Glossary of Cooking Terms
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZA
- Al Dente:
- Firm, not soft to the bite. (Generally refers to vegetables or pasta.)
B
- Bake:
- A cooking method that surrounds food with hot, dry air. Similar to roast but the term usually applies to breads, pastries, vegetables and fish.
- Barley Malt:
- A natural sweetener made from concentrated barley that has a rich, toasted taste.
- Béarnaise:
- A sauce made of butter and egg yolks, flavored with a reduction of vinegar, shallots, tarragon and peppercorns.
- Béchamel:
- A sauce made by thickening milk with a roux.
- Beurre Manie (Burr Mahnyay):
- A mixture of equal parts raw butter and flour mixed together into a smooth paste.
- Bisque:
- A cream soup made from shellfish.
- Blanch:
- To cook an item partially and very briefly in boiling water or in hot fat. Usually a preparation technique, as to loosen peel from vegetables, fruits and nuts or to prepare foods for freezing or remove undesirable flavors.
- Bloom:
- To soften gelatin in warm liquid before use.
- Boil:
- To cook in water or other liquid that is bubbling rapidly, @212 degrees F. = 100 degrees C.
- Bordelaise:
- A brown sauce flavored with a reduction of red wine, shallots, pepper and herbs.
- Braise:
- To cook covered in a small amount of liquid, usually after preliminary browning.
- Broil:
- To cook with radiant heat from above.
- Brown Rice Syrup:
- A natural sweetener made from malted brown rice. It is a predominantly slow-digesting carbohydrate that enters the bloodstream steadily over a two-hour period. Best of all, rice syrup is sweet, but so mild that it does not overpower other flavors.
- Bur noise (Broo nwahz):
- (1) Cut into very small (1/8 inch) dice.
- (2) Garnished with vegetables cut in this manner.
- Butterflies:
- Cut partially through and spread open to increase the surface area.
C
- Capers:
- Buds from the Caper Bush, usually steeped and stored in brine. Capers add liveliness to white and other sauces, to salads and creamed dishes, and, as condiments, to appetizers, meats, and seafood.
- Carmelization:
- The browning of sugars caused by heat.
- Carry-Over Cooking:
- The increase in temperature of roasted meat after it is removed from the oven.
- Certified Organic:
- These products are grown without the use of synthetic chemical pesticides, fertilizers, and herbicides. They must adhere to environmental standards under a verifiable program of on-site farm inspections, soil tests, and annual management reviews. Farms are required to meet all organic standards for three years prior to being granted certified organic status.
- Chop:
- To cut irregularly shaped pieces.
- Chowder:
- A hearty soup made from fish, shellfish, potatoes and/or vegetables, usually containing milk and potatoes.
- Clarified Butter:
- Butter which has been melted and allowed to stand so that the butter solids sink to the bottom. The clear liquid remaining is clarified butter.
- Compound Butter:
- A mixture of raw butter and various flavoring ingredients.
- Consommé:
- A rich, flavorful, seasoned broth that has been clarified to make it perfectly clear and transparent.
- Coq au Vin:
- A French dish of chicken braised in wine.
- Conventional:
- No special ecological growing practices, allowing for the probability of agri-chemicals to be used.
- Cream Soup:
- A soup that is thickened with roux or other thickening agent and contains milk or cream.
- Crème Anglaise:
- A light Vanilla-flavored custard sauce made of milk, sugar and egg yolks.
- Custard:
- A liquid that is thickened or set firm by the coagulation of egg protein.
D
- Deep-Fry:
- To cook submerged in hot fat.
- Deglaze:
- To swirl a liquid in a sauté pan or other pan to dissolve cooked particles or food remaining in the bottom.
- Demiglaze:
- A rich brown sauce that has been reduced by half.
E
- Emulsion:
- A uniform mixture of two unmixable liquids.
- Espagnole:
- A sauce made of brown stock and flavoring ingredients and thickened with a brown roux.
F
- Fricassee:
- A white stew in which the meat is cooked in fat without browning before liquid is added.
- Fry:
- To cook in hot fat.
G
- Garnish:
- (1) Decorative edible items used to ornament or enhance the eye appeal of another food item.
- (2) To add such a decorative item to a food.
- Glaze:
- (1) A stock that is reduced until it coats the back of a spoon.
- (2) A shiny coating such as a syrup, applied to a food.
- (3) To make a food shiny or glossy by coating it with a glaze or by browning under a broiler or in a hot oven.
- Goulash:
- A Hungarian stew flavored with Paprika.
- Griddle:
- To cook on a flat, solid cooking surface called a griddle.
- Grill:
- To cook on an open grid over a heat source.
- Gumbo File:
- Powder from the sassafras root, used in the South for thickening broths, etc.
H
- Herbs:
- The leaves of certain plants, used in flavoring.
- Hollandaise:
- A sauce made of egg yolks, butter and flavorings (especially lemon juice).
J
- Julienne:
- Cut into small thin strips (1/8 inch x 2 ½ inches).
L
- Liaison:
- A binding agent, usually made of cream and egg yolks, used to thicken soups and sauces.
M
- Maitre d'Hotel Butter:
- Butter mixed with parsley and lemon juice to make a compound butter.
- Marinate:
- To soak food in a seasoned liquid.
- Microwave:
- Radiation generated in special ovens used to cook or heat foods.
