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 2 ¹⁄₂–3 inches (6–8 cm), and are defined by width, from thickest to thinnest as "pont-neuf", "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]

Numerous knife cuts with their corresponding French name

Strip cuts

• Pont-neuf; used for fried potatoes ("thick cut" or "steak cut" chips), pont-neuf measures from ¹⁄₃ by ¹⁄₃ by 2 ¹⁄₂–3 inches (1 cm × 1 cm × 6 cm–8 cm) to ³⁄₄ by ³⁄₄ by 3 inches (2 cm × 2 cm × 8 cm).[2][3]
• Batonnet; translated literally from French, batonnet means "little stick". The batonnet measures approximately ¹⁄₄ by ¹⁄₄ by 2–2 ¹⁄₂ inches (0.6 cm × 0.6 cm × 5 cm–6 cm). It is also the starting point for the small dice.[1]
• Julienne; referred to as the allumette when used on potatoes, and sometimes also called the "matchstick cut" (which is the translation of "allumette" from French), the julienne measures approximately ¹⁄₈ by ¹⁄₈ by 1–2 inches (0.3 cm × 0.3 cm × 3 cm–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 by ¹⁄₁₆ by 1–2 inches (0.2 cm × 0.2 cm × 3 cm–5 cm), and is the starting point for the fine brunoise cut.[1]
• Chiffonade, a technique of rolling leafy greens and slicing the roll in sections from 4-10mm in width

Cube cuts

Cuts with six even sides include:[1]

• Large dice ("Carré" meaning "square" in French); sides measuring approximately ³⁄₄ inch (20 mm).
• Medium dice (Parmentier); sides measuring approximately ¹⁄₂ inch (13 mm).
• Small dice (Macédoine); sides measuring approximately ¹⁄₄ inch (5 mm).
• Brunoise; sides measuring approximately ¹⁄₈ inch (3 mm)
• Fine brunoise; sides measuring approximately ¹⁄₁₆ inch (2 mm)

Other cuts

Other cuts include:[1]

• Paysanne; ¹⁄₂ by ¹⁄₂ by ¹⁄₈ inch (10 mm × 10 mm × 3 mm)
• Lozenge; diamond shape, ¹⁄₂ by ¹⁄₂ by ¹⁄₈ inch (10 mm × 10 mm × 3 mm)
• Fermière; cut lengthwise and then sliced to desired thickness, ¹⁄₈–¹⁄₂ inch (3–10 mm)
• Rondelle; cut to desired thickness, ¹⁄₈–¹⁄₂ inch (3–10 mm)
• Tourné; 2 inches (50 mm) long with seven faces usually with a bulge in the center portion
• Mirepoix; ³⁄₁₆–¹⁄₄ inch (5–7 mm)
• Rough Cut; chopped more or less randomly resulting in all pieces in a variety of sizes and shapes

References

1. 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.
2. "Pont Neuf Potatoes". Cooks Info. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
3. "Knife Cut Images". The Food School. Retrieved 8 November 2018.