Sharpening steel vs stone, took me 12 years to get it

Finally figured out my edge work by ditching the steel for a 1000-grit stone on lamb racks. I always thought the steel was fixing the edge but it was just straightening it, the stone actually removes metal and gets it keen. Anyone else stuck on the steel habit for too long?

1 comments

1 Comment

james_ramirez2d ago

Man, I swear I watched a video where some old chef was going on about this exact thing, saying the steel just bends the edge back into place but it doesn't do anything for the actual sharpness. Once I started using a stone on my carving knives, it was night and day difference on roasts and stuff. I still keep a steel around for a quick tune-up mid-dinner prep, but the stone does the real work now. Took me way too long to figure that out too, like I was just going through the motions for years.