A better way to chop fresh herbs
Choose a cut that fits the leaf and the dish, from torn basil to finely sliced chives.
Start with the dish you are making. Big pieces of basil can be lovely on tomatoes, while the same leaves stirred through a dressing are easier to distribute in narrow ribbons. A little parsley mixed into breadcrumbs benefits from a smaller chop. Sorting out the size first saves a lot of repeated passes over the board.
Rinse the herbs and dry them well. A towel or salad spinner can remove the droplets that make leaves cling to the blade. Pick out coarse stems from mint and basil. The tender ends of parsley or cilantro stems can join the leaves when the final cut is fine enough for the dish.
For basil ribbons, loosely stack a few leaves and roll them without squeezing. Slice across the roll with a sharp knife and separate the strips with your fingers. For chives, gather the stems into a short bundle and slice across in small increments. For parsley, move small groups of leaves across the board and bring the blade through each group a few times.
Check a pinch in your hand before continuing. It should look like the size you want to eat. Transfer the herbs with a bench scraper or the flat side of the knife. Keep a little aside when finishing a warm dish so you can taste a spoonful and decide whether it needs more fresh aroma.
