Food prep and cutting technique

[Dicentra]

I've been reading the new foods thread and enjoying reading about all the amazing things everyone is cooking up and trying. 🙂  It got me thinking about culinary traditions which led me to thinking about knife cutting techniques as I was cutting up veggies for a pasta salad.

Do you always use a cutting board (or some sort of hard surface) for food prep or do you sometimes cut against your thumb?

I come from a very plain, simple culinary heritage.  My mother's family came from Sweden in the late 19th century and settled in Minnesota and later in Manitoba and they farmed.  I learned most of my cooking techniques from my grandma and mother.  They didn't have much in the way of "fancy" 🙂 things and one of the earliest memories I have of my grandma cooking is her standing over a pan at her woodstove and slicing potatoes into the pan to cook - against her thumb.  No cutting board.  I don't actually know if she had a cutting board.  In case anyone is unfamiliar with what I mean by "cutting against your thumb", here is a video example:

 

It should start at around the 2:07 mark and you'll see what I mean by cutting against your thumb.  I admit - I do this all the time.  I have good, sharp knives and I still do it and have never cut my thumb.  Mind you, I don't do it with all things - usually only softer, smaller fruits or veggies - and I know when to stop the pressure of the knife just before it hits the pad of my thumb.  And you NEVER push or pull the knife back and forth - always just a straight push through the food.  The hardest (in terms of texture) item I've ever done this technique with is baby carrots.  I definitely wouldn't do it with turnips or anything where you have to use a lot of pressure to get the knife through.  I either use my petty knife or my bird's beak paring knife (LOVE that knife) to cut against my thumb.  If I need to do harder vegetables, I'll use my 8" chef's knife and a cutting board.  I'll also use my chef's knife and cutting board if I need to dice or chop a lot of veggies quickly.  I've been doing this since I was small and was learning to cook with my grandma and mom.  I thought everyone did it.  Turns out - NOT. 😄  When my husband first saw me doing it, he freaked out - thought I was going to slice my thumb in half.

So my question... Does anyone else do the thumb cutting technique?  You can give me heck for doing it, I suppose, but I'm still likely to do it anyway. 😉  I'm more interested if this was done in certain cultures or related to certain times in history, economics (couldn't afford a cutting board - that seems odd, though, as it's just a piece of wood), etc.

[YaelAldrich]

If I am cutting a small amount of something I can and have used that thumb technique.  But for more than a small amount of stuff, the big chef's knife and cutting board come out!

[mom31257]

Another same! I do have a couple of knives that I would never use against my thumb, though. 

[Dicentra]

1 minute ago, mom31257 said:

Another same! I do have a couple of knives that I would never use against my thumb, though. 

It's possible that my knives aren't as sharp as I think. 😉 But they are sharp enough to easily cut tomatoes very thinly.  And I would never do it with a larger knife - the knife needs to "fit" in your hand to do this with any control, if you know what I mean.

So did folks learn this from mothers and grandmothers (or fathers and grandfathers)?  What cultural cooking tradition is everyone from?  I'm just curious if it's culture specific.

[JustEm]

always on a cutting board and I do all my cutting before I start cooking, unless there is time between steps that allows for cutting

[alisoncooks]

I do both. Any cooking skills I have (minimal) are self-taught. 

(ETA: as far as cooking tradition: rural, southern, farming community)

Edited June 9, 2020 by alisoncooks

[gardenmom5]

we have sharp knives.  Cutting against one's thumb isn't recommended, and can easily lead to cuts.

[mom31257]

2 minutes ago, Dicentra said:

It's possible that my knives aren't as sharp as I think. 😉 But they are sharp enough to easily cut tomatoes very thinly.  And I would never do it with a larger knife - the knife needs to "fit" in your hand to do this with any control, if you know what I mean.

So did folks learn this from mothers and grandmothers (or fathers and grandfathers)?  What cultural cooking tradition is everyone from?  I'm just curious if it's culture specific.

