Do you know How to Dice a Jalapeno? Jalapenos are quite popular in the culinary world; though not meant for every palate, this culinary delight is often chopped into uniform shapes to evenly distribute the heat throughout a dish. It becomes pretty relevant because it knows how to dice jalapenos the right way.
Jalapenos are quite versatile; they add great flavor and, when handled correctly, kick to sweet and savory dishes. Jalapenos also offer many health benefits; they are rich in vitamins A and C and potassium. They also have carotene, an antioxidant that may help fight damage to your cells, and folate, vitamin K, and B vitamins.
At one point, you’ll likely come across one recipe that calls for jalapenos, and learning how to dice jalapenos is a skill that will save you precious time in the kitchen. So if you are thinking about dicing jalapenos, learn the right methods and important tools to do the job.
How to Dice Jalapeno
Method 1:
Cut off and discard the pointy end of the jalapeno
Stand the jalapeno on the flat surface newly created by having cut off the tip
Holding the jalapeno steady by grabbing the base of the stem, use a sharp knife to cut down along one of the sides of the chile, cutting a strip of flesh straight down the side of the jalapeno.
Repeat all around the entire jalapeno so you have a small pile of chile strips on one side and the stem, core, and seeds on the other. Discard the stem, core, and seeds.
Cut the jalapeno slices lengthwise into thinner slices
Stack them into a pile, hold them steady, and dice them crosswise
Method 2:
- Cut the stems off the pepper and slice it in half. Use your gloved fingers to strip the seeds and white ribs of the pepper.
- With the palm of your hand, press the pepper halves down into the cutting board so they are as flat as possible.
- Cut the pepper lengthwise into julienne, or long, thin strips that are 1/8-inch wide.
- Turn the julienne strips 45 degrees so that you can cut the bunch widthwise into 1/8-inch cubes.
Method 3: Brunoise Jalapeno
With this method, you’ll obtain excellent dice. The result here is a bunch of fine cubes of fiery texture to add to top any dish that could benefit from some subtle heat.
- Slice the stem off near the tip.
- Slice in half lengthwise.
- Slice away the seed packet.
- A brunoise always starts with a julienne.
- Slice as thin as possible along each cored halve’s length.
- Step your fingers backward as you go, controlling the thickness of the slice with your leading knuckle.
- Bunch the fine strips up into a bundle.
- Shore the tips of the jalapeño strips against the plane of the knife, then slice again as fine as possible.
Common Questions About How to Dice a Jalapeno
How do you dice jalapenos?
When you know How to dice a Jalapeno, the task is easy. Cut off the stem with a pairing knife. Next, slice lengthwise, remove seeds, cut into julienne strips, turn, and dice.
- Cut off the stem end of the jalapeño. Halve the jalapeño lengthwise to remove the seeds with a spoon.
- Use the spoon to scrape the seeds and membrane out of the halves.
- Alternatively, insert the pairing knife into the stem end and slowly cut around the seeds and membrane.
- Place jalapeño halves cut-side down on the cutting board and cut lengthwise into 1/4-inch-wide sticks.
- Gather the sticks together and cut crosswise into 1/4-inch dice.
How do you cut jalapenos without seeds?
There are two ways to remove jalapeño seeds and membranes. The first is to cut the jalapeño in half lengthwise, exposing the membranes that hold the seeds in place. Then take a spoon and scrape out the membrane, working from the bottom to the top of the pepper. This method is great for beginners and works well when you want to dice a jalapeño.
The second way involves a little more skill. Remove the jalapeños stem end, then insert a paring knife into the pepper and work the knife around the seedy core. This method requires some practice but is the best way to remove the seeds for slicing the jalapeño into rings.
Do you need to wear gloves when cutting jalapenos?
Every time you handle hot peppers, make sure you have a pair of gloves handy. Gloves are used to ease the burn from jalapeños or other hot peppers, so wearing plastic gloves to dice jalapenos is a good idea if you want to avoid jalapeno hands.
What is jalapeno hands?
While the heat produced by the capsaicin in hot peppers is actually enjoyable for many in food, it is not so enjoyable when it comes into contact with the skin, eyes, or ears when preparing the peppers for cooking. Home cooks are especially at risk for jalapeño hands or the prolonged stinging and burning of the skin after it comes into contact with the capsaicin-rich oils of the pepper when slicing or chopping fresh hot peppers.
The jalapeño hands effect can last for hours as the capsaicin oil is not easily washed away.
How to use diced jalapenos?
Use diced jalapeños for adding to salsa, dips, or pierogi.
Is there a specific knife to dice a jalapeno?
The best knife to dice a jalapeno is a pairing knife. In addition to your paring knife, ensure you have a quality cutting board and a spoon.
What is the best pairing knife to dice jalapenos?
Check out this excellent choice:
Linoroso Paring Knife
The Linoroso MAKO series 4.5” small paring knife is made from imported expertly forged single piece of ice-tempered German high carbon, stainless steel, one of the best culinary cutlery materials on the market.
The blade comes in at a staggering 58+ on the Rockwell hardness scale through a rigorous hardening process involving vacuum heat treatment and rapid cooling. Outstanding craftsmanship, and cutting-edge technology. Peak performance has never looked so good at this price.
This 4.5” small paring knife is suitable for garnishing, mincing, peeling, slicing, and dicing.
Features:
- Modern, Innovative Design
- Incredibly Razor Sharp
- Premium Material
- Full tang
Additional Tips on How to Dice a Jalapeno
- Cutting the pointy end of the jalapeno is an important step to create a flat surface that will make seeding and cutting the rest of the jalapeno much quicker and easier.
- Do not touch your eyes or nose while cutting hot pepper, with or without gloves. Nothing is more unpleasant than being temporarily blinded by a burning eye or nostril.
- When performing the brunoise jalapeno, the blade should slide back and forth along the cutting board, the heal lifting slightly as you pull back and coming down as you slide forward, taking care to contact the board to cut clean through the thin skin of the jalapeño.
- When holding your knife, the knuckle sets the position. You will avoid cutting your fingers by keeping all of your fingers behind that knuckle pinned at the plane of the blade.
