this post was submitted on 07 May 2024
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I followed a Jaime Oliver recipe for curry, which started with grating onion, ginger and garlic. I liked the curry, but grating an onion is a miserable job. He said that technique unlocked the onion's 'sweetness'. How much difference do you think I'd notice if I used a food processor?

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[–] lemick24 25 points 6 months ago (1 children)

A food processor will do a very similar job, some food processors even have a grating accessory you can buy. I wouldn't worry about the modest difference in flavour.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 6 months ago (1 children)

Food processor grater attachment = best of all worlds.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 6 months ago (2 children)

If you don’t have a food processor but you have a kitchenaid mixer, there’s a grater attachment for that as well.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 6 months ago

Well now we need to battle, who makes the greater grater?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 6 months ago

Yeah but the grater costs as much as a food processor

[–] [email protected] 21 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

The more you cut an onion, the more cell walls you bust open, releasing more flavor. Grating works well for this, but a food processor will do a fairly good job, as would a grinder or mortar and pestle.

When I make curry, I usually just dice the onion, though, unless it's supposed to be particularly onion forward, then I'm going to be using the mortar and pestle.

[–] FuglyDuck 12 points 6 months ago (1 children)

depending on how fine you took it in the food processsor, the only difference is the crying.

what 'unlocks the sweetness' in onions is being cut or otherwise mashed very finely so it more or less melts into the food. (the finer it is, the more 'melty' it gets.) it's similar to garlic and other aromatics in that respect; and it doesn't really quite matter how you get there.

I would not suggest huffing the bowl when you're done, though. Unless... you know. I won't judge.

[–] PunnyName 7 points 6 months ago

Not to mention, but the lachrymator is fairly unstable, and its pungency won't last nearly as long when the onion has been pulverized. Bigger pieces hang onto their alliinases, and, unless you cook those bigger pieces a lot, when you bite them, you'll get that onion crying smelly flavor.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago) (1 children)

Jamie Oliver does dreadful things to "Thai" curry's.

I use an Indonesian oelekan for curry's. Takes some time but there is nothing better than a mortar and pestle.

A food processor won't give you the authentic taste as an oelekan, but grating an onion is just more Jamie Oliver bs, better use the processor..

[–] Mirshe 9 points 6 months ago

Jamie Oliver does terrible things to a LOT of recipes. Remember when he tried to "enhance" a Tandoori chicken recipe and called it literally "Empire Chicken"?

[–] blazera 5 points 6 months ago (1 children)

I put on some swim goggles when cutting onions

[–] QualifiedKitten 3 points 6 months ago

Contact lenses are also surprisingly effective when cutting onions!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 6 months ago

Cut it coarsely. As you cook them, add a tiny bit of sodium bicarbonate. After they melted down, add a tiny bit of vinegar to neutralise the bicarbonate.

They'll caramelise a bit. But that's good.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 6 months ago

Mandolin? Food processor? Knife?