cutting techniques

1. Knife Skills
And
Cutting Techniques

2. Tip:
Used for slicing and handlingsmall items
such as shallots, mushrooms, and onions.
Edge:
This is where all of the work takes place,
the part you cut with.
Spine:
Smooth top part of the knife. It allows you
to grip the knife between the thumb and
forefinger for good control during cutting
and chopping.
Parts of the Knife
Adapted from
Cooking 101, a trademark of Very Edible Productions, LLC. U.S.A. Copyright
2005

3. Heel:
Last few inches of the cutting edge. This
part of the blade is used when maximum
leverage is needed or for heavy cutting
tasks.
Bolster:
Part between the blade and the handle that
assists in the balance of the knife.
Tang:
Metal that extends into the handle. On a
good knife, the tang will extend all the way
to the butt of the handle, and the rivets will
go through the tang (known as a full tang).
This helps create a well balanced knife.
Adapted from
Cooking 101, a trademark of Very Edible Productions, LLC. U.S.A. Copyright
2005

4. Chef's Knife
The most versatile knife in the kitchen. Makes
slicing, dicing, mincing and chopping fun.
Chef's knives are usually 6” - 12” long with 8”
being the average.
Adapted from
Cooking 101, a trademark of Very Edible Productions, LLC. U.S.A. Copyright
2005

5. Boning Knife
A thin bladed knife used for removing the
bones of poultry, meat, and fish. The blade
is generally 6 inches long and may be rigid
or flexible.
Adapted from
Cooking 101, a trademark of Very Edible Productions, LLC. U.S.A. Copyright
2005

6. Slicer
Has a very thin, sharp edge that quickly and
easily cuts meats and fish without tearing. It
comes especially handy during the holiday
season to carve the perfect turkey.
Adapted from
Cooking 101, a trademark of Very Edible Productions, LLC. U.S.A. Copyright
2005

7. Serrated Bread Knife
Commonly known as a bread knife. It is
purposely designed with a long serrated blade
and a blunt end. The teeth (serrations) allow it to
cut bread using less vertical force, which keeps
the bread from being compressed or crushed. It
is the best knife available for angel food cake.
Adapted from
Cooking 101, a trademark of Very Edible Productions, LLC. U.S.A. Copyright
2005

8. Paring Knife
Perhaps the most versatile of knives. It is a short knife
with a 2 to 4- inch long blade. Because it is designed for
peeling and trimming fruits and vegetables, the paring
knife's edge must be kept sharp. These knives are also
used for carving specialty shapes and garnishes.
Adapted from
Cooking 101, a trademark of Very Edible Productions, LLC. U.S.A. Copyright
2005

9. Steel
A steel is used to hone, not sharpen,
knives. It is made of hard, high-carbon
steel or ceramic. It comes as a long, tapered, round
rod, but some people prefer the flat model.
Use a steel on a knife before each use and
throughout food preparation to keep the blade razor
sharp.
To use a steel, hold the knife at a 20° angle and pull
across in a swift motion from the heel to the tip of the
knife 6 to 8 times, alternating sides.
Adapted from
Cooking 101, a trademark of Very Edible Productions, LLC. U.S.A.
Copyright 2005

11. To make a chiffonade (very thin strips) of a leafy green
such as baby spinach, stack individual leaves on top
one another, then tightly roll them up lengthwise. Using
a chef's knife,cut the rolled bundle of leaves crosswise
into thin slices. Unroll the strips and use them as
desired.
Chiffonade

12. Seeding Tomato:
•Using the paring knife, cut a
circle around the stem and pull
it out.
•Next, place the tomato on the
cutting board and slice it
crosswise using the serrated
knife or chef's knife.
•Pick up a tomato half and hold
the cut side over the bowl.
•Gently squeeze, letting the
tomato seeds drip into the bowl.

13. To cut vegetables for stir-fry,
hold the knife at about a 45-
degree angle to the cutting
board, with the edge of the
knife facing away from you.
Slice vegetables into equally
thick pieces. More surface
area results in faster cooking,
which is required for stir fry.

14. A julienne (also called a "matchstick") is a type of cut
that makes a long thin strip. It's a good technique to use
for vegetables and other ingredients when you want to
heighten their presentation
Julienne Cuts

15. •Peel the skin from the vegetable if
necessary.
•Trim away any root or stem parts of the
vegetable.
•If the vegetable is round like a potato or
carrot, cut it in half and lay it cut side
down on the board. This will keep it from
rolling.
•Cut the edible part of the vegetable into
slices about 1/4-inch thick. Cut around
the seeds if necessary.
•Cut these slices into even strips 1/4-
inch thick

16. A diced vegetable is cut into small cubes. It's easy to
dice quickly and evenly once you have the knack.
Just think "slices, sticks, and cubes."
Diced
Vegetables

17. Cut the vegetable lengthwise into
even slices, then stack the slices
and cut them into long sticks.
(Long vegetables like celery and
leeks need only be sliced into
sticks.)
Gather the sticks and cut them
crosswise into cubes. Make sure to
get the cubes as even as you can
For round vegetables like carrots
and potatoes, cut in half
lengthwise and lay cut-side down
on the cutting board. This will
keep the vegetable from rolling.

18. Mince
To mince with a knife, press the vegetable tightly to the
cutting board, chopping as you go until it's as fine as
you like. Rocking the knife back and forth results in a
very fine mince.

19. Mincing does take some
time, but for some recipes
it's important to do it. Not
just for the texture, but also
because it helps the flavor
of the vegetable to meld
better with the other
ingredients.

20. Start with a sharp knife and
a large, firm onion for ease
of cutting. Gripping the
onion and with fingertips
curved, slice in half from
the root end straight
through to the top end.
Split the onion in
two equal halves,
leaving the root
ends attached.
Onions

21. Peel back the onion
skin, discarding the
skin. Place onion
halves onto the
cutting board with flat
sides down. Slice off
about 1-inch from the
top end of the onion
Grip an onion half
firmly, curving the
fingertips away from
the knife for safety.
Slice evenly in parallel
cuts from one side of
the onion across to the
other. Thinner cuts will
result in smaller dice;
thicker
cuts for larger
dice

22. Move your
fingers out
of the way
and grip the
onion at the root
end. Make a
parallel cut,
slightly angled
down toward the
cutting board.
Make a second parallel
slice above the first one
and also slightly angled
toward the cutting board
(and away from your
fingers)

23. Gripping the onion
and keeping your
fingers curved away
from the knife, slice
across the onion in
parallel cuts.
Repeat for the
second onion half,
chopping the
onions from the
last few cuts to
make even dice.

24. Special Cuts for Special Taco Toppings
Tomatoes, cabbage, capsicum, sweet corn, carrot,
onions, pannier, green peas, baby corn and grated
pannier

26. Trays

27. Fruit Bowls,
Baskets and
Boats

28. Radish Roses and Rosettes

29. Green Onion Garnish

30. And
Fun!

32. Cold Tofu Salad
8 oz silken tofu, diced into 1 inch
cubes
2 stalks green onions, minced
2 tbsp preserved mustard green,
minced
2 tbsp pork sung
1 tsp sesame oil
1-2 tbsp soy sauce
Good
Practice