I learned most all my cooking skills from my mother and grandmother (on her side). They were from north Georgia, so it was a Southern cooking culture. 

I've learned a little on my own through trial and error and Youtube. 

[cjzimmer1]

I've always cut against my thumb since I was a kid but all we ever had was the little paring knives.  My mom never owned a chef knife to my knowledge.  So yeah that's completely normal to me.  As I've gotten older and more adventurous in my cooking,  I've learned that a cutting board and chef knife are better tools for some jobs so occasionally I use them but I would say 80% of my cutting is still against my thumb.  It freaks my kids out,  they will only use cutting boards.

I'm in the upper midwest, from a german culture.  I don't know if culture makes the difference, I would expect it's more than previous generations on the whole just made do with less.  

I have Cutco knives and yes they are very sharp and yes I still cut against my thumb without self harming.

Edited June 9, 2020 by cjzimmer1

[cjzimmer1]

duplicate post

 

Edited June 9, 2020 by cjzimmer1

[prairiewindmomma]

My grandmother taught me to cut against my thumb.  I still do that for strawberries but that's about it.

[Bambam]

I often cut against my thumb. Much to my sorrow, sometimes I cut myself and remind myself that there is a cutting board and it is much safer. But your thumb is so much easier, easier to clean, quicker, etc that I go back to that way after my thumb has healed from the last cut. I wish I weren't so careless. My kids call me Mom of the 9 fingers. I have sliced off parts before - even with a cutting board. If my kids did this, I'm not sure I'd let them have a knife. 

[Dicentra]

5 minutes ago, cjzimmer1 said:

I've always cut against my thumb since I was a kid but all we ever had was the little paring knives.  My mom never owned a chef knife to my knowledge.  So yeah that's completely normal to me.  As I've gotten older and more adventurous in my cooking,  I've learned that a cutting board and chef knife are better tools for some jobs so occasionally I use them but I would say 80% of my cutting is still against my thumb.  It freaks my kids out,  they will only use cutting boards.

I'm in the upper midwest, from a german culture.  I don't know if culture makes the difference, I would expect it's more than previous generations on the whole just made do with less.  

I have Cutco knives and yes they are very sharp and yes I still cut against my thumb without self harming.

I was thinking maybe the bolded (mine) was the reason.  And there was one less thing to wash when doing dishes (no cutting board). 😉  My father's side is German and I think I remember my paternal grandmother cutting against her thumb, too, but more so my Swedish maternal grandmother.

[prairiewindmomma]

I forgot to answer Part B. Sorry, ds came in and my train of thought got broken.

I think cutting against the thumb is fairly common in the Midwest farming community I grew up in.  One part of that dynamic is that kitchens are typically small (houses are small, barns are big), so there isn't room for more than 1-2 people in the kitchen.  I spent a lot of summers growing up processing food for canning and we all just sat around outside under a shade tree in our lawn chairs snapping beans, etc.  Some of that behavior carried over to family gatherings. We'd all peel apples or potatoes or whatever together on holidays as we prepped pies or soups or whatever.  We also had quilting bees, etc.  Life was very communal.  We were all working, working hard, but to make the time pass we'd gather together to get stuff done.

[Dicentra]

6 minutes ago, prairiewindmomma said:

I forgot to answer Part B. Sorry, ds came in and my train of thought got broken.

I think cutting against the thumb is fairly common in the Midwest farming community I grew up in.  One part of that dynamic is that kitchens are typically small (houses are small, barns are big), so there isn't room for more than 1-2 people in the kitchen.  I spent a lot of summers growing up processing food for canning and we all just sat around outside under a shade tree in our lawn chairs snapping beans, etc.  Some of that behavior carried over to family gatherings. We'd all peel apples or potatoes or whatever together on holidays as we prepped pies or soups or whatever.  We also had quilting bees, etc.  Life was very communal.  We were all working, working hard, but to make the time pass we'd gather together to get stuff done.

