Techniques
Do I need a honing steel?
The short answer: yes, if you want your knife to stay sharp between sharpenings. A honing rod realigns the edge in a few seconds; it does not sharpen. Use a ceramic rod for hard Japanese-style blades and a steel rod for softer German-style knives, at roughly the knife's own edge angle, with five or six light strokes a side.
Honing is not sharpening
A knife edge is a thin ribbon of steel. With use it rolls and folds over in tiny waves, so the knife feels dull long before the edge has actually worn away. A honing rod pushes that ribbon back into line. It removes very little metal, if any.
Sharpening is different: a whetstone or sharpener grinds away steel to create a new edge. You need it two or three times a year in a home kitchen. You hone weekly, or before a big cooking session. Honing is what makes those sharpenings last. See how often should you sharpen a kitchen knife?
Ceramic or steel: match the rod to the blade
| Rod | Best for | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Ceramic | Hard Japanese-style blades, around 60 HRC and above | Harder than the knife, with a fine, slightly abrasive surface that realigns without chipping a thin edge |
| Steel | Softer German-style blades, around 56 to 58 HRC | Softer steel bends rather than chips, so a steel rod straightens it efficiently |
A steel rod used on very hard steel can be too aggressive at the edge. A ceramic rod works on both, which makes it the safer choice if you own a mix of knives.
How to hone a knife
Stand the rod upright with its tip on a damp cloth or board, so it cannot slip.
Place the heel of the blade against the top of the rod at the knife's edge angle: about 15 degrees for most Japanese-style knives, about 20 degrees for German-style ones. To find it, hold the blade at 90 degrees to the rod, halve that to 45, halve again to about 22, then drop a touch lower.
Draw the blade down and towards you in one smooth stroke, so the whole edge from heel to tip passes over the rod.
Repeat on the other side of the rod for the other side of the blade.
Do five or six strokes per side, alternating. Light pressure: roughly the weight of the knife itself.
Wipe the blade and test on a tomato or a sheet of paper.
The vertical method above is slower than the cinematic chef's flourish in mid-air, and far more accurate. Speed comes on its own.
When honing stops working
If five or six strokes a side no longer bring the edge back, the edge has worn rather than rolled. That is the moment for a whetstone. How to sharpen a knife with a Season whetstone walks through it, and whetstone, steel or pull-through compares the options.
The Season tools for this
The Season Ceramic Honing Steel (£25) has a 25cm ceramic rod (37.5cm with handle) and suits Japanese-style knives such as the Season S4 and S1. The Season S2 Honing Steel (£40) is German steel, 36cm long, with a redwood handle, for softer blades. When it is time to sharpen, the Season Whetstone with Bamboo Base (£35) has a 1000 grit sharpening side and a 6000 grit finishing side, and the Leather Knife Strop Board (£10) polishes the edge afterwards.
Questions people ask
Does a honing steel sharpen a knife? No. It straightens an edge that has rolled over. A dull, worn edge needs a whetstone.
How often should I hone? Weekly in a home kitchen, or before any serious prep session.
Can I use a steel rod on a Japanese knife? A ceramic rod is the better match. Very hard, thin edges can chip on a steel rod.
Is a strop the same as a honing rod? Close. A leather strop polishes and aligns the edge after sharpening, with the blade drawn spine first.
Does honing make my knife shorter over time? Barely. Sharpening removes metal; honing removes almost none.
Cook like it matters.
From the cooks at Season, a London cookshop since 2005.