YoshiIf you are into sharpening knives, mirror polishing your kitchen knife is very attractive.
Those knives look beautiful. You can impress your friends and family.
You can restore a rusted knife too.
However, I don’t do mirror polishing for my knives anymore.
I will tell you the reason why.
Keep reading and you will find out…
1. Mirror polishing is a path everybody goes through
6 years ago, I was really into mirror polishing for my kitchen knives.
My dad’s garage had the smell of oil and paint,
But the garage made it easy to polish my knives.
Because it was full of tools.
2. A mirror polished knife is Super Saiyan 3
Super Saiyan 3 is a form that has increased muscles, really strong combat power, but it is extremely tiring.
It looks so gosious, but not practical.
A mirror polished knife looks stunning.
But…
3. A mirror polished knife gets scratched easily
If you wash it with a regular dish sponge in a regular way,
it will have a lot of scratches on the blade.
How do you avoid it?
You should use the soft side of the sponge to wash your knife.
*Originally, the soft side of a kitchen sponge is designed for making bubble foam out of the dishwashing detergent and the hard side is designed for cleaning dishes.
4. Food sticks to the blade
Having a smooth surface means food sticks easily to the blade.
Food that contains a lot of water doesn’t want to separate from your knife.
And it is very annoying.
Example:
Carrots, cucumbers, onions, garlic, etc..
5. It takes a lot of time to mirror polish
Yes, it takes hours to make a mirror-polished blade.
After polishing it, it will surely feel great.
6. The mirror polished look doesn’t necessarily change its sharpness
Yes, you heard right.
The sharpness of your kitchen knife depends on the shape and angle of the blade, and condition of the edge.
It means an unpolished knife can have the same sharpness as a mirror polished knife.
Sad?
Then here are some pros of mirror-polished knives…
7. Mirror polishing can prevent rusting
The smooth surface means it is harder to form rust.
Because rust forms by water getting into the small scratches on the knife blade.
8. Mirror polished knives look really good
If you are a chef and you cook in front of your customers, having a mirror polished knife will be great for you.
Your customers will think you are really cool having the shiny metal tool.
And they might even think your cooking skill must be really good too!
