How to Cut Vegetables

Perfect your vegetable prep with essential cutting techniques, designed to optimize texture and taste, whether in Japanese cuisine or any culinary style.

The Right Cutting Motion

When prepping vegetables, the technique you use is crucial. Employ achopping motionwith your knife, gliding through the vegetables. Avoid pushing straight down, as this can harm the food's texture. Instead, adopt a method ofslicing towards or away from you. While fish may often be cut with a pulling motion, vegetables benefit from a pushing motion, ensuring a clean cut that preserves integrity.

Understanding Vegetable Fibers

Both vegetables and fish contain delicate fibers that influence their texture. Vegetables, in particular, havevertical fibersrunning from top to bottom. Cuttingparallel to these fibershelps maintain a crisp texture, ideal for salads and garnishes. Conversely, if you're aiming for a softer texture, perhaps for soups or stews, cuttingacross the fibersat a right angle softens the vegetable, enhancing its ability to meld with other ingredients.

Special Techniques for Japanese Cuisine

In Japanese culinary tradition, the white radish often graces sashimi plates as a garnish, and its cutting method can greatly affect its presentation and texture. There are two primary styles:

• Tateken (Vertical Cut): Slicing the radish vertically, in line with its fibers, retains its crispness, adding a refreshing contrast to sashimi.
• Yoko Tsuma (Horizontal Cut): Cutting the radish horizontally creates a softer, rounded shape, serving as a delicate "bed" for the sashimi, enhancing both its appearance and taste.