Prateek Sadhu: Hone your chopping skills

A decent knife and some tips from the award-winning chef should make chopping a breeze

Trick and treat

Chef Prateek Sadhu gives tips to improve your chopping skills

Is there a trick to how chefs chop veggies as fast as they do? I’m a good cook, but I fear I’ll cut my digits off!

—Anuradha Dabholkar, Mumbai

Why the rush, though? After months of practice, chefs develop a sort of rolling chop. If you look carefully, you’ll find the tip of the knife is always on the chopping board and the vegetable moves slowly under the knife and across the board. Invest in a really good professional knife, that’s nicely curved (for that rocking motion), lightweight and sharp. Plenty of brands do this well; Wüsthof and Global are sought after as well.

Honestly, if you’re in a rush, there’s no shame in using a food processor. Otherwise, take your time with it, and enjoy the process of cooking. After all, you’re doing it for yourself, not for a camera.

Prateek’s signature restaurant, Masque, is changing India’s culinary landscape and was awarded the One To Watch Award by Asia’s 50 Best in 2020

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