List of culinary knife cuts
There are a number of regular knife cuts that are used in many recipes. Each produces a standardized cut piece of food. The two basic shapes for these cuts are the strip and the cube. Strips are generally cut to 2½-3 inches, and are defined by width, from thickest to thinnest as "batonnet", "allumette", "julienne", and "fine julienne". The cube shapes, in order from largest to smallest, are the large, medium, and small dice, the brunoise, and the fine brunoise.[1]
Strip cuts
Batonnet
Translated literally from French, batonnet means "little stick". The batonnet measures approximately 1/4 inch x 1/4 inch x 2-2.5 inches (6mm x 6mm x 5–6 cm). It is also the starting point for the small dice.[1]
Julienne
Referred to as the allumette when dealing with potatoes, and sometimes also called the "matchstick cut" (which is the translation of "allumette" from French), the julienne measures approximately 1/8 inch × 1/8 inch × 1-2 inches (3mm × 3mm × 3–5 cm). It is also the starting point for the brunoise cut.[1] The first reference to Julienne occurs in François Massialot's Le Cuisinier Royal in 1722.[1]
Fine julienne
The fine julienne measures approximately 1/16 inch × 1/16 inch × 1-2 inches (1.5mm × 1.5mm × 3–5 cm), and is the starting point for the fine brunoise cut.[1]
Cube cuts
Cuts with six even sides include:[1]
- Large dice (Carré); sides measuring approximately ¾ inch (2 cm).
- Medium dice (Parmentier); sides measuring approximately ½ inch (1.25 cm).
- Small dice (Macédoine); sides measuring approximately ¼ inch (6mm).
- Brunoise; sides measuring approximately 1/8 inch (3mm).
- Fine brunoise; sides measuring approximately 1/16 inch (1.5mm).
Other cuts
Other cuts include:[1]
- Paysanne; ½ inch x ½ inch x 1/8 inch (1 cm x 1 cm x 3mm)
- Lozenge; diamond shape, ½ inch x ½ inch x 1/8 inch (1 cm x 1 cm x 3mm)
- Fermière; cut lengthwise and then sliced to desired thickness, 1/8-½ inch (3mm to 1 cm)
- Rondelle; cut to desired thickness, 1/8-½ inch (3mm to 1 cm)
- Tourné; 2 inches (5 cm) long with seven faces
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 The Culinary Institute of America (2011). The Professional Chef (9th ed.). Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. pp. 622–4. ISBN 978-0-470-42135-2. OCLC 707248142.