The Size of a Matchstick

• Typically described as the size of a matchstick, most julienned vegetable strips are actually much wider than those tiny wooden rectangles. As a rule, julienned strips are cut into 1/8-inch-thick strips anywhere from 1 1/2 to 3 inches long, depending on your own preference. Mandolines give you more choices in widths, providing variable blades for julienned cuts ranging from 1/16 inch to 2/3 inch wide.

Cutting-Edge Techniques

• To make the small cuts for julienned strips, begin with cutting the vegetable into slices as thick as you want your final strips to be, such as 1/8 inch, 1/4 inch or thinner. Then, stack the slices and cut them into the final strips. Either leave the strips whatever length they come out to be, or cut them in half to make shorter strips. Classically trained chefs might square off the ends of each strip, but you'll waste some of the vegetable by doing that.

Putting the Strips to Use

• Celery, carrots, cucumbers, leeks and potatoes are some of the more commonly julienned vegetables to use in elegant broths for poached fish, as garnishes on top of fish, poultry or meat, or in salads, such as coleslaw or cucumber. You can julienne other vegetables too, such as beets for borscht soup, bell peppers, green onions or snow peas for Asian-style stir-fries dishes, or even celery root or parsnips cooked as a side dish for roast beef.

Classic Uses for Julienned Vegetables

• Japanese or French cuisine give your two cuisine choices for using julienned vegetables. While shoestring French fries aren't served only in France, these skinny morsels will remind you of French bistro-style pommes frites. For a more healthy French classic, try a celery root salad with remoulade dressing made from mayonnaise, mustard, capers and herbs. In sushi, julienned carrots or cucumbers complement the delicate nature of raw fish with small, bite-sized crunchiness.