this post was submitted on 24 Jul 2023
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My mum brought me up with the habit of always laying out a piece of newspaper or other unneeded paper (eg paper bag torn flat) on the bench before food prep. You'd pile all the trimmings, peelings etc on that as you go (e.g. peeling the onion or taking out the root over the paper, or doing it on the chopping board then immediately sweeping the bits onto the paper without necessarily having to lift the whole board). Then at the end you just package up the waste paper and put the whole lot directly into the bin/compost. Uses up waste paper, doesn't take up chopping board space, self contained, doesn't require an open bin (and all the smells associated with it).
My mum would quiver at how I cut onions now, but I picked this up from a housemate: I cut the onion in half, skin on, and then peel it and remove the root. It is 500000% easier than peeling a whole, intact onion.
I also use my knife to peel the onion especially as I grew up with shitty onions where the top half of a layer would be papery and the other half fleshy, so I'd use the knife to score off the papery bit and discard it.
Thank you for your tips - I did not know that about the green part of garlic and will definitely chuck that out next time I come across them!
I leave the root on because it gives me something to hold onto while I'm dicin' or slicin'.
Ooh, I could never do that. I don't like the bits of root hanging on. I just use a clamp like hand position to lock the onion in place and do my best. Usually the onion behaves. At least they're not slippery like tomatoes.
Onion can be slippery and that's why I leave it on until last because I don't want to lose a finger while I'm hanging on for dear life.
Fully endorse the paper tray/wrap trick. Do something similar myself. I have an old crappy colander in the 2nd kitchen sink, lined with a piece of paper towel. All peelings go in there, plus tea leaves tea bags, coffee grounds, egg shells (crushed) cooked & raw bones etc. If it was once alive, it goes into the colander. Once a day the contents are wrapped up and taken out to the compost heap and buried in the top layer. Top layer of compost heap is mostly grass clippings, which are very effective at removing smell. When compost is turned (after mowing), all the paper packages get broken up and mixed in and a new hat of clippings goes on top. The worms love it. I don't peel garlic much - just smash it flattish with the flat of my heavy kitchen knife, then slip off the skins and chop/pound it smaller. Only peel garlic if I'm using the whole cloves, and do this by snapping off the dry lid where the garlic meets the bulb, then pulling off a strip of peel from there and the rest of the clove is easy from then on with a thumbnail.
Also fully endorse washing knife in hot water, then drying immediately and putting it away in a wooden knife block. I also sharpen it with a steel immediately before food prep, and get it professionally sharpened when the steel isn't enough. Sharp knives are safer than blunt ones. Especially if slicing tomatoes or anything slippery.
Capsicums, I hold the fruit upright with the stalk end on top, and slice off the cheeks all around, then toss the stalk, middle and base into the colander in one piece. Most of the seeds stick to the middle section and any on the cheeks can be rinsed off or ticked off with the end of the knife into the colander. If roasting caps, I will cut around the stalk, twist and remove the middle bit that way.
I don't peel spuds usually. Not even for mashed potato. Pumpkin is easily peeled once cooked - raw is another matter. Just steam pieces for 10 mins then the hard skin slips off easily.
There's a wonderful product in jars that is a 50/50 mixture of minced garlic and minced ginger - I use this for curries to combine the fried spices into a curry paste - bloody wonderful stuff and I strongly recommend it. When I see it at Aldi or Colesworth I stock up. Can be used to make a nice variation on garlic bread too.
Definitely heartily endorse the garlic/ginger minced paste - I used to pooh-pooh it but honestly has made a world of difference in convenience with south Asian food and even the occasional stir fry - without as much of a compromise in flavour as I used to think. Regularly affordable at your local Indian grocer.
With capsicums I normally slice off the top and then pull out the core of seeds from the rest of it using my hand, then cut it in half and use a knife to tick off the remaining seeds/pith. I used to loathe getting capsicum seeds all over my cutting board.
Same with you re garlic peeling and spuds. Half the deliciousness of spuds is in the skin, not to mention so many of the nutrients.