Individuals with functioning in only one arm or hand may have trouble with cooking. A particularly challenging task when making a meal is cutting vegetables such as cucumbers, zucchini, cauliflower, and more.
This article will demonstrate the two methods of chopping and cutting vegetables with one hand:
Using an adaptive cutting board for a one handed person
The biggest advantage of using a modified cutting board as a one handed person is that you can cut vegetables without them slipping or rolling away.
This adaptive preparation board has metal prongs on which food can be pierced to hold it in place. From there, a knife can be used to cut and chop the vegetable into smaller pieces.
If desired, the chunk remaining on the metal prong can be removed and reattached at a different angle to expose more of the vegetable for further chopping and cutting.
Additional features an adaptive cutting board may have that can help a one handed person cook include:
- Vise grips – jaws used to hold a bowl, grater, bread or other foods
- Pivot knife – knife secured upright to the cutting board that rotates along a pivot point that can be used to cut and chop food items
- Two raised corner pieces – built up edges used to stabilize a piece of toast or bread to better spread condiments, jams and other items on top
Cutting with a careful one hand technique
Another way to cut vegetables is with a high angle overtop the food to reduce its tendency to slide or roll away.
Larger vegetables like cauliflower will have a harder time to roll, so applying pressure overtop will more easily result in two halves with a flat surface. Afterwards, place the flat surface facing down and continue chopping as needed.
With rounded vegetables such as onions that can roll away more easily, extra caution needs to be taken with the angle of cutting.
It is first recommended to make a central incision at the top of the vegetable while it sits on a cutting board.
This initial stab into the skin of the veggie is meant to allow the knife to be inserted partially into the food for greater stability.
Once the knife is placed inside, pressure is applied down the middle and from overtop to prevent the vegetable from rolling away while it is cut in half.
This produces two halves with a flat side that can then be placed facing down and chopped or cut with greater ease.
This method requires more precision and caution as the only thing that would prevent the vegetable from sliding or rolling away while it is being chopped is your technique.
As a result, it is highly suggested that one handed people utilize an adaptive cutting board where items can be secured with the use of metal prongs or vise grips to make preparing ingredients easier.
Related Article: How to Peel Potatoes with One Hand