What is julienned?

Julienne is the process of cutting food items into thin strips that resemble matchsticks. Chef's knives or cleavers provide the cook with a firm grip and a precise cutting edge to thinly slice vegetables such as carrots, onions and squash.

Chefs cut food into 2-inch pieces, with the rounded sides trimmed for better handling, and then stack them together. The julienne technique entails continuous lengthwise cuts of the food item until a width of 1/4 inch or less is achieved. Alternatively, the use of a food processor or mandoline to julienne vegetables garners similar results to hand cutting with a knife.