How To: Cutting and Shredding Herbs for Cooking

Flavour and appearance are affected dramatically by the way herbs are cut. Vigorous chopping not only bruised their tender leaves but also can turn them black and leave an unpleasant and bitter taste. Just taste an herb before and after chopping to see the dramatic difference!

Herbs will taste the way they should with a gentler approach. Shredding does not damage and gives a finer more elegant appearance. Herbs will not only look better but will also have that just picked clean and fresh taste.

Regular-shaped herbs: Large-leafed herbs such as basil, mint, sage and lime leaves fall into this category.

• Remove as many leaves as you need from the stems and rinse well and dry between two paper towels
• Arrange leaves in small stacks and roll them up lengthwise
• With a sharp knife, slice the stacks crosswise into thin shreds
• This method can also be used to shred any leafy greens such as spinach or romaine lettuce

Irregular-shaped herbs: Small-leafed herbs such as cilantro, parsley, thyme, tarragon, dill and oregano.

• Gather the herbs together into a tight bundle and cut crosswise into thin shreds with a sharp knife