How To Sharpen A Pizza Cutter
There is nothing worse than a blunt pizza cutter.
Whether you’ve lovingly prepared an artisan pizza at home or are desperate to tuck into an eagerly awaited takeaway pizza, a blunt pizza cutter will tear your pizza dough rather than cutting it into nice, neat slices.
So, how do you sharpen a pizza cutter? Use a knife sharpener, whetstone, or abrasive nail file. The method you choose will depend on the type of pizza cutter as well as the shape of its blade. Keeping your pizza cutter sharp will help it to neatly cut through pizza slices rather than tearing them apart.
Keep reading to learn the best methods for sharpening a pizza cutter, including our simple step-by-step guide!
Why Do Pizza Cutters Need Sharpening?
Any piece of kitchen equipment that has a sharp edge needs regular sharpening, and pizza cutters are no exception!
Pizza cutters are often overlooked when it comes to maintenance, and it is all too easy to take these little tools for granted.
However, a sharp pizza cutter can make all the difference when it comes to dividing up this family favorite!
Pizza cutters have a difficult job to do. They must slice neatly through the crusty dough without tearing the toppings or pulling the cheese apart.
And they are often required to cut up pizzas that are placed on a tough surface, such as a granite chopping board. This is a surefire way to quickly blunt any sharp edge!
When a pizza cutter is no longer sharp, it will not be able to slice neatly through the pizza.
A blunt blade will tear rather than cut the dough, leaving ragged edges. It will also pull the toppings along the surface of the pizza, ruining your carefully executed pizza-making efforts.
Types Of Pizza Cutter
Before we delve into how to sharpen a pizza cutter, let’s take a look at the different types of pizza cutters available.
All involve a sharp blade to cut through the crisp bottom of a pizza with ease. Sharpening this blade regularly will help prolong the useful life of your pizza cutter.
Pizza Cutter Wheels
Pizza cutter wheels consist of a sharp-bladed wheel that is attached to a handle.
The wheel is rolled along the surface of the pizza, cutting through the cooked dough.
Many people find these easy to use and they are the most common type of pizza cutter.
However, pizza cutter wheels can be tricky when it comes to sharpening them! It is difficult to hold the wheel still while sharpening it. If you are buying a new pizza cutter, look for one that has a removable wheel for easy cleaning and sharpening — it’s a total game-changer!
Pizza Cutter Rockers
A pizza cutter rocker is a long curved blade, normally with a handle at either end.
The blade is placed on the surface of the pizza and is rocked with both hands to slice through the pizza. They’re also great for finely chopping herbs.
These blades tend to be a lot easier to sharpen than pizza wheels. They can be sharpened in the same way as your kitchen knives. We recommend giving this one a try!
Pizza Scissors
Pizza scissors are the new kids on the block when it comes to cutting up pizza!
They are fun and easy to use and — unlike regular kitchen shears — can serve up slices of pizza thanks to the flat bottom blade.
Cleaning and sharpening pizza scissors can be tricky as they often have lots of fiddly components, but they’re definitely something to keep in your inventory of kitchen utensils.
How To Care For A Pizza Cutter
If you don’t want to have to sharpen your pizza cutter every time you use it, there are certain steps you can take to keep the blade in pristine condition!
To cut efficiently, a pizza cutter needs a sharp blade. Blades can easily be blunted by running them along a hard surface, such as a granite or marble cutting board or pizza stone.
Swapping to a wooden or food-safe plastic chopping board can help prolong the life of your pizza cutter blade, as well as any other blade.
It is also important to avoid pressing the blade of your pizza cutter into the cutting board. It is better to do two or three gentle runs rather than one vigorous cut.
Immediately after use, wipe the blade of your pizza cutter clean. Allowing food to dry on the blade makes it harder to clean and wears down the cutting surface!
Most pizza cutters are dishwasher safe, but it is not always a good idea to wash them in this manner. The action of a dishwasher can dull the cutting surface of a pizza cutter.
