We’ve all heard the phrase “as sharp as a knife”, but not all knives are made to be incredibly sharp, and instead have different features. If you’ve even been served steak at a restaurant, you’ll notice that the cutlery they give you is different from what you would expect from a regular meal.
Sharp knives are excellent for slicing through fruit, cheese, butter, and much more. But the knife you use to eat steak is slightly different, in that it actually has a serrated, tooth-like edge used for tearing and shredding the meat.
In this post we are going to investigate why are steak knives serrated, and why these knives are perfect for eating steak with to help you tear off cuts of the meat into bite-size chunks.
Let’s get too it…
Contents
What Exactly Is A Serrated Knife?
A serrated knife is a knife that has a serrated blade. This is a blade that has a tooth-like edge, allowing it to shred and rip through food easily and effortlessly.
The teeth of the blade catch the food and then rip through, allowing you to cut your food smoothly. These knives are typically used on foods that have hard surfaces, such as crusty bread or steak, however, they can be used with fruit and much more.
These knives are excellent at cutting through the hard exterior without damaging the soft interior, making them the perfect option for steak and other food which can be quite tough to cut with a regular knife.
Why Serrated Knives Are Perfect For Cutting Steak
Cutting steak can be quite tricky with a regular chef’s knife, which is why it’s best to use a serrated knife when eating cooked steak.
That being said, when preparing your steak, feel free to use a regular chef’s knife, as this will cut through the raw meat effortlessly.
A sharp chef’s knife is perfect for carving off the fat or trimming up your raw meat, the sharp blade will make quick work of the soft meat and ensure you’re left with only the leanest cuts.
A serrated knife acts like a saw when cutting, making it perfect for cutting through tough exteriors such as bread or steak.
Not only that, but serrated knives have been the top choice for cutting cooked steak for many years as they stay sharp for longer because the edges between the scallops never touch the plate.
Can You Sharpen A Serrated Knife?
On the first look at a serrated knife, you may be wondering if it’s possible to sharpen them? After all, with a regular knife, you would usually use a sharpening rod and run the edge of the blade down the tool on both sides until the blade is sharp.
But that same rod won’t work for a serrated knife as the teeth will catch on the tool? Not exactly – however serrated knives are sharpened differently.
You’ll be glad to know that many good knife manufacturers will sharpen your knives completely for free if you send the knives back ot them, that includes serrated knives too.
If you don’t want to go through the hassle of sending your knives back to the manufacturer and want to sharpen your knife at home, then you’ll want to invest in a quality knife sharpening rod.
These tools have different sharpening options for different knives and will ensure your serrated knife stays incredibly sharp to cut through your steak easily.
If you don’t want to invest in a sharpening tool, then opt for a small sharpening rod which is specificlally made for serrated knives
Once you have this then you’ll need to run the rod down each tooth of the serrated knife around 20 times to ensure it’s as sharp as possible. Yes, this is a manual process but it’s also cheaper than buying a sharpening tool.
How Much Is The Average Serrated Steak Knife?
When it comes to serrated knives, they come in all different shapes, sizes, and price brackets. You can pick up a quality serrated steak knife for around $40 – $60 which will last you for a very long time (if maintained correctly).
In my experience it’s best to stay away from the cheap low-quality knives, these often have bendy blades which can snap regularly, and even end up in your food if you’re not careful.
Not only that, but when these cheap knives snap and break all of the tension is released at once, meaning you’ll have to duck and run for cover as if it hits somebody this could be a disaster.
Investing in your tools is essential if you’re a passionate home cook, you’ll want to ensure you using high-end quality tools to prepare and cook your food.
When it comes to cooking products, I always go for quality over quantity, a good steak knife will last you 3 times over what a cheap and cheerful knife will.
You don’t need to opt for the super expensive serrated steak knifes either, it’s much better to choose a quality steak knife as well as a good sharpening tool to maintain it rather than spending hundereds of dollars on a super high end steak knife.
How Can I Identify A Quality Serrated Steak Knife?
You can usually tell the quality of a knife a couple of ways, and the first is weight. A quality steak knife will be quite weighty, giving you more control and use of gravity when cutting.
This weight comes in handy as it allows you to push through tough exteriors easily, ensuring your knife cuts through anything it comes across like a blade through butter.
Another way to identify a high-quality serrated steak knife is to look at the handle, it should have a good design and be fixed in place with no movement whatsoever.
After all, if you’re going to be using this knife regularly you want it to feel comfortable in your hand and have a decent amount of grip.
Low quality knife handles will often start to move over time which can be incredibly dangerous for cooking at home with family around.
Buying a knife with an uncomfortable slippery handle can result in you cutting yourself or even worse a blade snapping, you should be very careful when choosing your knives as it’s all about quality.
Other Considerations
Finding the perfect serrated steak knife for your kitchen isn’t hard, there are plenty out there to choose from for a very reasonable price.
This type of knife is essential if you want to impress your friends & family at steak night, as they’ll require the appropriate tools for the job.
My recommendation is to always opt for quality, and try to look for a steak knife that has a handle that is a similar weight to the blade. This give much more control when cutting and is a pleasure to use whilst eating.
When it comes to kitchen utensils many people opt for a cheap brand and over-buy, in my experience, it’s better to only buy the tools you need and ensure that they are of the highest quality that you can afford.
It’s much better to have a select amount of high-quality cutlery than an abundance of rubbish, often you’ll only end up spending more in the long run if you buy cheap knives as they will bend and break over a short amount of time.
Final Thoughts
So, why are steak knives serrated?
Well, they are serrated because the blade makes it much easier to cut the tough meat, making it easy for us steak eaters to cut off chunks and enjoy our delicious food.
Serrated steak knives are essential for those who love to cook and eat steak, as the tooth-like blade will cut and saw the meat easily and effortlessly.
Hopefully, this post has given you an insight into why steak knives are serrated and you’ve learned a thing or two whilst being here.
Don’t get me wrong, if you really want you to you can use a regular chef’s knife to eat steak, but I would recommend against it as this is no where near as effective as a serrated steak knife.
When buying a serrated steak knife you should opt for quality only, and ensure that you have the tools neccessary to sharpen your knife when needed.
Maintaining your set of knives is easy and well worth the time and effort to keep your cutlery nice and sharp.
