Once you start learning about the various types of butter knives available in the market, the struggle to find the perfect butter knife can often get quite overwhelming. However, no need to worry as we’ve gathered everything you need to factor in before setting off to buy the ideal butter knife for your kitchen needs.
Factors To Consider When Buying a Butter Knife
Handle
The handle of the butter knife should be your main factor of concern when it comes to hunting down the perfect butter knife for your kitchen. Butter knife handles are made from all sorts of materials, ranging from simple wood to plastic and even titanium. However, not all materials are beneficial and the wrong handle can be quite dangerous and a pain to work with whilst scraping butter. We believe that a wooden handle works best when it comes to butter knives, giving your knife a homely look along with a comfortable feel. On the other hand, metal handles are also an option, proving to be more durable and aesthetic but may be a pain to work with in cold environments. Plus, the metal ones can be slippery and difficult to work with if the butter is frozen.
Versatility
A knife’s ability to do things depends on the features included in it. A serrated edge, slots on the sides of the blade, or even holes in the knife can create some aesthetic-looking butter scrapes. When searching for a knife, you should figure out your kitchen needs and look for a corresponding feature in the butter knife. Some butter knives like the ButterOne may be really good for spreading butter on corn cobs but may be lacking in other departments. Now it's up to you to figure out how you want your butter knife to function!
Blade’s material
The material used to construct the blade can greatly affect your knife’s ability to cut through butter and spread it onto a surface. With butter knife blades being made from titanium, stainless steel, plastic, and even ceramic, it can be quite difficult to figure out the best material for your blade. We’ve found that titanium and stainless steel blades are not only rust-free and fairly durable when it comes to kitchen use but such blades also give off a premium feel in the kitchen. On the other hand, plastic and ceramic blades are cheap and may struggle to cut hard bricks of butter.
The Battle of Handles: Wooden vs. Stainless Steel
Wood and stainless steel are both very commonly used to constitute butter knife handles but they are both vastly different. A wooden handle, on one hand, is more comfortable and blends in with your kitchen better as compared to stainless steel. Wood also helps in keeping your hand warm and provides you a firmer grip on the knife so you don’t end up cutting away your hand. However, wooden handles degrade with time and give off an old and used look after a couple of months. On the contrary, stainless steel handles are relatively more long-lasting and send off a premium look for your kitchen utensils. However, stainless steel handles can get hard to work with in cold environments and become quite slippery if your condiment drips down on the handle.
Different Types of Butter Knives
Serrated butter knife
Most normal kitchen knives feature a sharp blade that may easily cut through hard butter but would cause trouble when it comes to spreading the butter on bread. A serrated butter knife, much different from a normal kitchen knife, uses ridges on the blade to cut butter with a soft and creamy consistency which is perfect for spreading on bread and other food items. However, a serrated butter knife is specially designed to cut butter and may not be of much use when it comes to other kitchen tasks.
Plastic butter knife
Plastic butter knives may not look as fancy as normal stainless steel knives, but they can get the job done. The flexible plastic can get under the dough easily and separate it effectively. Even though plastic butter knives are much cheaper than regular ones, they often lack in the aesthetics department and can degrade over time. Plastic butter knives can also deform if placed near high heat and their fumes can be quite toxic to inhale.
Ceramic butter knives
Ceramic knives are uncommon in the buttering world, but they make sure to get the job done. Ceramic material is usually quite lightweight but ceramic butter knives are often coated with a material that allows them to harden and maintain integrity even under high pressure. Ceramic knives also have the additional option to have a custom design printed on them which makes your kitchen utensil more personal and unique. However, they are relatively more prone to breakage when they are dropped on the floor and rock-solid bricks of butter can be difficult pieces to cut.
Titanium butter knives
Titanium is nonmagnetic and resistant to rust, making it an ideal material to be used in the blades and handles of butter knives. Titanium also gives off a premium look in the kitchen and may match with other steel utensils. However, titanium butter knives are not good at holding their edge and become quite blunt after a couple of uses.
