yet, just wait, she will be.
So out of this respect, we contacted Tessa in hopes that she would try out a few of our products and come up with a post on sharpening as thorough as her “Essential Skills” post on knives… Check out How to Buy a Knife and you’ll see what we mean…
Whether shopping for your first great Chef’s knife or registering for a set for your wedding, purchasing knives and knife sets can be a confusing and overwhelming experience. There are so many styles, sizes, materials, and brands. Santoku, what? Pakkawood, huh?…. read on…
The girl is good!
So while we had high expectations, we were more than thrilled with her sharpening skills post- How To Sharpen Your Knives. Most of our blog reviews have been short, sweet, and to the point; yet Tessa went into glorious detail on some of the main points of knife sharpening (no pun intended!). For instance-
- What makes a knife’s edge sharp?
- How to evaluate a knife’s sharpness
- What makes a knife’s edge dull?
- How to maintain a sharp edge:
- What is a honing steel?
- Types of honing steels:
- How to use a honing steel:
- What is a manual sharpener?
- What is an electric sharpener?
And so on. She then took each of the 3 products we sent her to try out- a honing rod, a manual knife sharpener, and an electric knife sharpener- and put them all to the test.
Here are her 3 specific reviews of the Edgeware products we sent:
Brand: Edgeware Ceramic Knife Sharpening Rod
Price: $14.99 (very affordable!)
Appearance: Simple, straightforward. The pure white ceramic part of the tool does become marked with use (similar to how some receipts look when scratched with your fingernail or a coin). This doesn’t bother me, however.
Pros: Since it is ceramic it hones and realigns the blade edge, lightweight, easy to grip, non-slip tip, doesn’t require as frequent use as honing rods made from steel, oval shape makes it easier to use and more efficient
Cons: only 9″ long but since my longest straight-edge knife is 8″, this doesn’t affect me.
Overall impression: I really like the characteristics of this sharpening rod, much more than the steel one I previously owned. It requires less use and when you do use it, its super easy and effective. However, this product cannot turn a super dull knife sharp (unlike the next 2 products).
Brand: Edgeware Diamond Elite Pull-Thru
Price: $29.99
Appearance: small, thin, pleasing design
Pros: SUPER versatile (will sharpen santoku, standard, and serrated knives), abrasive stones are reversible and replaceable, 2 stages (coarse – diamond & fine – ceramic), easy to use, quick, lightweight, easy to store, has a guard so you won’t get confused on which area to pull your knife through, non-skid base. This sharpener performed on my VERY dull chef’s knife. Before sharpening it wouldn’t come close to slicing a piece of paper and now it makes a straight cut.
Cons: None, really. The abrasives themselves require care (removal for cleaning) but there is no way around that.
Overall impression: I really like the small size of this sharpener and how quickly and easily you can whip through sharpening your entire set of knives. I think this product would work very well with a honing steel to keep your knives nice and sharp without having to visit a professional knife sharpener.
Brand: Edgeware Ceramic Electric Knife Sharpener
Price: $149.99
Appearance: Clean colors and lines, rounded design, slightly bulky
Pros: This product sharpened my knife like nothing I’ve used before! VERY effective, easy, and straightforward. Unlike electric sharpeners I’ve used before, this one sharpens both sides of the blades simultaneously making it quicker and easier. The steps and materials allow for different sharpening situations (light touch-ups to dull knives desperately in need of sharpening). It also sharpens scissors and serrated knives, something that the sharpeners I’ve used before could not do. While the manual sharpener took my super dull chef’s knife and sharpened it enough to make a small cut in a piece of paper, this electric sharpener made the edge sharp enough to feel (carefully!) a difference and sliced a huge, clean, sightly curved cut into a piece of paper.Cons: This product is a little on the bulky side. Also, the sound of your knife sharpening under the electric slot isn’t the most pleasant but actually isn’t as bad as the ear-piercing noises of other electric sharpeners I’ve used. Also, this one is much more expensive than the other products I’ve reviewed.
Overall impression: When I first opened the package containing this sharpener I was a little apprehensive simply because it looks different than other electric sharpeners I’ve used (mostly Chef’s Choice and Wusthof). But as it turns out this is one of the easiest knife sharpening products I’ve used and produced pretty amazing results. I was sure that my poor chef’s knife would have to be retired after years of abuse but this sharpener saved it.Since I was so impressed with the Edgeware Ceramic Electric Knife Sharpener I’ve decided to… GIVE ONE AWAY!
We definitely encourage all of our readers/customers to check out Tessa’s blog and of course enter her giveaway! Even if you don’t win the product, you’ll become a instant fan of her blog and appreciate the excellent information!
Thanks Tessa!
Tags: 50030, 50084, 50142, ceramic edge gourmet electric knife sharpener, ceramic sharpening rod, diamond elite manual knife sharpener, electric knife sharpeners, manual pull thru knife sharpeners, reviews, williams sonoma
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