Slicing Vegetables

Slice vegetables by hand or with a vegetable slicer. A vegetable slicer is the easiest way to make very thin and even slices. When slicing by hand, hold the vegetable with one hand, with your fingers curled under so they don't get in the way of the knife. By keeping the side of the knife blade right up against the knuckles of your hand, you can control the thickness of the slices by slowly moving your hand back along the length of the vegetable as you slice. This frees your cutting hand to move the knife very quickly.

You can usually lift the knife completely off the cutting board when slicing, but if the vegetable is very hard, you may need to keep the knife tip pressed firmly against the cutting board to stabilize the knife and allow you to use more force. It's always easier to slice into half-rounds than rounds because, with half-rounds, you're working with a vegetable that has one flat surface to keep it steady.