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TIL the old master butchers used to sharpen their knives with a wet stone and a prayer, not these fancy electric sharpeners
Last month I watched a 30 year veteran take a dull boning knife to razor sharp in under 5 minutes using just a flat stone and water at the shop in Portland, and it made me realize how much I've been overcomplicating my own setup with all these gadgets. Has anyone else gone back to basics after seeing old school technique in action?
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umamartin24d agoMost Upvoted
Stepped away from my electric sharpener last weekend after watching a old timer at a farmers market do it with just a stone and some spit. He made it look SO effortless. I tried it myself on a cheap chef's knife I didn't care about and honestly? It was way more satisfying than plugging in that noisy machine. The whole process forces you to slow down and actually pay attention to the blade. I still keep the electric one around for quick jobs but I'm definitely using the stone more now.
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ross.felix24d ago
You ever watch someone do something so smooth it feels like cheating? My buddy Kyle, he's a line cook down in Austin, told me he watched this old fella at a swap meet sharpen a beat up cleaver on a brick he found on the ground, just wet it with some spit and went at it for maybe two minutes. Kyle said the damn thing was shaving arm hair after that. He was so blown away he went home and threw his electric sharpener in the trash, bought a cheap combo stone off Amazon. Now he spends his Sundays with a beer and a stone just touching up all his knives, says it's his meditation time.
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