Thread: Best grater for onion?

On Sat, 5 Jan 2013 01:03:07 -0800, "Julie Bove"
<[email protected]> wrote:

> So... I don't think I've ever grated an onion before and if I did, I
> failed. Tried to do it tonight for the Rissoles I'm going to make. I have
> two Microplane graters. One has smaller holes and one pretty large. Grated
> the zucchini with the smaller one but it looked too fine. Always used the
> larger one when I made zucchini bread. So switched to the larger holed one
> and did the carrot and summer squash. But the onion? It turned it to juice
> and a little mush. So I stopped after I massacred almost half of the onion.
> I just kept on with it because although my daughter loves onion flavor, she
> hates biting into a chunk of onion. I did the rest of it in as fine of a
> dice as I could master, of course missing a few pieces and having to do
> damage control with the kitchen scissors after the mixture cooked.
>
> So did I use the wrong type of grater? I looked up instructions online and
> the only thing I didn't do was freeze the onion but the only thing it said
> that would do was keep it from causing tears. And I don't worry about that
> because it is rare for me to get tears from an onion. I think I have an
> ancient box grater somewhere in the pullout shelf from hell but I don't mess
> with stuff down there unless I have to.
>
> I do have a Magic Bullet but have had no luck in grating or chopping stuff
> in it even though it says that it will. Just turns everything to mush. I
> used to use the food processor and was fine with that even though some here
> would dislike the texture that produces. I figure since I am cooking it all
> down to practically mush, it doesn't matter how it is chopped so long as I
> don't have any big pieces in there. And big pieces don't bother me but
> experience has taught me at least when making a meatloaf that the larger
> your vegetable chunks, the less likely it is to hold together.
>
I don't grate onion unless I am aiming for mush and juice. If I want
small bits, I chop it finely with a sharp knife. A FP could do it for
you if you pulse it toward the end and watch carefully not to go any
finer than you are aiming for.

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 09:05:54 -0800, sf <[email protected]> wrote:
snip
>I don't grate onion unless I am aiming for mush and juice. If I want
>small bits, I chop it finely with a sharp knife. A FP could do it for
>you if you pulse it toward the end and watch carefully not to go any
>finer than you are aiming for.
grating does provide a semi-mushy texture but the flavor achieved is
different than finely chopped -- much more intense yet not harsh.
Janet US

On 1/5/2013 12:44 PM, Janet Bostwick wrote:
> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 09:05:54 -0800, sf <[email protected]> wrote:
> snip
>> I don't grate onion unless I am aiming for mush and juice. If I want
>> small bits, I chop it finely with a sharp knife. A FP could do it for
>> you if you pulse it toward the end and watch carefully not to go any
>> finer than you are aiming for.

> grating does provide a semi-mushy texture but the flavor achieved is
> different than finely chopped -- much more intense yet not harsh.
> Janet US
>
I don't often grate an onion. I do like grated onion when I'm making
scalloped potatoes from scratch.

Jill

On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 12:53:48 -0500, jmcquown <[email protected]>
wrote:

>On 1/5/2013 12:44 PM, Janet Bostwick wrote:
>> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 09:05:54 -0800, sf <[email protected]> wrote:
>> snip
>>> I don't grate onion unless I am aiming for mush and juice. If I want
>>> small bits, I chop it finely with a sharp knife. A FP could do it for
>>> you if you pulse it toward the end and watch carefully not to go any
>>> finer than you are aiming for.
>
>> grating does provide a semi-mushy texture but the flavor achieved is
>> different than finely chopped -- much more intense yet not harsh.
>> Janet US
>>
>I don't often grate an onion. I do like grated onion when I'm making
>scalloped potatoes from scratch.

Only time I use grated onion is for potato latkes... but the simplest
method is to push onion wedges through my meat grinder, along with the
potatoes.

On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 12:53:48 -0500, jmcquown <[email protected]>
wrote:

>On 1/5/2013 12:44 PM, Janet Bostwick wrote:
>> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 09:05:54 -0800, sf <[email protected]> wrote:
>> snip
>>> I don't grate onion unless I am aiming for mush and juice. If I want
>>> small bits, I chop it finely with a sharp knife. A FP could do it for
>>> you if you pulse it toward the end and watch carefully not to go any
>>> finer than you are aiming for.
>
>> grating does provide a semi-mushy texture but the flavor achieved is
>> different than finely chopped -- much more intense yet not harsh.
>> Janet US
>>
>I don't often grate an onion. I do like grated onion when I'm making
>scalloped potatoes from scratch.
>
>Jill
I don't either, but there are a few recipes where it does make a
difference. I've never liked risking my knuckles on a box grater so I
use a microplane.
Janet US

Nothing will grate an onion without producing a ton of juice and a
fine mushy mess. Just mince it as finely as you can with a decent
knife. Don't go spending money on anything touted to be an onion
grater.

..

On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 11:11:55 -0700, Janet Bostwick
<[email protected]> wrote:

> I've never liked risking my knuckles on a box grater so I
> use a microplane.

