Chopping

• Chopping is often referred to as a rough chop. There is no one size and shape called for when chopping chicken although some recipes call for a small, medium or large chop. Nothing could be easier than chopping chicken -- just pull the meat from the bone and start cutting. Chicken meat from legs, thighs, wings and the edges of the breast are ideal for chopping.

Dicing

• Dicing chicken is all about uniformity. A proper dice cut will produce pretty little cubes all the same size. It’s easiest to achieve this cut when using the breast meat with its uneven edges cut away. When a recipe calls for dicing, it will usually specify a particular size.

Five Sizes for Dicing

• Professional chefs and cookbook authors classify dicing into five sizes recognized across the culinary industry. For easiest dicing, reduce the chicken to strips cut to the correct dimension then cut the strips crosswise to produce cubes.

Large Dice

• A large dice is a cube about 3/4 inch on all sides. The large cuts are easiest to learn so start with mastering the large dice, then fine-tune knife skills until even the smallest cuts can be accomplished quickly and easily. This cut makes a nice presentation when chicken is served on a bed of lettuce for a meal-size salad.

Medium Dice

• Cut chicken into cubes about 1/2 inch on all sides for recipes that specify a medium dice. Toss chicken cut medium-dice size into pasta dishes and hearty soups.

Small Dice

• Small dice, about 1/4 inch on all sides, works well with chicken salads used as fillings for sandwiches. It's a good size for a pizza topping, too. Chicken cut to a small dice is a good size for serving in a sauce over rice, couscous or in chicken noodle soup.

Brunoise

• The brunoise (broon-wah) cut produces cubes just 1/8 inch on all sides. Many cooks are familiar with the julienne cut -- long thin strips of meat or vegetables. The brunoise starts as a julienne cut but the strips are then cut crosswise into small cubes. Reserve this cut for small amounts of chicken used for garnish, not the main part of a recipe.

Fine Dice / Fine Brunoise

• These tiny little cuts -- just 1/16 inch on all sides -- are all about show. Use them to garnish cream soups and consomme.

TIps

• Always let cooked chicken cool down before handling it. It will be easier to work with and the likelihood of burned fingers is eliminated. Cooler chicken is easier to cut than warm or hot chicken, whether chopping or dicing. Chicken at refrigerator temperature is the easiest to work with and produces the cleanest, most precise cuts.

  Use diced chicken for dishes where looks matter as much as flavor. The uniformity of the cut gives the dish a refined appearance, whereas chopped chicken is more rustic and casual looking. Use chopped chicken for soups, stews, salads and other dishes that have a more relaxed, homey feel.