Did you know that a kitchen knife is one of the most dangerous tools to keep at home? Nearly 350,000 people get injured by kitchen knives every day. If you have children and want to protect them, it is important to know how to store knives.
Even though you may need to ditch your old knife block, avoiding ruining your knives while keeping loved ones safe is essential. Here is all the information you need to know about storing knives and how to do it correctly.
How to Store Knives in a Drawer?
If you do not want to toss your kitchen knives with the rest of your utensils where kids can find them, it is worth investing in a chef-approved knife Drawer.
All you need is a drawer and a towel. Lay down your knives horizontally when you store them in any drawers, especially at home. You should also place them down on a towel.
This way, they will not touch each other. Your knives will not get dulled when you pull them in and out of the knife block. Keep your smaller knives in the front in a horizontal position.
Then your longer knives should remain perpendicular. This will make it easier to remove them. Another tip is to keep a washing towel that will help your knives stay dry.
Always keep your knives away from the counter to protect young ones and pets. If your knives are stored away in a drawer wrapped in a cloth, the blades will not encounter rough surfaces like wood.
The downside is that many drawers for storing knives are not spacious enough. If you have a dozen knives, you may need to cram them inside.
Avoid storing too many knives in a single drawer. Space them out and use a drawer that toddlers cannot reach.
Use Magnetic Strips
If you do not have children at home, magnetic strips are one of the best ways to store knives. You can place these strips on your kitchen wall. This will also help you save a lot of space on your kitchen counter.
The strips will make it easy for you to quickly grab a knife if you want to slice or chop in record time. However, you should not use this method if you have pets or children at home.
Otherwise, the shiny gleam from your exposed knives will catch their attention in no time. You should also be careful about the strips you buy. The wrong kind can put too much stress on your blades.
With magnetic strips, you can also redecorate your kitchen. They can be mounted on a backsplash or the wall above your counter.
The magnet will be strong enough to hold your blades in place without slipping. However, the magnetic power will not be too strong, so you can instantly snatch the knife when needed.
Benefits of a Knife Block
Knife blocks or docks that are kept on your counter are excellent for ensuring that knives are safe. Your knives are also easily accessible if you need to cut time while prepping veggies.
You can get classic blocks that usually come with knives that are included. However, many come without knives. You can get an elegant wood design. But the drawback here is cleaning the wooden block carefully.
This is because getting into the slots can be extremely challenging. Kitchens are also notorious for mold, debris, germs, and dust. Since knife blocks are made of wood, you should never run them through the dishwasher with your other utensils.
A knife block can also be a little rough on cutting edges. This is because sliding a knife in and out makes a lot of contact with the wood. This can dull the edges of your knife quickly.
Then sharpening and honing them will take longer, and you will need to do this more frequently. The way you remove knives from a block impacts their sharpness.
Therefore, you should always gently press the blade’s spine against the block to prevent the cutting edge from making contact. If you want to build your own mixed knives collection, you may get frustrated using blocks with pre-sized slots.
Therefore, a universal block without slots is the best option to keep your knives secure. This should accommodate blades of any size. Then you can also shop for edge guards to ensure that none of your edges come in contact with any wood or metal.
Cabinet Storage
Storing knives in your cabinets is also a great way to keep them away from children. You should look into getting cabinets with a block attached. This should be mounted on a swivel on the underside of your cabinet.
The entire block may spin for easy reach when you want to access a blade. Then you can make the block out of the way after picking your knife.
Alternatively, you may also find one with a hinged dock that keeps your blades in an enclosure like a drawer. To access your knives, you may need to pull down the section.
However, this should be closed tightly for careful storage. Remember that children are curious and creative. They can always find a way to access dangerous tools.
Therefore, you should always ensure that your knife storage is away from drawers or counters that are close to food and drinks. This way, you can prevent your little ones from grabbing a knife by mistake while looking for a spoon.
Store Knives Safely Today
Now that you know how to store knives like a pro, you should follow the above mentioned steps to ensure that your loved ones will always be safe in the kitchen.
Avoid having a knife block in the open on the kitchen counter. You can always get extra drawers or cabinets with locks to keep those sharp culinary tools away from the kids.
Even if your knives are out in the open while cooking, tell your children not to play in the kitchen while you are prepping.
Then you should never forget to store the knives away right after washing the dishes. If you enjoyed this storing kitchen knives guide, check out some of our other posts for more information.