A. Chopping is the technique of cutting food into small, irregularly shaped pieces about 1/4 inch in size. Mincing is the same technique, but the food is cut into much smaller pieces.

To dice food is to cut it into tiny cubes -- about 1/8 inch in size -- but the cubes are uniform. Dicing is the technique to use when you're preparing a food for a delicate garnish (or whenever called for in a recipe, of course).

When in doubt, remember that dicing is distinguished from chopping or mincing not just by the size, but also by the care taken to achieve uniform pieces for an attractive presentation. Chopping and mincing aren't nearly that particular.

©Photodisc Preparing vegetables the day before can help you get dinner ready in a hurry.

Q. I'm always pressed for time. What are some time-saving tips to get dinner on the table in a jiffy?

A. When you're short on time, it's all too easy to fall back on take-out food or frozen microwave dinners for a quick meal. However, with a bit of planning and a few shortcuts, weeknight cooking can be fast and relatively painless.

Here are ways to shave off time when making supper:

• Substitute canned or frozen vegetables for fresh ones.
  
  
• Use canned beans in place of dried ones to bypass soaking time.
  
  
• Take advantage of presliced vegetables and fruits from the supermarket salad bar.
  
  
• Use rotisserie chicken from the deli section of the supermarket when a recipe calls for cooked diced or shredded chicken.
  
  
• Roll out refrigerated or frozen bread dough, pizza dough, crescent rolls, and puff pastry sheets for easy casserole, pizza, and tart bases.
  
  
• Use bagged, pre-washed salads and spinach to cut out rinsing and drying time.
  
  
• Buy bottled minced garlic instead of mincing whole cloves yourself; 1 teaspoon is equivalent to about 2 to 3 cloves.
  
  
• Use the microwave to cook rice and steam vegetables quickly and efficiently.
  
  
• Buy pre-marinated meat from the supermarket or your local butcher.

• Cook more food than you need when you have time and freeze the extras in individual-sized portions for quick, reheatable meals.
  
  
• Prep ingredients -- chop, marinate, and measure -- the night before so that dinner can be cooked quickly the next day.
  
  
• Meals cooked in the slow cooker merely require plugging the machine in first thing in the morning. By the time you get home, there will be a warm, delicious dinner waiting for you.

For more great dinner preparation tips and ideas, see:

• Cooking
• Preparing Fruits and Vegetables
• Slow Cooker Recipes
• How Food Processors Work