This Chef Is Cutting Chives Every Day Until Reddit Says They're Perfect

Social media food challenges often involve people daring one another to eat foods that are extreme in some fashion (extra hot, extra sour, or just plain extra). That, or they revolve around consuming copious amounts. (Winning TikTok's Rock-Paper-Scissors food challenge might make you hurl.) A new challenge currently underway on Reddit, however, involves one person challenging themself to do a better job of cutting chives. (Chives and green onions aren't exactly the same, since the former are delicate and more herb than vegetable.)

The challenge, which is currently in its 43rd day and counting, involves a Redditor who goes by the handle F1exican posting photos of chopped chives every day, allowing r/KitchenConfidential users to comment on them. As per the caption, this self-proclaimed Chivelord will be "Cutting a cup of chives everyday until the Reddit says they're perfect." The first post received 355 comments; some supportive, some critical, and others entirely off-topic. (In other words, typical Reddit.) 

By post #43, there were over 1,200 comments and still no consensus. Spectators were starting to wonder if there will ever be an end in sight. As one person commented, "OP asked Reddit to call something perfect. They knew what they signed up for." At this point, the question is, will the challenge go on until time itself collapses into a black hole, or is the challengee just going to call it quits and move on to something more doable like peeling a hard-boiled egg in a Möbius strip?

The Chivelord is a knife-wielder of relatively few words, but they did reveal the ultimate fate of what so far amounts to about 4½ pounds of chopped chives. When one Reddit commenter posed the question, "What are you doing with all the chives every day?" they responded, "I've been storing some for use at home and before they go bad I put them in vinegar, but at work they get used for garnish."

If you, too, are inspired to start chopping chives every day — perhaps using Thomas Keller's pro chive chopping technique – what will you do with your bounty? Sure, chive-infused vinegar sounds tasty and pickled chives would make a great salad topper, but how many salads can one person eat?  If you don't work at a restaurant willing to absorb the excess, other ideas include adding the chives to omelets, mixing them into mashed potatoes, using them in stir-fries, or sprinkling them over soups. Any leftover chopped chives can be either frozen in ice cube trays or dried in a slow oven (185 degrees Fahrenheit or lower) in order to extend their shelf life.