Happy Monday all! I hope you all had a great weekend! If you were MIA this weekend I just wanted to let you know that I had a fun surprise this past Saturday. I am teaming up with two other awesome bloggers, Lyuba from Will Cook for Smiles and Gloria from Simply Gloria to bring you an awesome link party called Show Stopper Saturdays! This party opens at 8am on Saturday mornings and ends Tuesday, so that means you still have till tomorrow to link up your best posts! Also, be sure to stop by and say hi to Gloria and Lyuba!
Have I told you that my mom is in culinary school? Yup, she is actually in Le Cordon Bleu cooking school and just finished her first 6 weeks last thursday!!! {she aced her classes by the way 🙂 go mom!} Anyways, while I was talking to her she told me all the stuff she was learning. Like basic stuff that she just didn’t know, such as when to season and when not to season. How to saute, how to boil, how to sear… etc. As I was talking to her it made me think. I wonder if all my awesome readers know how to make basic knife cuts or know what I’m talking about when I say “julienee this pepper.” Or if they are like “jul-what?” I know some of you are Masterchefs and some of you are just trying to start cooking. But in either case it’s never a bad thing to get a quick refresher. 🙂
Here we go! 🙂
How to slice: It is defined as a thin flat piece cut off from a larger piece. In order to slice, cut off the end of vegetable or fruit, place the object vertically and cut in a downward motion to produce one round flat slice {or ring} about 1/4″ thick. Slices can vary on thickness depending on recipe. {Picture below}
How to dice: Just think cubes. These cubes again can vary on size depending on what the recipe calls for, but the sizes are large dice, medium dice, and small dice. You will need to keep this in mind when cutting. But the basic premise of making dice cuts is this: slice, sticks, cubes. Meaning slice the vegetable then cut into matchstick, and then cut again to make cubes! {Picture below}
How to julienne: A julienne is a type of cut that makes a long thin strip. It is actually sometimes is referred to as a “matchstick” cut because it resembles the look of a matchstick. It is usually a square or rectangular shape, but can vary on thickness and width depending on what the recipe calls for. {picture of julienne cut below}
How to Mince: When mincing, keep your non-dominant hand flat and place the tips of your fingers on the tip of the knife. You can now use the tip as a pivot point for the blade. This will allow your dominant hand to mince quickly without your hands being in the way. The cuts will be irregular but very very small. {picture below}
For more awesome tips on safety, handling of knives, types of knives, and exact measurements of cuts a great resource is Chasing Delicious!
