How To: Chiffonade Fresh Herbs

Chiffonade sounds like a 'foo-foo fancy' term but it's a skill that home cooks should know how to do if they enjoy cooking with fresh herbs. When you compare fresh to dried, there's really no comparison. Fresh always tastes better but dried are great in a pinch.

Chiffonade means 'little ribbons' in French which is exactly what you'll get using this popular culinary technique which is simply a slicing technique where flat leafed herbs (basil, sage …) or leafy vegetables (such as spinach, kale …) are cut into long, thin strips.

How To Chiffonade Fresh Flat Leaf Herbs

For this post I used fresh sage. Rinse sage under cool water and pat dry. 

Stack the leaves on top of each other …. 

and gently roll them into a cigar-shaped tube. 

Using a sharp knife, slice across the narrow end of the 'cigar' to make thin ribbons of sage. 

If smaller pieces are desired, cut the ribbons in half or quarters.

Now you can add these to your main dish or as a garnish. This technique is used in many recipes on this blog, including:

Parmesan, Sage and Butternut Risotto (recipe coming this week!)