The Bread Test For Determining How Sharp Your Knives Are

Using a dull knife is one of the biggest mistakes in a kitchen. It can slow down the cooking process considerably as every slice requires more effort, and it's also a safety hazard. Since dull knives require more force to cut, it makes them more prone to slipping, thus increasing the risk of cutting yourself while trying to slice that pesky avocado. But, how do you know if your knife is dull and needs sharpening? Try the bread test.

It's simple and requires no culinary expertise or fancy tools. All you need is a loaf of nice, crusty bread and a serrated knife. If cutting the bread creates a big pile of crumbs, that's a sign that the knife is dull and isn't making clean cuts anymore.

While the bread test is a great resource for testing a serrated blade, if you're wondering about the sharpness of your straight-edged knife, you can get similar results using a tomato or even a piece of paper. 

For the tomato test, place the tomato on a cutting board and cut a slice. If the knife smoothly pierces the skin, it's probably sharp enough for daily use. If the utensil has to push against the flesh of the fruit before it's able to slice it, your knife likely needs sharpening. If you opt for the paper test, simply hold a piece of paper by the edge and cut into from the top. If the knife rips the paper or slows down in places rather than cutting cleanly through, it could probably use a good sharpening.

Sharpening your kitchen knives can seem like a daunting task, but there are many resources to make it easier. A whetstone or sharpening rod is the simplest option to help maintain a straight-edge knife, though if you're in a jam and need a quick fix, even the bottom of a ceramic plate can help (it's actually a clever restaurant trick!). 

Sharpening a serrated knife isn't as simple as sharpening a straight-edge knife, since standard whetstones and general-use electric sharpeners aren't suited to handling the shape of a serrated blade, but there are plenty of simple solutions to keep your bread knives in tip-top shape without breaking a sweat.

The first little-known trick: Ask a grocery store to do it for you. Not every store can or will provide this service, but if you'd rather leave the maintenance up to the pros, it can be worth calling your local grocer and seeing if they offer this option, and how much they charge to do so.

For the more do-it-yourself crowd, try Ina Garten's favorite knife-sharpening tool: the Chef's Choice Model 320 Flexhone/Strop Pro Knife Sharpener, which has the benefit of working on both serrated and straight-edge blades. While the price point may be higher than the average sharpening rod, it's a versatile tool that will keep your knives as bright and sharp as the day they were purchased.