You haven't lived until you've microplained yourself. Ouch!

--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.

Janet Bostwick <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>I've never liked risking my knuckles on a box grater so I
>use a microplane.

You need an Acme "safety grater"... wonderful for grating hard
produce; potatoes, onions, carrots, turnips... also cheese... and
excellent for dicing eggs for salad, just push through.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/84643647...r-vintage-made
Here's mine, was mom's:
http://i46.tinypic.com/dh4xmb.jpg

On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 15:04:39 -0500, Brooklyn1 <Gravesend1> wrote:

>Janet Bostwick <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>>I've never liked risking my knuckles on a box grater so I
>>use a microplane.
>
>You need an Acme "safety grater"... wonderful for grating hard
>produce; potatoes, onions, carrots, turnips... also cheese... and
>excellent for dicing eggs for salad, just push through.
>http://www.etsy.com/listing/84643647...r-vintage-made
>Here's mine, was mom's:
>http://i46.tinypic.com/dh4xmb.jpg
>
I've never seen one of those for real. I had no idea that it was a
shredder.
Janet US

sf wrote:
> On Sat, 5 Jan 2013 01:03:07 -0800, "Julie Bove"
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> So... I don't think I've ever grated an onion before and if I did, I
>> failed. Tried to do it tonight for the Rissoles I'm going to make.
>> I have two Microplane graters. One has smaller holes and one pretty
>> large. Grated the zucchini with the smaller one but it looked too
>> fine. Always used the larger one when I made zucchini bread. So
>> switched to the larger holed one and did the carrot and summer
>> squash. But the onion? It turned it to juice and a little mush.
>> So I stopped after I massacred almost half of the onion. I just kept
>> on with it because although my daughter loves onion flavor, she
>> hates biting into a chunk of onion. I did the rest of it in as fine
>> of a dice as I could master, of course missing a few pieces and
>> having to do damage control with the kitchen scissors after the
>> mixture cooked.
>>
>> So did I use the wrong type of grater? I looked up instructions
>> online and the only thing I didn't do was freeze the onion but the
>> only thing it said that would do was keep it from causing tears.
>> And I don't worry about that because it is rare for me to get tears
>> from an onion. I think I have an ancient box grater somewhere in
>> the pullout shelf from hell but I don't mess with stuff down there
>> unless I have to.
>>
>> I do have a Magic Bullet but have had no luck in grating or chopping
>> stuff in it even though it says that it will. Just turns everything
>> to mush. I used to use the food processor and was fine with that
>> even though some here would dislike the texture that produces. I
>> figure since I am cooking it all down to practically mush, it
>> doesn't matter how it is chopped so long as I don't have any big
>> pieces in there. And big pieces don't bother me but experience has
>> taught me at least when making a meatloaf that the larger your
>> vegetable chunks, the less likely it is to hold together.
>>
> I don't grate onion unless I am aiming for mush and juice. If I want
> small bits, I chop it finely with a sharp knife. A FP could do it for
> you if you pulse it toward the end and watch carefully not to go any
> finer than you are aiming for.

I used to use a food processor but I got rid of it when I cleaned the
kitchen out. I used it so rarely and just didn't have the space for it.

Janet Bostwick wrote:
> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 09:05:54 -0800, sf <[email protected]> wrote:
> snip
>> I don't grate onion unless I am aiming for mush and juice. If I want
>> small bits, I chop it finely with a sharp knife. A FP could do it
>> for you if you pulse it toward the end and watch carefully not to go
>> any finer than you are aiming for.
> grating does provide a semi-mushy texture but the flavor achieved is
> different than finely chopped -- much more intense yet not harsh.
> Janet US

Hmmm... I only thought to grate it after a former coworker said that was
how she made her meatloaf. But it really didn't work for me. Took about 5
minutes of scrubbing the grater to get all the onion goo off too.

jmcquown wrote:
> On 1/5/2013 12:44 PM, Janet Bostwick wrote:
>> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 09:05:54 -0800, sf <[email protected]> wrote:
>> snip
>>> I don't grate onion unless I am aiming for mush and juice. If I
>>> want small bits, I chop it finely with a sharp knife. A FP could
>>> do it for you if you pulse it toward the end and watch carefully
>>> not to go any finer than you are aiming for.
>
>> grating does provide a semi-mushy texture but the flavor achieved is
>> different than finely chopped -- much more intense yet not harsh.
>> Janet US
>>
> I don't often grate an onion. I do like grated onion when I'm making
> scalloped potatoes from scratch.

Huh. I like big pieces of onion in my potatoes.

Brooklyn1 wrote:
> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 12:53:48 -0500, jmcquown <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
>> On 1/5/2013 12:44 PM, Janet Bostwick wrote:
>>> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 09:05:54 -0800, sf <[email protected]> wrote:
>>> snip
>>>> I don't grate onion unless I am aiming for mush and juice. If I
>>>> want small bits, I chop it finely with a sharp knife. A FP could
>>>> do it for you if you pulse it toward the end and watch carefully
>>>> not to go any finer than you are aiming for.
>>
>>> grating does provide a semi-mushy texture but the flavor achieved is
>>> different than finely chopped -- much more intense yet not harsh.
>>> Janet US
>>>
>> I don't often grate an onion. I do like grated onion when I'm making
>> scalloped potatoes from scratch.
>
> Only time I use grated onion is for potato latkes... but the simplest
> method is to push onion wedges through my meat grinder, along with the
> potatoes.

