How To Finely Chop An Onion by Gordon Ramsay
To finely chop or dice an onion like Gordon Ramsay, peel it and cut it in half, but keep the root on. Slice toward the root, push the knife in from the side, then cut across into small cubes.
In the tutorial below, my friend Gordon Ramsay shows how to chop an onion finely.
- Peel the onion and cut it in half. Keep the root on. Gordon calls it “absolutely crucial”.
- Cut thin slices as close to the root as possible. Point the knife at the root and slice down toward it, without cutting through it.
- Push the knife halfway in. This cut goes in from the side. Push the onion back together first, and tilt the knife slightly down.
- Hold the onion in place and cut it in the opposite direction to make perfect small cubes. Gordon grips it like a tennis ball. When you reach the root, turn the pile around and chop up and down to make it even finer.
Follow the video for more:
Why keep the root on?
If you cut the root off, Gordon says, the onion starts to bleed and you start crying. The compounds that make your eyes water are most concentrated at the root end, so we leave it whole until the end. The root also holds all the layers together while you slice, which is why steps 3 and 4 work. At the end, in Gordon’s words, there’s “no waste, just the root”.
How to hold the onion
Gordon uses three fingers on top of the onion, one in front and two behind, and lets his knuckle guide the knife. Tuck your fingertips in, so they stay away from the blade. Then let the weight of the knife do the work.
Recipes with finely chopped onion
For my turli, the onion is chopped finely, the way Gordon does it. In my fried rice with steak and vegetables, it is very important for the onion to be as small as possible. And the red onion in my watermelon feta salad is chopped finely and pickled in lime and red wine vinegar.
Questions
What does finely chopped onion mean?
Small pieces, about 1/8 to 1/4 inch (3 to 6 mm). Minced is even smaller, 1/8 inch or less. Diced just means even cubes, and the recipe tells you the size.
How do you cut an onion without crying?
Keep the root on until the very end, like Gordon Ramsay does. The compounds that make your eyes water are most concentrated at the root end. Chilling the onion for 30 minutes before you cut it helps too. I used to wear swimming goggles.
How long does chopped onion keep?
In a sealed container in the fridge, 7 to 10 days, according to the National Onion Association. You can also freeze it.