Demystifying the Ceramic Knife

This article appears in Issue 4 of Living Raw Magazine, now available at stockists and online.  Pick up your copy for information on how to enter to win a ceramic knife and peeler set from CeramiQ!

The most important tool in your kitchen is not a fancy juicer, a powerful blender, or a snazzy dehydrator.  Sure, a mandolin is useful, a salad spinner is handy, and a spiralizer is just plain cool.  But if you’re going to choose just one tool that is absolutely essential to enjoyable natural food preparation, it’s got to be the humble knife.

Choosing a good knife is the first thing to consider when setting up your kitchen to enable you to prepare nourishing foods at home.  There are many fantastic options out there that come in every material, size, style and price range.  For those who choose a high raw whole foods diet, you just can’t go past ceramic.

In the natural foods world, there’s a lot of buzz, mystique and rumour about ceramic knives. The chart below outlines some of the facts about this nifty material and what it actually means when it comes time for you to put your knife to use in your living foods kitchen.

The Facts

Fact	What it Means in Your Kitchen
Ceramic Knives are made of zirconia, a material that ranks 8.5 on the Mohs scale (compared to 6.5 for steel and 10 for diamond).	The hardness of ceramic means two things in your kitchen: The blade is incredibly sharp and stable. The knife is more brittle than its steel counterpoint, and can possibly chip or break if dropped or used to cut bone, frozen foods, or pry something.
Once a ceramic knife is sharpened, it will keep its sharp edge indefinitely.	Your knife won’t go dull! Most ceramic knife manufacturers offer free sharpening should your knife every require it (say, every 10 years or so).
Ceramic knives will not rust.	I’ve never had a steel knife rust on me either if I’ve taken proper care of it, but perhaps this is a concern in humid climates.
Zirconia is chemically inert to both acids and alkalis.	Chemical inertness is a great benefit for a living foods kitchen. This means that your knife won’t oxidize your food, and that no harmful or bad tasting metals can leach into your food.
Zirconia is non-porous.	The non-porous material has two great benefits for your kitchen: More sanitary. The blade will not absorb dirt or germs, and can cleaned with a simple rinse. Less transfer of odours and flavours. You can chop spicy or pungent foods, give the knife a quick rinse, and use it on something else.
Ceramic knives are very light weight.	You can whiz through stacks of fruits and vegies with very little stress on the arms, back and shoulders. This is great if you’re doing a lot of juicing or preparing food for a group of people.
A general use ceramic knife ranges in price from about $80 at the low end to about $500 at the high end.	Compared the stainless steel knives of similar quality, ceramic knives are incredibly good value for money, especially when you consider that you will never have to pay for sharpening.

In short, a ceramic knife is an affordable kitchen tool that allows for less strenuous food preparation, maximization of nutrients, and less risk of food contamination.  These are fantastic qualities for raw foods preparation.   Since the entire principle of the living foods lifestyle is based on the idea of eating close to nature in order to obtain optimal nutrition and energy from foods, a ceramic knife is a great way to approach gourmet preparation without chemically altering the ingredients.

Ceramic knives are a useful tool for big juice drinkers, too.  Adam Lindsay of Quarran Health Products, the manufacturer of Ceramiq knives, relates: “As a regular daily juicer, I use ceramic knives for chopping through large quantities of fresh fruits and vegetables.”

One final consideration is the durability of your knife.  While ceramic knives hold their sharp edge impeccably, there is some concern that your knife could chip or break if dropped.  While ceramic is a more brittle material than steel, when cared for properly it should not experience any of these problems.  “It’s not like dropping a champagne glass,” Lindsay explains.  The important thing to remember here is that any good knife can become damaged if dropped or used improperly, so if you’re investing in a high quality knife, make sure to use it with care and attention.

A good knife is a thing of beauty and pleasure.  And a good ceramic knife will serve you well in elevating your raw food preparation, adding a bit of joy to your chopping and some extra energy to your culinary creations.