School equates to good old procrastination. The Kitchen Table is a perfect procrastinating tool for me. I will share with you the most important cooking technique: knife skills. Nutrition studying can wait. Your first lesson in knife skills will be to learn how to properly cut an onion. As my professor said on Monday night, in his meaty French accent, “you hurt the onion, and the onion will hurt you.” If you cut your onion too many times, you can expect a tearful episode. Here’s what you can do to avoid that tearful episode.
Read below and watch the featured slideshow.
1. Use a chef’s knife (pictured). Hold the knife firmly at the bolster (section between the handle and the blade). Your opposite hand should always hold the “claw” position, fingers tucked under.
2. Cut the onion’s end opposite of the root. The root will look somewhat “hairy.” The root needs to stay intact because it holds the onion together and will make chopping a fluid process. Turn the onion on the flat side and chop the onion in half. Peel the skin.
3. Point the root away from your body. Use the knife to slice along the onion ridges. Make sure the knife does not cut through the root. Chop all the way over the crescent.
4. Point the root to your left. Place your hand on top of the onion to stabilize while you make your second round of cuts. Hold the knife horizontally and use a sawing motion towards the root. Two to three cuts should do the trick.
5. Keep the onion root pointed to the left. Use a rocking motion to slice over the crescent. You will see a perfect dice fall onto your cutting board.
The onion was cut many times, but not enough to make me cry!