how to chop an onion

Long ago, Danny and I did a photo post on how to chop an onion. A number of you have said how helpful that post was to you in the kitchen. (It was for me, too. I can't tell you how many times I sneaked back to that post to look at the photos before I chopped an onion. My chopping skills are more sure now, but it took me all this time to feel confident about it.) And a number of you have written over the years, asking if we could do a video, so you could see it in action.

We listen.

This is also part of our new series for Wednesday posts: chef technique videos.

When we have done videos in the past, we have shown you how to make recipes. But now, Danny would really like to demonstrate technique. Interspersed through the essays and recipes in our cookbook, Danny teaches basic techniques that chefs know but home cooks might not. But we can't wait a year to start sharing.

So we're going to share here. We'll start with the fundamentals and move onto more exotic techniques as the year goes on. Do you have something you would like to learn? Let us know.

We'll be back every Wednesday.

So let's start at the beginning. How to chop an onion.




And if you would like to watch the entire process, without our commentary, here's a video of Danny cutting an onion in silence.