How often should you sharpen a kitchen knife?

Honing and sharpening are different operations and the terms get used interchangeably to everyone's confusion. A honing rod, the steel that comes with knife sets, does not sharpen; it straightens an edge that has rolled microscopically out of alignment through use, restoring cutting performance in seconds. Doing this every few uses keeps a knife performing well far longer. Sharpening actually grinds away metal to form a new edge, using a whetstone, a pull-through sharpener, or a professional service, and a home cook typically needs it once or twice a year depending on use, cutting surface, and steel.

The safety point is the one worth internalizing: dull knives cause more injuries than sharp ones. A dull edge requires more force and is more likely to slide off the surface of what you are cutting rather than biting in, sending the blade toward your hand with pressure behind it. The paper test is a quick check, a sharp knife slices cleanly through a sheet of paper held vertically, and a dull one tears or catches. Habits that preserve edges: use wood or plastic cutting boards rather than glass, ceramic, or stone, which destroy edges quickly, hand wash rather than running knives through the dishwasher where they knock against other items and sit in hot detergent, and store them in a block, on a magnetic strip, or with blade guards rather than loose in a drawer.