I think I have pretty good knife skills and my knives are well
sharpened and honed. However, I have a very difficult time preparing
the thin julienne of scallions used for sushi rolls. Too many strands
break at the midpoint or retain a bulbous end. Most of the defects
are caused by the scallion it being perfectly straight - aye there's a
bend to them.

Anyone know the secret of julienning long strips? Maybe Japanese
scallions are straighter than the ones we get here???

I have tried a variety of kitchen tools including french green bean
cutters and several Japanese made tools. All fail pretty badly.

Happily hidden in a roll scallions rounds work and taste just fine
------------
There are no atheists in foxholes
or in Fenway Park in an extra inning
game.
____

Cape Cod Bob
Visit my web site at http://home.comcast.net/~bobmethelis
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Cape Cod Bob wrote:

> I think I have pretty good knife skills and my knives are well
> sharpened and honed. However, I have a very difficult time preparing
> the thin julienne of scallions used for sushi rolls. Too many strands
> break at the midpoint or retain a bulbous end. Most of the defects
> are caused by the scallion it being perfectly straight - aye there's a
> bend to them.
>
> Anyone know the secret of julienning long strips? Maybe Japanese
> scallions are straighter than the ones we get here???

They are also kind of slippery when you start to cut into them. I used
julienne scallions when making congee, but prefer finely cross cut scallions
for sushi.

--
Dan

"Dan Logcher" > wrote in message
...
> Cape Cod Bob wrote:
>
>> I think I have pretty good knife skills and my knives are well
>> sharpened and honed. However, I have a very difficult time
>> preparing
>> the thin julienne of scallions used for sushi rolls. Too many
>> strands
>> break at the midpoint or retain a bulbous end. Most of the defects
>> are caused by the scallion it being perfectly straight - aye
>> there's a
>> bend to them. Anyone know the secret of julienning long strips?
>> Maybe Japanese
>> scallions are straighter than the ones we get here???
>
> They are also kind of slippery when you start to cut into them. I
> used
> julienne scallions when making congee, but prefer finely cross cut
> scallions
> for sushi.
>
If you can slit the scallions into halves length-wise, the two pieces
don't tend to slip as much and can be cut into thin strips on an
oblique diagonal. This presumes a good sharp knife.


--
James V. Silverton
Potomac, Maryland, USA

"Cape Cod Bob" > wrote in message =
...
> I think I have pretty good knife skills and my knives are well
> sharpened and honed. However, I have a very difficult time preparing
> the thin julienne of scallions used for sushi rolls. Too many strands
> break at the midpoint or retain a bulbous end. Most of the defects
> are caused by the scallion it being perfectly straight - aye there's a
> bend to them. =20
>=20
> Anyone know the secret of julienning long strips? Maybe Japanese
> scallions are straighter than the ones we get here???
>=20
> I have tried a variety of kitchen tools including french green bean
> cutters and several Japanese made tools. All fail pretty badly.
>=20
> Happily hidden in a roll scallions rounds work and taste just fine

As often happens I am having difficulty understanding "julienned"*.
I presume that simply means cut in long thin strands?
Please correct me if I am wrong.
With the exception of hotpots, in Japan scallions are almost always cut =
at a
diagonal. Then they can be further cut into strands and they will not be =
"bent".
I am not sure if this is the problem you are talking about.

* I also have problems with "medallions".

Musashi