Are Ceramic Kitchen Knives better than Metal?

While researching raw food preparation I would often see people using black knives and white knives that looked like they were made of plastic. I later found out the were called ceramic kitchen knives and that they were thought to be the best knives for slicing fruits and vegetables.

I didn't think about getting one for myself until one day I visited a friend who had one. I saw her slice up a hot pepper, and than slice an apple for us. I told her I did not like hot pepper with my apple's and she told me that a ceramic knife like hers does not absorb the flavor of what it cuts so it won't transfer the flavor. When I saw the paper thin slices she waseffortlessly cutting, I knew I had to look into this strange knife for myself.

In my research I discovered that ceramic knives are made from zirconium oxide, which is a very hard substance that is without pours and therefore they do not transfer flavors. They can also be sharpened to a very fine edge and they stay sharp under most circumstances forever. I can't think of very many other products like that.

Japan manufactures almost all ceramic kitchen knives with the same attention to quality that we find in almost all of their products. You will find that ceramic knives do not cost any more than most high quality metal knives and because they require little or no maintenance they really end up being less expensive.

The real joy of a knife like this is discovered in the use of it. It is lite weight and perfectly balanced and it also slices thru fresh fruits and vegetables like a warm metal knife going through butter making food preparation a relaxing and pleasurable experience.

I recently added a ceramic fruit and vegetable peeler to my ceramic knife collection and I will never use metal knives again.