How To Chop, Slice and Dice With A Few Techniques In Between Chopping onions, shallots and garlic Cut off stem end and cut in half, through the root. Peel back skin and remove, leaving root intact. Place a half, flat side down. Using the tip of the knife, cut vertical slices towards the root end, leaving slices attached at the root end. Slice through with horizontal cuts again leaving the root end intact. Slice crosswise up to the root end. Be certain to follow through with a forward motion. Chopping Parsley and other herbs Cut off stems and place leaves in a pile on the cutting board. Hold the handle of the knife firmly in one hand, the other hand lightly on top of the blade. Keeping the tip (forward quarter of the blade) in contact with the board, rapidly move the heel of the blade up and down in a rocking motion until chopped as fine as desired. Very fine chopping is also known as mincing. Slicing Cylindrical Vegetables - Cucumbers, Zucchini, etc. Trim and peel the vegetable, if necessary. To keep vegetables steady on the board, you may want to cut in half lengthwise. Cut off the stem end. Hold the vegetable with curled fingers and thumb tucked behind them. The side of the blade (not the edge) should rest against your knuckles. With the tip of the knife on the board, the heel of the knife raised above the vegetable, slice in a downward, forward motion from tip to heel, slicing through using as much of the blade as needed. After completing the slice, raise the heel of the knife while pulling back. Slide your guiding hand down the vegetable and repeat the slicing motion: your guiding hand will determine the thickness of your slices. The tip should always remain on the cutting board. Dicing All the square shaped cuts end up the same size. These square cuts are known as: Fine dice (brunoise), 1/8" square Small dice (macedoine), 1/4" square Medium dice, 1/3" square Large dice, 3/4" square Cube, greater than 3/4" square. Trim and peel vegetables as needed. Then square the sides. Cut into slices of desired thickness. Stack the slices and cut these slices equal to the thickness of the previous cuts, ending up with stick shaped pieces. Holding the sticks together with your guiding hand, make crosswise cuts through the sticks. Chiffonade Chiffonade is a technique that means to cut into very thin strips, much finer than shredding. A leafy green such as spinach or a leafy herb such as basil is often prepared in this way. Remove stems from leaves, and stack a few individual leaves together. Roll tightly into a cylinder and slice into fine shreds. Julienning Another technique of cutting into thin strips. Two classic cuts are known as: Julienne, 1/8" x 1/8" x 1" to 2" long Batonnet, 1/4" x 1/4" x 2" to 2 1/2" long Trim the vegetable cutting into desired length and squaring off the sides. Stack the slices and cut these slices equal to the thickness of the previous cuts.