6 of 8
Make Lengthwise Cuts Into Onion

Make Lengthwise Cuts Into Onion
Photo © Molly Watson
Keeping your finger tips at the root end to hold the onion steady and keep your fingers out of the way, use a very sharp knife to make cuts into the onion lengthwise, again being careful to keep the root end intact (and thus holding the onion half together). Like the horizontal cuts, the number and spacing of the lengthwise cuts help determine the size of the final chop, so make them accordingly.