That's true!  My Swedish immigrant ancestors were in Minnesota/Manitoba so definitely that same communal farming type of life.  And yes to the small kitchens - not room for anything "extra".

You mentioned peeling apples and potatoes and now I have another question. 🙂

For those who always use a cutting board, how do you peel apples and potatoes?  I would use my paring knife or petty knife (or bird's beak paring knife) and peel sort of against my thumb.  Definitely in hand.  I have one of the Swedish made peelers that you see the lady in the video using a bit earlier and sometimes I'll use that on other veggies like carrots or cucumbers but I'll use it the opposite way from her - peeling down and away from me in straight strokes.  For anything round that fits in my hand, I'll use a knife with an against the thumb technique.

[Matryoshka]

48 minutes ago, YaelAldrich said:

If I am cutting a small amount of something I can and have used that thumb technique.  But for more than a small amount of stuff, the big chef's knife and cutting board come out!

Yep, me too.

[Dicentra]

As I was looking for videos on YouTube to show the against the thumb technique, I came across this video.  I don't know if there is a specific name for the kind of knife she's using or the technique but she's got to have nerves of steel to do what she's doing!  Hats off to her extraordinary knife skills!

 

[Matryoshka]

3 minutes ago, Dicentra said:

That's true!  My Swedish immigrant ancestors were in Minnesota/Manitoba so definitely that same communal farming type of life.  And yes to the small kitchens - not room for anything "extra".

You mentioned peeling apples and potatoes and now I have another question. 🙂

For those who always use a cutting board, how do you peel apples and potatoes?  I would use my paring knife or petty knife (or bird's beak paring knife) and peel sort of against my thumb.  Definitely in hand.  I have one of the Swedish made peelers that you see the lady in the video using a bit earlier and sometimes I'll use that on other veggies like carrots or cucumbers but I'll use it the opposite way from her - peeling down and away from me in straight strokes.  For anything round that fits in my hand, I'll use a knife with an against the thumb technique.

I'm not one who always uses a cutting board, but had to comment on peelers. 🙂 I used to have two of the most awesome peelers ever that my mom got me in Germany.  They would peel anything. So easy.    But they only peeled in one direction, which if you're a righty, was toward your thumb.  So I got very adept at doing it that way.  They recently came to the end of their lives 😭, and are no longer made (confirmed by both web searches and multiple trips to actual Germany).  I now have another German peeler which is good, but not as awesome, and it peels in both directions.  I find I'm mostly still peeling toward my thumb; it seems to give me more control...

[Dicentra]

7 minutes ago, Matryoshka said:

I'm not one who always uses a cutting board, but had to comment on peelers. 🙂 I used to have two of the most awesome peelers ever that my mom got me in Germany.  They would peel anything. So easy.    But they only peeled in one direction, which if you're a righty, was toward your thumb.  So I got very adept at doing it that way.  They recently came to the end of their lives 😭, and are no longer made (confirmed by both web searches and multiple trips to actual Germany).  I now have another German peeler which is good, but not as awesome, and it peels in both directions.  I find I'm mostly still peeling toward my thumb; it seems to give me more control...

This is the peeler I have and I remember my grandmother having the same one (but hers and mine don't have the soft grip handle - they are all metal):

https://www.amazon.com/Linden-Sweden-Fruit-Vegetable-Peeler/dp/B00BP3Z8LW/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Linden+Sweden+Original+Jonas+Vegetable+Peeler&qid=1591740413&sr=8-1

There seems to be a Japanese one that's similar:

https://www.amazon.com/Vegetable-Peeler-stainless-plasctic-safety/dp/B07G8RYJB9/ref=sr_1_15?dchild=1&keywords=Linden+Sweden+Original+Jonas+Vegetable+Peeler&qid=1591740413&sr=8-15

