Bluff your way into: cutting techniques

Julienne cutting: as a true foodie, we don’t need to explain what that is to you, right? But did you already know these cutting techniques? With this overview, you’ll not only know how to use the perfect cut everywhere, you’ll also effortlessly bluff your friends under the table. Memorize them and show at the next drinks party/dinner that you’re the real chopping champion.

Is it really important to cut everything into equal-sized pieces? Maybe not, if you’re not too much of a perfectionist. But by cutting your vegetables the same way, they all cook evenly, which ultimately really benefits the flavor of your food. Besides, it obviously looks beautifully professional too.

Important: without a sharp knife, you won’t get anywhere. This compact knife is razor-sharp and affordable, and glides right through all your vegetables.

Just to be sure: Julienne

Julienne is also often described as matchsticks in recipes, because it looks suspiciously similar in shape. If a recipe says you need to cut a fine julienne, that means 1.5 millimeters; a regular one is 3 millimeters.

Batonnet

Nothing more than a slightly wider version of a julienne, 6 millimeters to be precise.

Brunoise

From your fine or regular julienne, you can now cut brunoise. That means equal cubes of 1.5 and 3 millimeters, respectively. You will often use these as the basis for sauces.

Small cubes

Cut these from batonnet, resulting in equal 6-millimeter cubes. In English recipes, this is referred to as fine dice.

Oblique

Often used for eggplant, carrot, and zucchini, the shape looks a bit like a pencil sharpener. It looks a little more appealing than ordinary cubes, and because you cut at an angle, you get a larger surface area. And frying a larger surface area means a crispier exterior. You do it by holding your knife at an angle and then cutting downward. After each cut, turn your vegetable over and cut in the same direction. Still not quite following? Scroll down for the video.

Tourner

A very old-fashioned technique that is rarely used anymore. Still, it’s fun to incorporate it into a dish once and show off your knife skills. It looks a bit like an American football and is trimmed into a rounded shape on seven sides.

Video

There are so many cutting techniques that sometimes you need a visual aid. Check out this video; it explains all the techniques above (and more), and makes it easy to see how to cut them.

Read also:

• How to make star chef Joël Robuchon’s ultimate decadent mashed potatoes
• Leftover egg whites or yolks?
• Tips for the most delicious (loaded!) baked sweet potatoes