Knife Skills: How to Slice Scallions

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Depending on how you cut them, scallions can be used as a chunky vegetable in a stir fry or on the grill, or they can be used as a garnish for any number of dishes.

But slicing a scallion properly is more than just for looks. The way you slice a scallion and the sharpness of your knife can have just as big an impact on its flavor as it does on its appearance. This is because scallion cells, like the cells of all alliums (that is, vegetables in the onion family such as onions, shallots, garlic, and leeks), scallion cells contain chemical precursors that combine to form the pungent, sulfurous compounds known as lachrymators once those cells are opened and their contents are released. These are the chemicals responsible for giving alliums their pungent aroma and tear-inducing properties.

In moderation, this can be a good thing. But if you release too many of those precursors, scallions can become so powerfully pungent that their milder, sweeter aromas are overpowered. A dull knife or poor technique is more likely to crush and rupture more scallion cells than a sharp knife and proper technique.

So how do you cut scallions to keep these pungent flavors at bay and keep them looking pretty? The key is to use a very sharp knife (watch my knife sharpening video here), and to maximize horizontal motion rather than vertical motion.

Think slice, not chop.