They take getting used to but I've tried all kinds of peelers and this is the one I prefer (I have the Linden one).  But maybe that's because it's the one I learned with in grandma's kitchen. 🙂

And yes @happysmileylady - I have one of those apple peelers, too!  I rarely use it, though.  Maybe I just don't make enough stuff that requires lots of peeled apples.  I'll let my husband know that he'll be getting more fruit crisps in future. 😉 🙂

[Matryoshka]

1 minute ago, Dicentra said:

This is the peeler I have and I remember my grandmother having the same one (but hers and mine don't have the soft grip handle - they are all metal):

https://www.amazon.com/Linden-Sweden-Fruit-Vegetable-Peeler/dp/B00BP3Z8LW/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Linden+Sweden+Original+Jonas+Vegetable+Peeler&qid=1591740413&sr=8-1

There seems to be a Japanese one that's similar:

https://www.amazon.com/Vegetable-Peeler-stainless-plasctic-safety/dp/B07G8RYJB9/ref=sr_1_15?dchild=1&keywords=Linden+Sweden+Original+Jonas+Vegetable+Peeler&qid=1591740413&sr=8-15

They take getting used to but I've tried all kinds of peelers and this is the one I prefer (I have the Linden one).  But maybe that's because it's the one I learned with in grandma's kitchen. 🙂

My German one was similar to that, but had a plastic handle with a piece that continued behind the blade, and for some reason only one side of the blade was sharp. I also think it might have had a carbon blade?    What I liked about it compared to other similar peelers was that it took off a bit of a thicker peel - so, say, peeling a butternut squash was easy.  I could peel an apple no problem all in one piece without a fancy apple peeler.  Man, I miss my peelers!

[cintinative]

I did not read the other replies. I took a "knife skills" class years ago at a local culinary store (for normal people, not future chefs). We were taught to not cut toward ourselves so the video is not something they would have had us do. I also do not cut over a pot. If I do cut myself, my blood goes in the pot too, and yech.

Full disclosure: I do cut myself even despite my "training."  😃

Has anyone watched Worst Cooks in America? The one chef will color on their pointer finger with red if they have it sitting on the top of the knife.  I think our teacher in my class taught us the same. 

[Dicentra]

7 minutes ago, Matryoshka said:

My German one was similar to that, but had a plastic handle with a piece that continued behind the blade, and for some reason only one side of the blade was sharp. I also think it might have had a carbon blade?    What I liked about it compared to other similar peelers was that it took off a bit of a thicker peel - so, say, peeling a butternut squash was easy.  I could peel an apple no problem all in one piece without a fancy apple peeler.  Man, I miss my peelers!

A good peeler is worth its weight in gold!  I'm sorry you can't get your peelers. 😞  My mom has a German kitchen gadget that I think she inherited from my dad's mother - a Rührfix Hand Mixer.  That thing is HANDY.  I hope it hasn't broken and I get to inherit it someday. 🙂

[klmama]

I cut produce like that all the time.  Over the pot, too, lol!  In my own defense, though, I've never cut myself doing it that way.  Maybe because my knives aren't very sharp?  When the dc came along, I taught them to use a knife on a cutting board.  They all look at me weird when I do it against my thumb.  

[Pawz4me]

In thinking about it I don't recall ever seeing either of my grandmothers use a cutting board. They both cut with their thumbs, like the video, and they were usually cutting directly into a pot or pan. I'm mainly remembering things like potatoes and apples. I have no memory of seeing either of them cutting meat. I only remember my mother using a cutting board after I left home (my early 20's). So I'm thinking maybe it's more an age or current-way-of-doing-it thing than regional or cultural? I cut both ways,  but mostly use a cutting board. I've never been able to develop really good knife skills, though.

[Dicentra]

10 minutes ago, Dreamergal said:

 

She is using this.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boti

But you need to sit on the floor to be safe. Many old Indian homes used to have this embedded into stone at counter height. It used to have a grindstone, a stone grinder and this embedded in a wet kitchen, more a prep kitchen where meat and vegetable is processed, masalas are ground, batter is made for fermenting and so on. 

The other version of this knife has something to desiccate coconut.  

Cool!  I suppose it's sort of the same idea as cutting against one's thumb but I was flinching when she was cutting the garlic - her fingers were so close to that blade!  Pretty amazing!

[cintinative]

1 hour ago, happysmileylady said:

I LOVE "Worst Cooks!" lol.  I have watched every seasons for the last like 5 years or so.  I learn quite a bit from that show lol.  

The chef is Chef Ann.  

 

I couldn't remember her name for some reason! My son likes to watch all those kind of shows: Chopped, Guy's Grocery Games, Worst Cooks in America, etc. I agree I have learned from Worst Cooks. And sometimes it is so funny!

[fairfarmhand]

2 hours ago, mom31257 said:

I learned most all my cooking skills from my mother and grandmother (on her side). They were from north Georgia, so it was a Southern cooking culture. 

I've learned a little on my own through trial and error and Youtube. 

yes to cutting against the thumb.
I learned from my mom who learned from her mom, they lived in ft Oglethorpe Georgia. 
I never saw a cutting board and chefs knife in either of their kitchens. I never remember either of them cutting themselves.

i do this with small things, cukes, berries, etc. in fact, I learned it cutting bananas for peanut butter and banana sandwiches. I only ever use a paring knife for this kind of cutting. 

2 hours ago, Dicentra said:

That's true!  My Swedish immigrant ancestors were in Minnesota/Manitoba so definitely that same communal farming type of life.  And yes to the small kitchens - not room for anything "extra".

You mentioned peeling apples and potatoes and now I have another question. 🙂

For those who always use a cutting board, how do you peel apples and potatoes?  I would use my paring knife or petty knife (or bird's beak paring knife) and peel sort of against my thumb.  Definitely in hand.  I have one of the Swedish made peelers that you see the lady in the video using a bit earlier and sometimes I'll use that on other veggies like carrots or cucumbers but I'll use it the opposite way from her - peeling down and away from me in straight strokes.  For anything round that fits in my hand, I'll use a knife with an against the thumb technique.

I use a vegetable peeler but my mom and grandmother used knives cutting toward themselves. 
 

I will say, my knives are very sharp but I never cut myself cutting against My thumb, but it’s probably because I’m cutting smaller softer things.

[sarahbobeara]

Midwestern thumb cutter here too. Swedish/Welsh heritage.

I often watch my kids use a cutting board and I tell them, just cut against your thumb! Quit dirtying a giant cutting board for one apple! My kids don't cook that much so maybe it's just unfamiliarity with our paring knives. 

[Dicentra]

1 hour ago, sarahbobeara said:

Midwestern thumb cutter here too. Swedish/Welsh heritage.

I often watch my kids use a cutting board and I tell them, just cut against your thumb! Quit dirtying a giant cutting board for one apple! My kids don't cook that much so maybe it's just unfamiliarity with our paring knives. 

Admittedly, that's part of my reason - I don't want to have to wash the cutting board all the time. 😉 😄

[Ottakee]

Grew up in the Midwest with Dutch/German grandmother and mother.  I don't recall either of them ever having a cutting board.  Grandma had a wooden pull out Bread board for slicing bread and maybe she used it for a cutting board.   I don't recall a cutting board at home growing up.

I cut some things towards my thumb and other things on a cutting board.

I do have to say though that both my grandmother and mother were both very simple cooks.  Not sure either of them kept onions regularly, certainly no fresh garlic.  We do didn't eat a ton of fresh fruits of veggies that would need cutting up.

To be fair, we lived in a rural area, grocery stores were not stocked with all of the fresh produce they are now and we were poor.  We ate a very basic diet and lots of processed (shelf stable) foods.