Once your pizza cutter is clean and dry, place it inside a protective cover for storage. Rubbing up against other cutlery is a common reason for blades to go blunt.
How To Sharpen A Pizza Cutter
If the edge of your pizza cutter is dull and blunt, it is relatively easy to make it sharp again. The best method to use will depend on the type of pizza cutter you have.
Metal pizza cutter blades can be sharpened using many of the same methods we use for knives. Unfortunately, if you have a plastic or porcelain pizza cutter wheel, these cannot be sharpened.
The challenge when sharpening a pizza wheel is the unusual shape of the sharp edge and the fact that the wheel is rotating.
A pizza cutter rocker is much more simple as it is similar to a knife. There are no moving parts to consider, but the curved shape of the blade can make it tricky to pass through a standard kitchen knife sharpener.
Pizza scissors can present a bit of a challenge to sharpen, but it depends on the design. Some pizza scissors can be taken apart, which makes the process much easier.
Here are the best methods to sharpen a pizza cutter!
Abrasive Nail File Or Fine Sandpaper
This is one of the easiest ways to sharpen the blades on your pizza cutter, but the effects may not be as long-lasting as some of the other methods on our list.
- Take an abrasive nail file or piece of clean, fine sandpaper.
- Hold the blade firmly in one hand and the file or sandpaper in the other.
- Using short strokes, run the abrasive surface along the side of the blade, up towards the sharp point.
- Work in this direction only — do not be tempted to rub the abrasive surface in a back-and-forth motion.
- Continue along the entire length of the pizza cutter blade until it is sharp.
- Wipe any dust away from the blade with a clean, dry cloth.
Manual Knife Sharpener
A manual knife sharpener may be an effective way to sharpen a pizza cutter, but it depends on the design of the sharpener and the type of pizza cutter.
These sharpeners consist of a pair of wheel-shaped sharpening stones, perfectly aligned to run along either side of a blade.
Whether this method will work for you is dependent on the shape of your pizza cutter blade and if this will fit inside the knife sharpener.
It is also very difficult to sharpen a pizza wheel in a knife sharpener, as it will rotate against the wheels of the sharpener.
- Hold the manual knife sharpener firmly in one hand, or secure it to a work surface.
- Run the blade smoothly through the knife sharpener in an even motion. Do not be tempted to apply pressure, and never run the blade backward and forwards.
- Depending on the shape of your pizza cutter blade, you may need to angle it slightly to one side.
- Wipe the blade clean with a soft dry cloth.
Whetstone Vs. Puck Sharpener
A whetstone is a traditional method of sharpening a blade that dates back many centuries. This fine-grained stone is ideal for restoring blunt blades to their former glory, so it’s unlikely you’ll switch methods once you master this one!
A puck sharpener is a whetstone that is embedded into a handle for ease of use.
This method can be used to sharpen any type of pizza cutter, although sharpening a curved blade or wheel can be tricky at first.
- Soak the whetstone or puck sharpener in water for 15 minutes.
- Place the blade of your pizza cutter on the stone at an angle of around 20-30 degrees.
- Draw the blade towards you in one long, firm motion, applying even pressure throughout.
- If sharpening a pizza cutter wheel, you may need to rotate it around several times to achieve an evenly sharp blade.
Power Tools
This method is not advisable if you are not accustomed to using power tools! However, if you’re quite handy when it comes to home maintenance, some power tools can be used to sharpen blades such as pizza cutters.
Power tools are only really suitable for sharpening rocker pizza cutters. A pizza wheel can be difficult to maneuver on a moving surface and may result in injury.
If you feel confident in your skillset, a belt grinder can be used by placing the pizza cutter blade at an angle onto the moving belt. Gradually move the blade across the belt to ensure the entire surface is sharpened.
How Sharp Can A Pizza Cutter Get?
Wondering how sharp pizza cutters can get? We were also curious, so we went on a little deep dive. Check out this video from TylerTube on YouTube:
