Mylegsbig said:
If i meticulously wash and dry this knife with every use (high carbon steel) How likely is it it will "rub off" on my food?
Please describe your experiences.
All of the knives I use in the kitchen are carbon steel, yes they require a bit more care, IMO the added effort is worth it. After many uses simply rinsing and toweling dry is good enough, after working with onions, garlic, and other acidic food stuff, they should be wiped with a soapy sponge before rinsing and drying.
With daily use, these knives seldom require sharpening more then once a year with proper care. They do stain the color of the stain can be from redish brown to grey and black, I have never noticed off flavors caused by the use od these knives, but thats just me.
Some foods like lettus, apples and potatoes will oxidize faster after having been cut with a carbon steel blade. I've noticed garlic and onion seem to stain the blades faster then any other food.
Stainless blades do not suffer staining, but they can and will rust if care is not taken. The more stain resistant the alloy, the harder it is to put an edge on the blade. Theres little point in using a steel with stianless knives, when a stainless blade gets dull it's from the the fine edge breaking off, the knife need be taken to a stone at that point.
Carbon blades take a better edge and hold an edge longer, requiring fewer sharpenings.
Unlike stainless, when a carbon blade starts to dull, it's due to the fine edge bending to the side and starting to fold over, you can see this when looking straight at the edge. There will be bright spots along the edge where it has bent, a few stroke on a carbon honing steel will bring the edge back to working order.
While I do oil wooden handle's of my knives with food grade mineral oil, I do not oil the baldes. Some of these knives are second even third hand and have been in use for more then 60 years, unless neglected there should be little trouble with rust.
When packing for storage or when not in regular use, I treat my knives the same way I do bench & hand planes and their irons, and my other woodwroking tools. A healthy coat of Carnauba/Beeswax paste. Nice think about a natural wax sealent, it doesn't need be washed off prior to the next use.
Anthony