Cutting a chiffonade is a knife technique used for cutting herbs and leaf vegetables into thin ribbons. It sounds fancy, but it's not difficult to master and it's a great way to infuse the flavour of an herb into your dishes or to create a delicate garnish.
What you need:
A sharp knife and the freshest leafy herbs you can find like basil, mint or lettuce.
Step 1
Separate a bunch of leaves, maybe six to eight leaves, and stack them. Make this stack as flat as possible.
Step 2
Place your stack of leaves on a cutting board and then roll the leaves tightly toward you—creating a cigar shape.
Step 3
Holding the roll with your fingertips curled under to protect them from the sharp knife, start making very thin slices off the roll. Leave the tip of the knife on the cutting board, lift the knife handle and bring it back down to cut through the leaf bundle. A sharp knife is so important here. A dull knife causes many more finger injuries than a sharp one.
Step 4
Gently separate the strips and use them immediately. Voila! You've just cut a chiffonade.