How-to: Julienne Red Onion

I’m not sure if I’ve put this up on social media or on here, but I think cuts can make or break you. Consistent and precise cuts can take a dish up one or two levels easily. However, without a basic knowledge of how to execute these procedures, it may be hard to take a dish I put up on here and get it to look like it does in the picture. I know a lot of people see something that looks good and want to make it exactly like it is portrayed. So, I’m going to be doing a weekly how-to series on some basic procedures that will help you blow everyone’s socks off. No matter what you’re serving, nice simple consistent cuts make it look so much more polished and confident.

First up is how to julienne a red onion. The tricky thing with onions is that they are cylindrical. When you’re trying to get straight cuts from a circle, it can be quite precarious to say the least. Keep in mind that this cut can be applied to any onion shaped produce. I just chose to do a red onion because they’re great to have pre-sliced to dress up any dish with a little pop of color and flavor.

If you have any questions or comments please feel free to leave them on the blog or put them on the Facebook page. 

Step 1:

Gather your SHARP knife and a red onion. Place on cutting board. 

Step 2: 

Cut ends off of red onion as depicted in the picture below. You are just looking to trim the ends off, not cut most of the onion apart. The goal is to create a consistent edge.

Step 3: 

Place onion on a cut side and slice down the middle.

Step 4:

Remove outer skin layer. Try not to take the top layer of flesh off. All you need to do is remove the dry layers from the onion.

Step 5:

Rotate the cut part of the onion so that it is facing you. Start slicing the onion from one side to the other.

Step 6:

You want to start off with a tilt in your knife. A 45 degree angle should do the trick. Since the object is round, proceed to cut radially as shown in the picture. This way all the slices will be as consistent as possible. 

Remember to guide your knife with your middle finger while having the tips of your fingers tucked in so you don't cut yourself. I've done that way too many times and it sucks. 

Step 7:

Continue to go through the onion until you have about a quarter left. Rotate the onion so that the rounded end faces you like in Step 5. This will allow you to finish your cut.

I hope this helps! If you have anything you would like me to do in my series, please let me know! 

Gluten-free Mexican Veggie Burgers

Going with my g-free theme this month I would like to present my Mexican veggie burgers of the gluten-free variety. This is a pretty standard recipe that I do basically once a week and do a large batch of veggie burgers. I also tend to have a heartier style patty. If you want a more traditional falafel style burger, take a quarter of the ingredients and blend in a blender until smooth, then simply add back into the mixture.

Utilize this recipe with pickled veggies, burger buns, and salads. Feel free to create variations and explore what you have in season! I also chose to top this dish with Lemon-Mustard Braised Greens, instead of a crudité or pickled something or other. No particular reason, just switching it up. Will be posting later on about variations and whatnot. 

Ingredients:

1 #5 can beans, pinto (or cannellini)

1 #5 can beans, black

½ c. Quinoa (cooked)

3 cloves garlic (minced)

1 Zest of lime

1 Celery Stalk diced (about ¾ cup)

1 Bunch diced asparagus ends (save the tips for something else!)

½ Red onion (diced)

1 C. Pickled veg (chopped)

7oz Chipolte De Moreno (diced)

1/3 C. Corn meal

1 C. G-free flour

¼ C. Corn starch               

½ C. G-free breadcrumb

2 Eggs (whole)

1 tsp. ginger

1 tsp. cumin (ground)

1 Tbls. Pepper

¼ tsp. Celery seed

1 Tbls. Siracha

2 tsp. salt

Directions:

1.  Combine all ingredients in large mixing bowl

2. Mix with hands until fully incorporated

3. Test seasoning and consistency with small meat ball sized patty before doing whole batch

4. Using a 3oz ice-cream scoop, portion out patties

5. Sear in non-stick pan with olive or coconut oil

6. Serve on toasted bun