[mom31257]

2 hours ago, fairfarmhand said:

yes to cutting against the thumb.
I learned from my mom who learned from her mom, they lived in ft Oglethorpe Georgia. 
I never saw a cutting board and chefs knife in either of their kitchens. I never remember either of them cutting themselves.

 

Mine lived in Chatsworth, so not far! And my daughter is in Chattanooga. 

[math teacher]

5 hours ago, Dicentra said:

I've been reading the new foods thread and enjoying reading about all the amazing things everyone is cooking up and trying. 🙂  It got me thinking about culinary traditions which led me to thinking about knife cutting techniques as I was cutting up veggies for a pasta salad.

Do you always use a cutting board (or some sort of hard surface) for food prep or do you sometimes cut against your thumb?

I come from a very plain, simple culinary heritage.  My mother's family came from Sweden in the late 19th century and settled in Minnesota and later in Manitoba and they farmed.  I learned most of my cooking techniques from my grandma and mother.  They didn't have much in the way of "fancy" 🙂 things and one of the earliest memories I have of my grandma cooking is her standing over a pan at her woodstove and slicing potatoes into the pan to cook - against her thumb.  No cutting board.  I don't actually know if she had a cutting board.  In case anyone is unfamiliar with what I mean by "cutting against your thumb", here is a video example:

 

It should start at around the 2:07 mark and you'll see what I mean by cutting against your thumb.  I admit - I do this all the time.  I have good, sharp knives and I still do it and have never cut my thumb.  Mind you, I don't do it with all things - usually only softer, smaller fruits or veggies - and I know when to stop the pressure of the knife just before it hits the pad of my thumb.  And you NEVER push or pull the knife back and forth - always just a straight push through the food.  The hardest (in terms of texture) item I've ever done this technique with is baby carrots.  I definitely wouldn't do it with turnips or anything where you have to use a lot of pressure to get the knife through.  I either use my petty knife or my bird's beak paring knife (LOVE that knife) to cut against my thumb.  If I need to do harder vegetables, I'll use my 8" chef's knife and a cutting board.  I'll also use my chef's knife and cutting board if I need to dice or chop a lot of veggies quickly.  I've been doing this since I was small and was learning to cook with my grandma and mom.  I thought everyone did it.  Turns out - NOT. 😄  When my husband first saw me doing it, he freaked out - thought I was going to slice my thumb in half.

So my question... Does anyone else do the thumb cutting technique?  You can give me heck for doing it, I suppose, but I'm still likely to do it anyway. 😉  I'm more interested if this was done in certain cultures or related to certain times in history, economics (couldn't afford a cutting board - that seems odd, though, as it's just a piece of wood), etc.

I was raised this way-my mom probably still does it. I have transitioned to a cutting board for nearly everything. Holdouts are boiled eggs-I have a certain knife that I use for them. When I'm cutting bad spots off of vegetable, I use the thumb method, but I use a knife that isn't as sharp as my good knives.

[SereneHome]

So I was born in a different country and yes, we had cutting boards and I do use them for certain things but i also "cut it in my hand" (basically against a thumb, but I never thought of it that way 🙂 ) all.the.time. I think it's faster that way. I never "learned" to cook from anyone, I just kind of started doing it. And I cut and chop things the way it makes sense to me

My husband, on another hand, learned it from a professional chef and can do many things i probably can't. But!!! he always tells me that I can make enough food for an army in a NY minute, while he takes forever bc while he knows all the right techniques, it takes him a long time

[Laura Corin]

11 hours ago, YaelAldrich said:

If I am cutting a small amount of something I can and have used that thumb technique.  But for more than a small amount of stuff, the big chef's knife and cutting board come out!

This was my mother's habit too (grew up in Devon, England).  I pretty much always use a cutting board.

