Tournés

Based on the verb tourner, meaning “to turn,” tournés describes the method of trimming vegetables and some fruits into an oval shape in various sizes. This method is applied to any hard vegetables or fruits such as potatoes, carrots, turnips, zucchini, cucumber, and apples. A classic “turned” vegetable is barrel shaped with seven sides and evenly pointed at both ends. Turned vegetables are served as an accompanying garnish and can be boiled, steamed, fried, glazed, or cuit à l’étuvée. They are turned in order to shape the vegetables to exactly the same size to ensure even cooking while being aesthetically pleasing to the eye.