No one watches you cook and/or criticizes your technique at a dinner party, they just eat the results and tell you how delicious it was.

I guess I shouldn't say nobody, but I haven't seen it happen.

Seriously, try the ulu. The amount of control is amazing.

It's so exotic-sounding, as well. And looks like some sort of Nepalese weapon.

yeah, that's why the finer/smaller the cutting (from whole cloves down to fine mince/smash), the stronger the flavor...

Damn, for some reason this just reminded me of a resturaunt in Boston that's no more called UVA. They used to have garlic bread that was these delicious doughy rolls with whole cloves of roasted garlic baked into them (and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese baked onto the the top). They were teh YUM!!!!

But this is what I do. If I'm making onions I just use the same food processor to chop the garlic.

more detail

cook the onion til it is translucent. add garlic. stir. add tomatoes. yes 10 to 15 seconds before you add liquid.

I have a basic tomato soup. 3-4 cloves of diced garlic throw into a pan with oil. stir. cook for maybe a minute. and 2 tbsp paprika. stir. cook for maybe 30 seconds. add some splahes of sherry . add large can of v-8 or tomato juice. heat through. serve with shredded cheddar or yogurt or sour cream....

Key, have everything ready to go before you start. never take your eyes off the pot til the juice is in . be ready to toss the garlic if you get distracted.

and yes I have an eletric stove. Key to the electric stove, start it lower than you think you need.

One thing the DH does is cut the top off of frozen veggie bags, and then uses the plastic strip he cut off to tie shut the reclosed bag.

That's so logical and obvious that I am disturbed by how much I'm impressed by that.

Was I impressed by this cool trick? Yes, I was.

Heh. Good tip!

I was indactrinated in love of kitchen shears early on, by my mother who would cut through chicken pieces (including bone) like nobody's business. The shears - Cutco- come apart and are dishwasher safe.

Definitely useful for butterflying a chicken easily.

This enables an enzyme called allinase to come in contact and combine with the precursor or substrate alliin to form allicin, which contains the odoriferous constituent of garlic."

Ooh baby!

Hubby cooks. The only thing I do in the kitchen is tell him when the pasta's done, because his idea of al dente does not match that of the rest of the world. His either crunches or is mush.

I'm trying to achieve a thinner-than-paper state of Nirvana.

That's the theory in the Goodfellas scene. If you slice it thin enough it just dissolves into the sauce and so there's minimal loss of garlic oils.

You should be able to slice garlic thin enough that it's completely translucent. Not that it's necessary for most recipes, but that's definitely doable.

Nutty! You are vastly more likely to cut yourself badly with a dull knife than with a sharp one.

I think you people misunderestimate my ability to leave my fingers directly under the knife when I am, e.g., chopping onions. It's never the fault of the force or swiftness of the knife hand; it's the fault of locating the not-knife hand. (Really!)

garlic

Smashed flat, or whole, or sliced a bit. I never bother to mince. Although I have a strong, fond memory of the movie Goodfellas, in which one of the mobsters slices his garlic with a razor blade.

food processor

I just got one of these for Xmas! I haven't actually used it yet, but I will soon!

In other news, I have been to Sephora (I have a wedding to attend tomorrow) and have returned with brown mascara, lavender glitter eyeshadow, and a purple eyeliner. And sushi, because I needed lunch.