Edited June 10, 2020 by Laura Corin

[Andromeda]

I cut things up in the hand, toward the thumb/toward self most of the time. If I have a large amount of cutting to do, I use a cutting board, but my in-hand cutting is faster and more controlled in terms of size and thickness.

When I was growing up, watching people do this terrified me, but now I don't even think about it. I am not at the level of skill I observed as a child though. I have a memory of watching a neighbor cut tomatoes and onion paper-thin in her hand for salad. It was a work of art.

Now, here's something I haven't seen mentioned in this thread yet. I have a memory of (mostly men) cutting a loaf of bread, hug-style. I tried to Google images or videos of this, but wasn't successful. Basically, you grab a large crusty loaf, either a round one or an oblong one, wrap your non-dominant arm around it so it is anchored by your arm against your chest, and then use your dominant hand to cut a thick slice across, toward your body. You stop while the slice is still attached, but nearly cut through with maybe a quarter inch left. Then you pull the slice from the loaf.

I only have this memory from childhood. I don't remember seeing anybody do this as a teen or as an adult. This would be a more rural community before the super widely available presliced bread in the shops.

ETA

I do use a vegetable peeler, but I am faster and more efficient at  peeling with a paring knife.

Edited June 10, 2020 by RosemaryAndThyme

[katilac]

Cutting board. I already burn myself in the kitchen far too often, I don't need to add stabbing myself as well. 

I use a peeler for carrots, away from me. I hardly ever peel apples or potatoes. I will sometimes use a knife for that, but I'm still not cutting straight toward my thumb like she is in the video, because it's the whole potato rather than small pieces already. 

 

[SounderChick]

My mom taught me to uses cutting board.  My grandma did against the thumb but she was a horrible cook.  So I think my mom ditches everything she was taught by her. 

[Kassia]

I always use a cutting board.  DH does it both ways - his mom always cuts against the thumb.  

[Dicentra]

Thanks for all the replies, everyone!  I was truly curious about this as I'm the only one of my friends IRL who does this.  I'm glad to know there are others out there. 🙂

[Tap]

I tend do it whichever way is faster/less messy. I'm not going to chop a bag of carrots directly on my hand and then into the pan (it would take to long), but a single carrot...sure. I thought everyone did this with small, simple items. I have sharp knives, so it doesn't take much force to get through most items. If I had dull knives, I think I would be less likely to cut in my hand. I would worry more about the knife slipping off wet produce.

I wouldn't cut raw meat in my hand unless it was something soft like chopping raw shrimp or something similar.  

[Laura Corin]

19 hours ago, RosemaryAndThyme said:

I cut things up in the hand, toward the thumb/toward self most of the time. If I have a large amount of cutting to do, I use a cutting board, but my in-hand cutting is faster and more controlled in terms of size and thickness.

When I was growing up, watching people do this terrified me, but now I don't even think about it. I am not at the level of skill I observed as a child though. I have a memory of watching a neighbor cut tomatoes and onion paper-thin in her hand for salad. It was a work of art.

Now, here's something I haven't seen mentioned in this thread yet. I have a memory of (mostly men) cutting a loaf of bread, hug-style. I tried to Google images or videos of this, but wasn't successful. Basically, you grab a large crusty loaf, either a round one or an oblong one, wrap your non-dominant arm around it so it is anchored by your arm against your chest, and then use your dominant hand to cut a thick slice across, toward your body. You stop while the slice is still attached, but nearly cut through with maybe a quarter inch left. Then you pull the slice from the loaf.

I only have this memory from childhood. I don't remember seeing anybody do this as a teen or as an adult. This would be a more rural community before the super widely available presliced bread in the shops.

ETA

I do use a vegetable peeler, but I am faster and more efficient at  peeling with a paring knife.

I remember men cutting bread hug-style when I visited rural France in the late 60s.  It was the large round loaves that they cut like that.

I found myself cutting a peach in my hand this morning.  I think I do this for soft things when I only have a few cuts to make.