What does “채 썰다” mean in Korean cooking?

썰다 alone just means “to cut” or “to slice” with a knife. Add the noun 채 in front and you get 채 썰다: to cut something into thin, even matchstick strips — exactly the technique English calls “julienne.” The 채 isn’t an adverb; it names the thin shreds themselves, so you’re literally cutting into 채. That one word turns a generic “slice it” into a precise “cut it into fine strips.”

You’ll also hear it as 채를 썰다 with the object marker, and the noun form 채썰기 (“julienning”) on recipe cards. Here the cook says 두부피도 채 썰어 주세요 (“julienne the tofu skin too”), pairing it with the shredded lettuce. The standalone noun 채 shows up in dishes like 잡채 (japchae, “mixed shreds”) and 무채 (radish julienne) — once you spot 채, you know strips are involved. Compare it with 썰다's broader cousins: 자르다 (to cut off/sever) and 다지다 (to mince).