julienne

When you first step into the kitchen and prepare a dish you love for the first time, things can be a little overwhelming; often the last thing you want to do is translate what a technique actually means as you're knee deep in the kitchen. I get it: there are some French cooking methods and terms that scared me so much when I started cooking that I let go of the dream of creating a certain recipe and moved on to something that felt more accessible.

Truth is, fancy words aside, you'll be surprised how many of these techniques are actually fairly simple concepts once you get a little confidence in the kitchen. Like most things we're afraid of, it's never as bad when you tackle the problem head on and figure out what you need to succeed.

So don't sweat the technique right away; once you get into the swing of these, you'll feel like a kitchen queen. Get acquainted with these French terms and techniques, and they'll soon seem like no kitchen biggie.

Like the chiffonade, a julienne is a very useful and visually appealing way to cut vegetables. This cut will take many of your dishes to the next level in terms of aesthetics and texture. We're using a zucchini for our demonstration, but this technique works on any number of fruits and vegetables.

Cut a 2 1/2 to 3-inch section of your zucchini so that it stands up straight and square off the round edges.

Slice off 1/8-inch slices of the zucchini, using your knuckles as a guide.

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