Carbon steel cutlery

[roboboticus]

I have a japanese knife with a carbon steel blade. I treat it well, and usually wash and dry it right after use, drying well. But it gets rusty anyway. Rust spots start showing up in about a week. I've been using a brillo pad to scrub off the rust every week or so, but I thought maybe oiling the blade would be a better approach. And I suspect the brillo pad is dulling the blade too.

What's the established procedure for caring for such knives?

 

[Jim]

Carbon will tarnish and oxidize to a point where it will be very rust resistant.
Washing and rinsing with very hot water then towel drying will minimize most rust. If you live in an area with high humidity then you may have to wipe your blades down with an oil like Camilla.

A small cloth dampened with the oil and stored in a mason jar is a convenient way to handle it.

 

[roboboticus]

Seattle is pretty damp (to state the obvious), so I'll try the oil suggestion. Thanks!

 

[DaveMartell]

Hi robo, since you live in a high humidity zone you should consider oiling the blade after washing. Just like Jim, I'd recommend washing in hot water and drying thoroughly to follow immediately with camellia oil. Do not scrub away the patina with a cleaning agent like BarKeepers Friend or use your steel wool pad because you'll remove the layer of patina you just applied and yes you're also dulling the edge as well. There are exceptions to this cleaning rule but this is for sushi style knives - we don't generally let patina build on these - but all others should be let to naturally form this protective patina coating.

I like Camellia oil for this purpose because it's light and rinses off easily when you go to use the knife next time.

Try to think of carbon knives like cast iron pans where you want to keep them oiled when not in use.

A couple of tips to building a strong patina is to make sure you wash the oil off before use the knife so that the acids in the food will have a chance to affect the steel, cut a variety of things with the knife - like cooked beef, raw onions, bacon fat, pickles, etc. This will yield a layered effect of different types of patina formation where you will see different colors form.

I always sacrifice an onion to the patina Gods upon first use of a carbon knife. An onion forms a rusty looking patina (gold/brown-ish) which is the ugliest form of patina however it's cheap, quick, and I figure that throwing away a browned onion isn't really all that bad a way to form a base layer on my new knife. Again, like seasoning a cast iron pan.

Over time, if you continue with the seasoning process as prescribed your knife will become less reactive and more stable and much less likely to tarnish or transfer tastes. In a dryer climate a well seasoned carbon knife can go without oiling and will become even darker and again much less reactive but if you're unsure play it safe and oil.

Dave

 

[roboboticus]

Wow, I had no idea about building a patina. Thanks. I'll get my hands on some of that camellia oil. I was planning on just using the safflower oil that I have on hand, but it sounds like it would be worth my while to get the camellia instead.

Thanks again!

 

[DFrancis]

Hi robo, since you live in a high humidity zone you should consider oiling the blade after washing. Just like Jim, I'd recommend washing in hot water and drying thoroughly to follow immediately with camellia oil. Do not scrub away the patina with a cleaning agent like BarKeepers Friend or use your steel wool pad because you'll remove the layer of patina you just applied and yes you're also dulling the edge as well. There are exceptions to this cleaning rule but this is for sushi style knives - we don't generally let patina build on these - but all others should be let to naturally form this protective patina coating.

I like Camellia oil for this purpose because it's light and rinses off easily when you go to use the knife next time.

Try to think of carbon knives like cast iron pans where you want to keep them oiled when not in use.

A couple of tips to building a strong patina is to make sure you wash the oil off before use the knife so that the acids in the food will have a chance to affect the steel, cut a variety of things with the knife - like cooked beef, raw onions, bacon fat, pickles, etc. This will yield a layered effect of different types of patina formation where you will see different colors form.

I always sacrifice an onion to the patina Gods upon first use of a carbon knife. An onion forms a rusty looking patina (gold/brown-ish) which is the ugliest form of patina however it's cheap, quick, and I figure that throwing away a browned onion isn't really all that bad a way to form a base layer on my new knife. Again, like seasoning a cast iron pan.

Over time, if you continue with the seasoning process as prescribed your knife will become less reactive and more stable and much less likely to tarnish or transfer tastes. In a dryer climate a well seasoned carbon knife can go without oiling and will become even darker and again much less reactive but if you're unsure play it safe and oil.

Dave

Dave,

What different foods will give you nicer looking patinas on the knife? Have to plan ahead for the group buy knife.

 

[DaveMartell]

Dave,

What different foods will give you nicer looking patinas on the knife? Have to plan ahead for the group buy knife.

Most every food type will offer up something different. My personal favorites are the blue/purples you get from cooked meats. Looks for uncooked meat fat and bacon fat for some great kaliedescope ranges too. I also like what apples and pickles offer too. Onions are the instant brown/gold color. Fish and chicken also give up blues although lighter usually. After awhile it all starts to blend and mix together. I even have thumb prints on a couple of knives too.

 

[roboboticus]

Dave,

Is there any particular brand(s) of camellia oil you'd recommend? I did some looking online and all the ones I found were branded as hair/beauty products.

 

[Jim]

Dave or Jon may have another source of this but here is one-

Warning! this website is very dangerous!

http://korin.com/Tsubaki-Knife-Oil

 

[roboboticus]

Thanks, Jim.

 

[DaveMartell]

Jon also sells a neat application bottle.

http://www.japaneseknifeimports.com/other-items/other-products/tsubaki-oil-stick.html

 

[Doc4]

There are exceptions to this cleaning rule but this is for sushi style knives - we don't generally let patina build on these - but all others should be let to naturally form this protective patina coating.

Interesting!

Why the difference with sushi knives, and how are they to be cleaned/treated? Many thanks for all the interesting info!!

After awhile it all starts to blend and mix together. I even have thumb prints on a couple of knives too.

Well, you'll always be able to prove it's your knife!

 

[DaveMartell]

Check out this video for some sushi knife maintenance.

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q5opGmTnaxg[/YOUTUBE]