How to Cut Onion into Slices, Strips, or Feathers

Overhead photo of red onion half with cut onion feathers on the side.

How to Cut Onion into Slices, Strips, or Feathers

Are you wondering how to cut onions into slices for your salad, salsa, fajitas, or any other dish? It seems rather simple, but there actually are a few tricks to cutting onions into perfect strips to make your salads and other dishes simply beautiful.

Prep Time 5

Total Time 5

Servings servings

Calories 1kcal

Ingredients

▢ 1 whole red onion

Instructions

Slice onion in half lengthwise vertically, cutting through the stem end of the onion.
Remove the outer peel of the onion.
Remove the center part of the onion where the layers begin to get uneven and smaller.
Slice the remaining outer layers into strips. Thin for salads and cold dishes and wider if using in stir fries or sautéed dishes.

Notes

Save the insides and use to dice up and use in other recipes such as blender salsa, mango salsa, and guacamole.

Be sure you cut your onions vertically rather than horizontally for longer, straighter strips. Vertical cuts refer to cutting through the middle of the stem end of the onion and the root end of the onion.

The outer layers of the onion make the loveliest onion strips. I usually remove the core and save them to use for diced onions in other recipes.

Be sure to start with a sharp chef's knife to make cutting safer and easier.

Use wider cuts for cooking and thinner strips for salads and cold dishes.

Always cut your onion with the flat side facing the cutting board. When the onion is flat on the cutting board it's less likely to move around.

If you feel a burning sensation while slicing the onion, do not wipe your eyes with your fingers, it will make it much worse.

Nutrition