- Mince:
- To chop into very fine pieces.
- Mirepoix (meerpwah):
- A mixture of rough cut or diced vegetables, herbs and spices used for flavoring.
- Mise-en-Place (meez on plahss):
- French term meaning "everything put in place." The set up for production. All the preparations and organization that must be made before actual production can begin.
- Miso:
- A puree made of fermented soybeans, a grain and salt. Most typical use is in soup. Miso's most remarkable quality is as a digestive aid. It is a predigested food that actually helps digest other foods. Mugi (barley) is the most common used. Hacho = soy. Kome = rice. Shiro = light.
- Mornay:
- A sauce made with a Bechamel base and cheese added.
- Mousse:
- A soft, creamy food, either sweet or savory, that is made light by the addition of whipped cream or beaten egg whites or both.
P
- Pan-Broil:
- To cook uncovered in a sauté pan or skillet without fat.
- Pan-fry:
- To cook in a moderate amount of fat in an uncovered pan.
- Parboil:
- To cook partially in a boiling or simmering liquid.
- Pasta:
- General term for any shape of macaroni product or egg noodle.
- Poach:
- To cook very gently in water or other liquid that is hot but not actually bubbling, about 160 degrees F-180 degrees F.
- Puff Pastry:
- A very light, flaky pastry from a rolled-in dough and leavened steam.
- Puree:
- (1) A food product that has been mashed or strained to a smooth pulp.
- (2) To make a smooth pulp by mashing or straining a food.
R
- Radiation:
- The transfer of energy by waves, such as infrared or light waves.
- Reduce:
- To cook by simmering or boiling until quantity is decreased, often done to concentrate flavors.
- Reduction:
- (1) A liquid that has been concentrated by cooking it to evaporate part of the water.
- (2) The process of making such a liquid.
- Rissole (Riss oh lay):
- Browned. Often referring to potatoes cut in small shapes, parboiled and browned in hot fat.
- Roast:
- To cook foods by surrounding them with hot dry air, in an oven or on a spit over an open fire.
- Rolled-in-dough:
- A dough in which fat is incorporated into the dough in many layers, by using a rolling and folding procedure.
- Roux:
- A cooked (but not browned) mixture of equal parts flour and fat. (Brown Roux is roux that has been cooked until it is lightly browned.)
S
- Sachet:
- A mixture of herbs and spices tied in a cheesecloth bag.
- Sauce:
- A flavorful liquid, usually thickened, which is used to season, flavor and enhance other foods.
- Sauté:
- To cook quickly in a small amount of fat. Sear: To brown the surface of a food quickly at a high temperature.
- Shortening:
- (1) Any fat used in baking to tenderize the product by shortening gluten strands. (2) A white, tasteless solid fat that has been formulated for baking or deep-frying.
- Simmer:
- To cook in water or other liquid that is bubbling gently, about 185 degrees F -200 degrees F.
- Slurry:
- A mixture of raw starch and cold liquid, used for thickening.
- Soufflé:
- A light, fluffy baked egg dish consisting of a base (such as a heavy white sauce) mixed with egg yolks and flavoring ingredients, into which beaten egg whites are folded just before baking. May be sweet or savory.
- Spaetzle:
- Small dumplings or noodles made from a thin egg and flour batter.
- Spice:
- Any part of a plant, other than the leaves, used in flavoring.
- Steam:
- To cook by direct contact with steam.
- Stew:
- (1) To simmer a food or foods in a small amount of liquid that is usually served with the food as a sauce.
- (2) A dish cooked by stewing, usually one in which the main ingredients are cut in small pieces.
- Stock:
- A clear, thin (unthickened) liquid flavored by soluble substances extracted from meat, poultry and fish and their bones, and from vegetables and seasonings.
- Supreme Sauce:
- A sauce made of chicken veloute and heavy cream.
T
- Tahini:
- A high protein spread made from hulled sesame seeds ground into a paste.
- Tempeh:
- Roughly the size and shape of a waffle, tempeh is a fermented soybean cake and is considered a whole food. Tempeh contains 50% more protein than hamburger and is cholesterol free. It is a vegetarian source of Vitamin B12. Tempeh is found in the freezer section and is available plain or mixed with grains or seaweeds.
- Temper:
- To raise the temperature of a cold liquid gradually by slowly stirring in a hot liquid.
- Tofu:
- Soybean curd made from soybeans and nigari. High in protein and usually prepared in the form of cakes that may be sliced and cooked in soups, vegetable dishes, salads, sauces, dressings, and many other styles. Available in the refrigerated section and on the shelf.
- Tournedos (Toor nuh doe):
- A small beef steak cut from the tenderloin.
- Transitional:
- Products are in transition to organic when they are grown for a minimum of one year prior to harvest using only materials and methods permitted under the U.S. Organic Foods Production Act of 1990. However, they do not yet qualify as organic until they meet the three year requirement period.
- Truss:
- To tie poultry into a compact shape for cooking.
V
- Veloute:
- A sauce made by thickening white stock with a roux.
W
- Wash:
- (1) To brush or coat a food item with a liquid such as egg wash or milk.
- (2) The liquid used in this procedure.
- Whitewash:
- A thin mixture or slurry of flour and cold water.
Z
- Zest:
- The colored part of the peel of citrus fruit.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z