When it comes to cooking, the utensils you use are just as important as the food you make with them. Making sure that your utensils are in good condition can sometimes be a bit of a challenge. For some, sanitizing and cleaning your utensils can be more than enough.
However, you wouldn’t set a professional kitchen to the same standards that you would your average kitchen. For instance, many supermarkets, deli stores, and restaurants may utilize a meat slicer in order to provide clean cuts of meat to their customers.
A meat slicer, just like any sharp utensil, needs to be sharpened in order to keep performing at what it does best.
Whether it’s for your kitchen counter or your deli counter, knowing how to properly care for your meat slicer is very important to know.
How to Sharpen Meat Slicer Blades?
Before even thinking about sharpening your meat slicer, there are a few precautions that need to be made first. The first step is to make sure that the meat slicer is turned off by unplugging it. This is to ensure that there will be injury from the meat slicer being accidently turned on.
Next, make sure to thoroughly clean the blade and dry it before proceeding. Once the sharpener is in place, you should loosen its locking pin in the counterclockwise direction. This makes it so the sharpener is able to be moved to the position of your choice.
After this, you should rotate the sharpener so it’s facing the direction of the meat slicer blades. The sharpening stones should be on either side of the blade to know that you’re positioning it correctly.
Once you’ve ensured that the sharpener is in the right position, retighten the locking pin to make sure that nothing comes out of place during the sharpening. You’ll know the sharpener is locked in place when it is fully aligned with the meat slicer blade.
This is where you’re able to plug the meat slicer back in and turn it on. While the meat slicer is rotating, press the button on the back of the sharpener. Doing this will make it so the sharpener will come into contact with the meat slicer blades.
Hold the sharpener button for about 15-35 seconds. Keep in mind that seeing sparks while sharpening is normal, and there is nothing to worry about.
After this, press the button at the front of the sharpener to hone the meat slicer blade. You want to make sure that you clean the meat slicer blade both before and after sharpening. Make sure to unplug the machine again and clean and sanitize before use.
How often should a meat slicer be cleaned?
Contrary to having to sharpen the blade every two weeks, the FDA recommended that you clean your meat cleaner at least every four hours. When cooking with raw meat, it doesn’t take much to cross contaminate foods if you’re not being sanitary. If you’re not careful, you could also ruin your meat slicer by food build-up if you’re not taking care of your meat slicer properly.
No matter how you’re handling your meat slicer, always be precautionary. Make sure to wear cut-resistant gloves and follow the meat slicer’s manufacturing instructions carefully.
How do you store meat slicers?
Maintaining a meat slicer is more about safety than anything else. When storing the meat slicer away after use, be sure to lock the blade and unplug the slicer. You’re also welcome to dissemble the meat slicer, as long as the blade itself is secured and in a safe place.
Whether you dissemble or store it away, make sure to keep your meat slicer covered with some sort of cloth or sheet to ward away airborne dust from getting onto the blade.
Overall, just be sure to store your meat slicer in a safe and dry environment, preferably in a place where there isn’t a lot of traffic.
What are the safety precautions when using a meat slicer?
When dealing with a large and sharp object such as a meat slicer, it is mandatory that you take precaution when it comes to using it. Some precautions you can take are making sure there is no clutter around the meat slicer.
No matter how small, a small bump or jiggle could cause the meat slicer to slide around or break which can cause injury. Be sure to also protect your hands when using the meat slicer. Cross contamination as well as injuries can occur if you’re not handling the meat slicer carefully. It is recommended to wear cut-resistant gloves in order to protect your hands from any danger that the meat slicer can cause.
Be sure to remain present while the meat slicer is on and don’t forget to unplug and lock the blade when it’s not in use.
Taking these precautions will ensure that there aren’t any issues when handling your meat slicer.
Which foods are not suggested to be used with a meat slicer?
Even though “meat slicer” is in the name, some people still wonder whether they can cut more than just meat with their meat slicer. Those people would be right. There are a variety of foods that you can slice using your meat slicer. Aside from meat, you can slice bread, vegetables, cheese, and many more options.
However, there are also some foods that aren’t good to use your meat slicer with. An example of a food you should avoid is any food with seeds. As well as any meat with bones, these food items can damage your meat slicer. Not to mention, the fragments of the seeds or bones could end up causing injury.
Another food you should avoid is to make sure you’re not overloading your meat slicer with items that are too big for it to handle. This can also damage the machine. Though there are a lot of uses for the meat slicer, be wary of which foods you decide to use for it.
What should I never do to clean my meat slicer?
Whether it’s sharpening, cleaning, or storing it away, there are numerous precautions you have to take. When it comes to cleaning however, there are precautions you have to make as well as decisions that you should never make when cleaning your meat slicer.
No matter what you’re doing with your meat slicer, if you’re not currently using it, make sure to keep it unplugged and to wear protective gloves to keep yourself safe from injury.
The first thing you should never do when cleaning your meat slicer is to submerge it in dishwater or in a dishwasher. This can dull the blade, or even cause damage to it. Also make sure not to use steel wool, as it can scratch or damage the blade also.
Making sure that you’re not making the wrong decisions makes it so washing and sanitizing your meat slicer comes without any issue.
How do I clean my meat slicer?
After making the necessary precautions, cleaning your meat slicer should be a safe and comfortable task. Ensure that your meat slicer is diabled by either unplugging it or locking the meat slicer blade in place.
After setting the slicer blade to zero, using a paper towel to get rid of large food particles off the blade. Disassemble all the components of your meat slicer.
You should have 3 sinks or tubs with different solutions such as the first one containing hot water with detergent, the second one with water (without detergent) for rinsing, and the last for sanitization.
Run all the meat slicer blade pieces through this three sink routine and then let them dry. For more hard-to-reach areas, be sure to use a small brush to clean off dust or debris from screws, seams, handles, knobs, etc. Next, use a clean towel or paper towel and work along the blade and the blade guard to remove any food residue.
Using your protected hand, you want to clean the entire blade, working from the center and all the way around, then slowly working outwards.
After this, make sure to rinse off everything. Before reassembling, apply sanitizer to all parts of the slicer, making sure to let the sanitizer set for as long as directed. After letting it dry, make sure to cover it with a cloth or similar material to make sure that the slicer stays dust-free when not in use.
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