Nihonbashi (bridge)scissorskitchen knife(hair) tweezers
Since its establishment in 1783, UBUKEYA has had a history of 240 years dedicated to cutlery. Since the second generation, Ubukeya has maintained its store as a “craftsman merchant,” which means that it has its own store, has its own skilled craftsmen make blades, and sells only those blades that it is satisfied with. We interview Mr. Yutaka Yazaki, the 8th generation owner of Ubukeya, about the manufacturing process of kitchen knives, scissors, and hairpins, as well as useful information on how to care for the kitchen knives you use every day.
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How to take care of your blades in the home to ensure their long and careful use
Could you please continue and tell us how to take care of it?
One thing that everyone knows about, but is not often taken care of, is the care of knives. First of all, there are kitchen knives. Please wipe your kitchen knives frequently even when you are using them.
I know that people often use rust-resistant knives nowadays, but even if they are rust-resistant, they are only resistant to water, not to salt or acid. Therefore, even a stainless steel sink will change color if left unattended. It is the same thing. Salt and acid are the worst things that can happen to a stainless steel sink.
Also, stainless steel is rust-resistant, but once it rusts, it penetrates into the metal with pinpoint accuracy. This causes pinholes to open up. This is a bit scary, so we recommend that you remove the stains anyway.
When sushi chefs cut and grip the ingredients, they often wipe their knives quickly. I would like everyone to learn that gesture.
When all the dishes are finished, we ask that you pour detergent on them and rinse off the dirt well. After that, it is good to pour hot water over the dishes and wipe them down. Even if you don’t use wobbly boiled water, if you make the water heater a little hotter, the knife itself will warm up and the water will drain off more quickly.
Also, we are often asked if it is OK to put them in the dishwasher. However, knives with conventional handles that are inserted into the dishwasher, or knives that are sandwiched from both sides, are prone to handle damage. It may be better to avoid such knives.
How about scissors?
In the case of scissors, wipe them dry anyway. Always wipe them dry. Also, especially for sewing scissors, you should wipe your hands very carefully, because you are using them directly by holding them, and this is the season for sweaty hands.
Also, please wipe the blade lightly with a cloth moistened with a little oil. Please wipe well especially the inner steel part where the blades meet. Also, some office scissors are left with adhesive glue or cellotape on them. This also causes rusting and tarnishing, so please remove it immediately. Thinner is the best remover, but if you cannot find it, you can use nail polish remover or sticker remover. If you do not have such a solution, nail polish remover or sticker remover can be used as a substitute.
Then there are gardening or flower scissors. These scissors are to be cared for in exactly the same way as kitchen knives. They inevitably get wet and dirty easily, so when you are finished using them, you need to wash them with detergent and wipe them with hot water.
It is better to keep it properly oiled. The area under the screw, where the teeth grind against each other, is probably held in place with tacks or screws. Put a drop of oil between the blades and open and close them slowly. Then, wipe off the dirt and shavings that flow out with it. Then, put a little oil between the blades and open and close the blades again, so that the tacks and screws will be covered with oil and will not be stuck open due to rust. Do the same with the scissors to remove the shavings.
You recommended earlier that oil be drawn, but what kind of oil would be best?
The best oil is machine oil, which does not oxidize easily. Therefore, machine oil is fine. However, some customers do not like to use machine oil for knives used to cut food that enters the mouth, so in that case, camellia oil is recommended.
I see. So you use such easily available oil. By the way, do you sharpen knives made of any material in the same way? Is there anything we should pay attention to when sharpening knives at home?
Anyway, the sharpening method is exactly the same for both steel and stainless steel-based knives.
However, stainless steel-based products don’t have a good bite on the whetstone. It gives a slipping sensation. Therefore, for rust-resistant materials, it is better to start with a slightly coarser grindstone to get a better edge. In other words, the blade sharpens more quickly.
When sharpening at home, be careful. Because of this, the angle of the blade gradually becomes obtuse. Once the angle is obtuse, it is quite difficult to make it thin again. In such a case, it is difficult to perform such operations as “suki-suki” and “meatsu-riki” at home unless you bring the work to a specialized store.
The angle of the blade should be kept as slightly bedded as possible. But then it takes time to put the blade on. So you gradually set up the angle.
In an ordinary household, there are not a number of different types of whetstones, so basically, we hope that you sharpen at an ubuke-ya.
Thank you very much. However, it is a waste to do it every time. It costs a lot of money, so I think it would be best if you sharpen them at home first, and then bring them in when you can no longer do anything about it.
Thank you very much. And how about hair removal?
After using the hair remover for a while, you may start to feel the hair remover sliding due to the oil from your skin or foundation from your makeup. This may make you think that the hair remover is damaged, but it is not. All you have to do is to wipe it off. You can wipe it off with a non-sticky eyeglass cleaner or a piece of paper or paper that does not have strong fibers. A brown envelope will do. Place it between the two and wipe it off as if you were sliding it between the two.
Some people wash well. It is very fine to wash them well, but some people push them open with their fingers in an attempt to wash them well. If a tool that has been adjusted by bending it like a hair plunger is forced open, it may not return to its original position, and even if it does return, the misalignment will inevitably occur. Even if it does return to its original position, the misalignment will inevitably occur, and it will be impossible to fix. Washing is fine, but it is strictly forbidden to push it open.
This is an important point. It tends to spread out quite a bit.
That’s right. You come to our store saying that it has been spread out and shifted.
I believe that Ubukeya has built its brand based on the history it has spun, the products it has inherited as an artisan merchant, and the services it has provided. Could you tell us about Ubukeya’s brand?
Yes, I think it is. This may sound a bit abstract, but I believe that it is about peace of mind and satisfaction. If you buy something from a certain store, you can be assured that it will be safe there, if you order a certain job from there, or if you eat a certain dish from here, you can be assured that it will be safe to buy it, order it again, and be satisfied. I believe that is what a brand is.
Thank you very much. We have only a few minutes left, but I would like to ask for a few last words.
I hope that I have been able to share with you some of the things that I have mentioned. We are sure that there are people who have problems with sharpening kitchen knives or scissors, but we can also repair other people’s tools, except for hairpins. Please feel free to contact us.
Proper maintenance is essential for long-lasting use of cutlery. Ubukeya conveys this message because it loves and wants to protect the cutlery that is in every household. With such love in mind, Ubukeya will continue to run as a long-established cutlery shop.
*If you would like to see this dialogue on video.here (place close to the speaker or where the speaker is)
