After reading that the reason that you shouldn’t put knives in the dishwasher was that when they clinked with other utensils, it reduced their sharpness. There’s more to it than that.
The photo shows one of my knives after months in the dishwasher. Washing it in the dishwasher loosened the rivets.
Here are tips from Polk County Cooperative Extension in North Carolina on maintaining knives:
- Keep knives away from the dishwasher, drying rack, or other dishes. Aside from the safety concerns that come with mixing in sharp knives with your other dishes, it’s also one of the most common causes of damage. To avoid dulling and nicking the blade, wash your knife by hand with soap and water and allow it to air dry alone on a towel.
- Store knives correctly. Your knife blade should never come into contact with anything else during storage. The best options are magnetic wall strips, knife blocks, knife cases, or plastic blade covers. If you don’t have any of those things, you can also wrap a knife blade in a towel during storage to protect it.
- Sharpen your knives. Kitchen knives should be sharpened at least once a year, but preferably more frequently. There are a variety of options for sharpening knives, from cheap gadgets you can find at Walmart, to high quality whetstones. The cheaper options will reduce the lifespan of your knife over the more expensive options, but they’ll keep your knives sharp if used correctly. Alternatively, you can ship your knives to professional sharpening services, but that option is probably not worth the investment unless you are working with very expensive knives.
- Use a honing rod. Honing rods don’t directly sharpen a knife, but they do help maintain your knife’s edge between sharpenings. Purchasing and learning how to use a honing rod will keep your knives sharper for longer and make it more enjoyable to use.
So, don’t be like me. Keep those knives out of the dishwasher.