Ah. If only I had a meat grinder. But sadly I do not.

Janet Bostwick wrote:
> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 12:53:48 -0500, jmcquown <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
>> On 1/5/2013 12:44 PM, Janet Bostwick wrote:
>>> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 09:05:54 -0800, sf <[email protected]> wrote:
>>> snip
>>>> I don't grate onion unless I am aiming for mush and juice. If I
>>>> want small bits, I chop it finely with a sharp knife. A FP could
>>>> do it for you if you pulse it toward the end and watch carefully
>>>> not to go any finer than you are aiming for.
>>
>>> grating does provide a semi-mushy texture but the flavor achieved is
>>> different than finely chopped -- much more intense yet not harsh.
>>> Janet US
>>>
>> I don't often grate an onion. I do like grated onion when I'm making
>> scalloped potatoes from scratch.
>>
>> Jill
> I don't either, but there are a few recipes where it does make a
> difference. I've never liked risking my knuckles on a box grater so I
> use a microplane.
> Janet US

Yeah. That's why if I do still have the box grater it is gathering dust.
We only ever had that kind in the house when I was growing up. Got a Mouli
when I moved out but it eventually broke and they've only cheapened them
since to the point where they didn't last any time at all. And they were a
pain because you had to cut whatever went into it into such a small piece to
start with. And in the case of something like cheese, you always had that
last weird bit that conformed to the grater and wouldn't grate.

sf wrote:
> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 11:11:55 -0700, Janet Bostwick
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> I've never liked risking my knuckles on a box grater so I
>> use a microplane.
>
> You haven't lived until you've microplained yourself. Ouch!

I've done that too but didn't really get injured. The box grater was far
worse. And then once I peeled off part of a fingernail with a peeler!

Kalmia wrote:
> Nothing will grate an onion without producing a ton of juice and a
> fine mushy mess. Just mince it as finely as you can with a decent
> knife. Don't go spending money on anything touted to be an onion
> grater.

Okay. Thanks. I couldn't even imagine what the shape of grated onion would
be. But now I know. And it's not good.

"Julie Bove" wrote in message news:kc8q7n$rp8$[email protected]..

So... I don't think I've ever grated an onion before and if I did, I
failed.
~~~~~~~~~~~
I don't use a grater for onions. I either chop it by hand or (if I need a
large quantity) I chop it in the type of hand-chopper that is often used for
nuts. I have one that does a very nice job because it rotates every time I
push down, so the pieces get smaller and smaller as I chop.

MaryL

On 1/5/2013 1:11 PM, Janet Bostwick wrote:
> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 12:53:48 -0500, jmcquown <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
>> On 1/5/2013 12:44 PM, Janet Bostwick wrote:
>>> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 09:05:54 -0800, sf <[email protected]> wrote:
>>> snip
>>>> I don't grate onion unless I am aiming for mush and juice. If I want
>>>> small bits, I chop it finely with a sharp knife. A FP could do it for
>>>> you if you pulse it toward the end and watch carefully not to go any
>>>> finer than you are aiming for.
>>
>>> grating does provide a semi-mushy texture but the flavor achieved is
>>> different than finely chopped -- much more intense yet not harsh.
>>> Janet US
>>>
>> I don't often grate an onion. I do like grated onion when I'm making
>> scalloped potatoes from scratch.
>>
>> Jill
> I don't either, but there are a few recipes where it does make a
> difference. I've never liked risking my knuckles on a box grater so I
> use a microplane.
> Janet US
>
I have an old micro-plane grater I guess my mom used for garlic. I sure
don't remember. I use it for both garlic and onion if I need finely
grated. More frequently the garlic, for sure.

Jill

On 1/5/2013 3:20 PM, Janet Bostwick wrote:
> On Sat, 05 Jan 2013 15:04:39 -0500, Brooklyn1 <Gravesend1> wrote:
>
>> Janet Bostwick <[email protected]> wrote:
>>>
>>> I've never liked risking my knuckles on a box grater so I
>>> use a microplane.
>>
>> You need an Acme "safety grater"... wonderful for grating hard
>> produce; potatoes, onions, carrots, turnips... also cheese... and
>> excellent for dicing eggs for salad, just push through.
>> http://www.etsy.com/listing/84643647...r-vintage-made
>> Here's mine, was mom's:
>> http://i46.tinypic.com/dh4xmb.jpg
>>
> I've never seen one of those for real. I had no idea that it was a
> shredder.
> Janet US
>
Well I'll be! I thought it was a stand to set meat loaf on so the fat
would drain off. Or something for baking bread so it would brown on the
bottom. I'll have to look more closely at it and see if it's actually
intended to be a grater/shredder.

Jill