Some Basic and Decorative Guts

Extra Fine Julienne (sen-giri): This is a basic cut for vegetables, meat and fish. Sometimes it is referred to as “shredding.” Lay several thin slices, one on the other. Hold the knife as in Basic Hold 1. Cut across the slices to make thin strips, pushing forward and away with the whole of your arm. Lift the blade and repeat.

Half Moon (han gétsu-giri): Use Basic Hold 1. Cut your vegetable in half lengthwise, then into thick half-circle slabs. This cut is commonly used for pickles.

Wide Peel (katsura muki): Use Basic Hold 2 on a 1½–2-inch-long cylinder of carrot, daikon (Japanese white radish) or cucumber. Rotate the vegetable into the blade. You can use a short up-and-down sawlike motion with the knife if that seems more effective. It’s a bit like learning to pat your head and rub your belly at the same time—eventually you coordinate it all. Be prepared to practice quite a bit before you can peel a continuous piece several inches long.

Corkscrew (yori udo): Make your wide peel of carrot, cucumber or daikon, described above, at least 1½ inches wide and 6 inches long. Lay this flat on your cutting board. Cut it on the diagonal into 5 or 6 thin strips. The strips will curl like corkscrews. Place them in a bowl of cold water for a few minutes, then drain them. Corkscrews add a nice decorative touch to salads or soups.

Curlicue Cut (kaminari): Cut several pieces of cucumber into wide peels (see no. 3). Roll the peels as tightly as possible without splitting them. Slice the peels crosswise as thin as possible, using Basic Hold 1. Place the curly shreds in a bowl of ice water and let them soak for 10 minutes before draining them well.

Braid Cut (tazuna): This is a decorative cut used for konnyaku (pearly-toned gelatinous cake) or kamaboko (fish sausage). Make a slit in the center of a block and pull one end through it.

Pine Needle Cut (matsuba): This cut is most often used for fruit peels, though it’s possible with red pickled ginger, too. Make two slits in the peels to form a Z shape, then twist the end to make a standing triangle.

Shavings (sasagaki): This cut is used with burdock root (gobō) and carrot. Make several vertical slashes at the narrow end of the vegetables. Then point your blade away and whittle, much as you sharpen a pencil.

Flower Cut (hana-gata): A common decorative cut used for carrots. Flower-shaped cutters are available at many Oriental stores. They usually come as part of a set: plum blossom, cherry blossom, pine cluster (cloudlike in appearance) and maple leaf. Cut ¼-inch-thick slices of carrot, then stamp out a flower from each with the cutter.

You’ll need a small sharp knife (a paring knife is fine) if you want to sculpt these flower shapes further. Make 5 shallow slits, each beginning from between the “petals” and working toward the center (the dotted lines in illustration). Now slice at an angle a thin wedge from the middle of each petal to the slit between petals (the shaded area in the illustration).

Comb Cut (kushi-gata): Vertical wedges of bamboo shoot look like hair combs and this is the origin of the name. Other vegetables, such as onions, turnips and potatoes, are cut into vertical wedges, too. Use Basic Hold 1.

Mountain Cut (yama-gata): Cucumbers are cut to look like mountains and help to “landscape” many a platter of fish. Use two small straight, sharp knives. Insert one into a I ½-inch cucumber cylinder. Use the second knife to make a horizontal slash to the depth of the blade of the first knife. Pull out the second knife and flip the cucumber over. Now slash horizontally again in the same way. Remove both knives and pull the two “mountains” apart.

Diagonal Slice (sogi-giri): Use Basic Hold 3 and place the knife at a 45-degree angle to the board. Make sure that each slice is a clean one; don’t saw back and forth.

Oblique Cut (ran-giri): A cut used for vegetables such as carrot, daikon (Japanese white radish) and gobō (burdock root), it is particularly suited for use in braised dishes. The bulky multi-surfaced shape offers two advantages: it allows for greater absorption of braising liquids yet it retains its original shape, even with prolonged simmering.

Slice your peeled vegetable slightly on the diagonal, using Basic Hold 1. Without changing the direction of your blade, roll the vegetable toward you (about one-quarter turn) and make another slice. Continue rolling and cutting to form multi-surfaced, triangular-like shapes.

Fan Cut (suéhiro): This is a nice decorative cut for unpeeled cucumbers and small eggplants. Make sure your slits are evenly spaced. Salt cucumbers lightly before fanning them out.