Chiffonade

A demonstration of the chiffonade technique, using sage leaves

Chiffonade (French pronunciation: [ʃi.fɔ.nad]) is a cooking technique in which herbs or leafy green vegetables (such as spinach and basil) are cut into long, thin strips. This is generally accomplished by stacking leaves, rolling them tightly, then cutting across the rolled leaves with a sharp knife, producing fine ribbons.

"Chiffon" is French for "rag" referring to the fabric-like strips that result from this technique. To chiffonade simply means to turn into rag-like strips, as seen in the picture.

This technique is unsuited to small, narrow, or irregularly-shaped herb leaves such as parsley, thyme or rosemary due to there being less surface area for the knife to do a practical job.

External links

• Chiffonade