Like storytelling, cooking skills are often passed down from family.
Then, slice at will.
Plank
Slicing leads to planking.
This knife cut involves making a long, lengthwise slice.
The plank cut is aesthetically pleasing and I love it, no more so than when grilling.
(Who doesnt love a reclaimed-wood coffee table?)
This cut doesnt promise precision or pretty presentation, but its still safe and useful.
Again, no need to be perfectjust send the blade down at your own pace.
Dice
The dice is more of a precision cut than a rough chop.
The goal is to create neat cubes of food.
you might dice in a variety of sizesusually large, medium, and small.
(Once you go finer than a small dice, the cuts get new names.
)To dice fruits and vegetables neatly, slice off the irregularities and rounded sides.
Stack the planks and cut them lengthwise once or twice, depending on the size of the dice.
Keeping the pieces stacked, spin the item and cut widthwise to achieve perfect cubes.
Mince
A mince can be precise or rough, but the results of both are tiny.
Precise mincing is like an extra-small dice; youre making very small cubes.
It usually involves a fine blade so it’s possible for you to make cuts that are close together.
A rough mince is done with a fine blade or even a cleaver, depending on what youre cutting.
But it can be fun, like over-doing a rough chop on purpose.
Your dominant hand holds the handle of the knife.
This creates something like a one-sided see-saw.
Roll cut
I saved my favorite cut for last.
The roll cut is not exactly precise, but its not rough either.
The roll cut creates a morsel of food that has multiple sides, none parallel.
To roll cut a carrot, sit the entire carrot facing East-West on a cutting board.
Roll the carrot again, and repeat.
Your pieces will have charming oblique cuts facing different directions.
