What is Fermière?
Fermière is the French word for farmer. The fermière or farmer style of cutting is a quick and simple style, as time is quite a precious commodity on the farm. Farmers are busy people and they can't spend all morning "turning" (i.e. tourné) potatoes and carrots. There are cows to milk, hogs to feed, and eggs to gather. A farmer cuts their vegetables quickly and efficiently and gets on with their day. Carrots may be halved or quartered and cut into slices of half and quarter moons; this is fermière. Potatoes and other root vegetables may also be cut in this way--often with a paring knife and often against the fleshy part of a thumb. I remember watching in awe as my mother cut carrots this way, without drawing the slightest drop of blood. There is a sort of rustic quality that is captured in this cut, but is lost, at least in part, once descriptions are placed upon it.
Using this style of cutting in food preparation is contingent upon your willingness to accept that simple food prepared well can be just as good as complex food prepared with exacting precision. My favorite of these types of recipes is Smoked Turkey and White Bean Soup. It is quick and simple to make, and the flavors build really well as it cooks.