Cutting Techniques
Anyone serious about cooking dreams of mastering knife skills like a professional chef. While impressive knife techniques can be visually captivating, there are far more important reasons why every enthusiastic home cook should learn different cutting techniques.
Good knife technique is the foundation of efficient and safe cooking. Whether you’re finely chopping vegetables, precisely portioning meat, or delicately slicing herbs, the right technique makes a significant difference. In this guide, we’ll cover essential cutting techniques you need in the kitchen, how to learn them, and how they can improve your cooking skills.
Why mastering knife techniques is important
Firstly, using the correct cutting method ensures uniformity. Take a carrot, for example: due to its tapering shape, it is often cut into uneven pieces. This might seem easier, but uneven pieces cook at different rates—the larger pieces need more time than the smaller ones. Cutting pieces evenly helps ensure that everything cooks consistently.
Secondly, knife techniques enhance the visual appeal of a dish. Perfectly cut fruits and vegetables are not only more attractive but also make a dish more appetizing and inviting.
Lastly, mastering knife techniques increases safety. Using a chef’s knife confidently greatly reduces the risk of accidents. When you have the techniques down, the chance of cutting yourself is much lower.
Key Knife Techniques
1. Julienne
The julienne technique involves cutting ingredients, typically vegetables, into long, thin strips resembling matchsticks. These strips are usually 1 to 2 mm thick and about 4 to 5 cm long. The julienne technique allows for quick, even cooking, which is perfect for adding fine textures to dishes. This method is most often applied to vegetables like carrots, celery, and zucchini, but softer meats or fish can also be cut julienne-style for stir-fry or steaming. Due to the thin, uniform strips, ingredients cook quickly and distribute flavor evenly throughout the dish. Julienne is frequently used in classic French cuisine for soups, broths, and sauces, where flavors must blend seamlessly without large pieces altering the texture. (Larousse Gastronomique, 2021)
2. Brunoise
Brunoise cutting starts with the julienne technique: vegetables or fruit are first cut into thin strips, which are then diced into tiny, uniform cubes. This fine cut is ideal for adding to sauces, soups, and stews, allowing ingredients to cook evenly.
3. Ciseler (Mincing)
Ciseler, often called "mincing" in English, is commonly used for herbs, leafy greens, and soft vegetables like mushrooms, zucchini, pickles, and cucumber. Learning this technique requires controlling the cutting motion with your guiding hand. Ciselering is done at high speed and involves lifting the knife fully off the cutting board. Quick up-and-down movements produce thin slices. Besides mastering the technique, a very sharp knife is essential for effective ciselering. Known as "snipperen" in Dutch, it’s a basic technique in both home and professional kitchens, especially for onions, garlic, and shallots.
4. Slicing
Slicing involves cutting vegetables or fruits into thin, even slices. This technique is practical for making sandwiches, serving raw vegetables, or preparing dishes like lasagna.
5. Carré (Dicing)
In French cuisine, carré refers to a method of cutting ingredients into larger cubes, typically 1 cm by 1 cm. With this technique, it’s important that the cubes are perfectly square and uniform, ensuring even cooking and a tidy presentation, ideal for stews and ratatouille.
6. Tourné
The tourné technique is a classic method in French cuisine, creating an elongated oval shape with seven uniform sides that gives vegetables a refined, elegant appearance. This technique is typically applied to vegetables like potatoes, carrots, and squash, primarily for presentation, as tournéed vegetables add a touch of sophistication to a dish. A tourné knife, a small knife with a curved blade, is typically used for this unique shape, although a regular paring knife can also work.
7. Chiffonade
The chiffonade technique is commonly used for leafy greens and herbs like basil and spinach. This involves cutting the leaves into thin ribbons, making an elegant garnish for soups, salads, and pasta dishes.
8. Macédoine
The macédoine technique is similar to brunoise but with slightly larger cubes, around 5 mm. This size is deliberately chosen, matching the size of peas, commonly used in a ‘macédoine de légumes’—a salad of various vegetables cut to a similar size for uniformity and visual appeal.
9. Chinoise
As the name suggests, the chinoise technique originates from Chinese cuisine. In this technique, vegetables like carrots or leeks are sliced diagonally to create diamond shapes. Vegetables cut in this way are often blanched first and then added to salads or soups. The shape and size allow for quick cooking and a visually pleasing appearance.
10. Jardinière
The jardinière technique, also known as ‘baton,’ is similar to julienne but allows for larger cuts. This technique produces sticks or batons of around 4-5 cm long and 1 cm wide, similar to French fries. It’s ideal for vegetables meant to be visible and retain texture in dishes like stews.
11. Emincé
Emincé refers to slicing ingredients such as mushrooms, truffles, or garlic into very thin slices. There are no fixed dimensions for this technique. Thin slices ensure quick cooking and help flavors blend well into the dish.
Sources:
- Larousse Gastronomique, 2021 Edition
- Auguste Escoffier, Le Guide Culinaire
