Cooking Terms

Cooking Terms

Aioli – Aioli (garlic mayonnaise) is a delicious accompaniment to cold or hot grilled vegetables, steamed or boiled artichokes, boiled potatoes, and grilled or baked fish and shellfish.

Al dente – An Italian expression applied in all western kitchens to pasta cooked just until enough resistance is left in it to be felt “by the tooth.” Fresh pasta can never by cooked al dente as it is too soft. The expression is also applied to vegetables that have been cooked crisp by steaming, boiling, or stir-frying.

B. Cooking Terms

Bake – To cook in the oven. The terms baking and roasting are often used interchangeably, but roasting usually implies cooking at a higher temperature—at least at the beginning—to get the surface of the foods to brown.

Barbecue – A cooking method involving grilling food over a wood or charcoal fire. Usually some sort of rub, marinade, or sauce is brushed on the item before or during cooking.

Baste– To moisten food during cooking with pan drippings, sauce, or other liquid. Basting prevents foods from drying out.

Batter – A mixture of flour and liquid with the addition of flour, eggs, and sometimes fat, used to prepare cakes, muffins, pancakes, crepes, and quick breads. Also applies to frying batters.

Bavarian – A type of custard made by folding together whipped cream and a flavorful liquid mixture, usually a crème anglaise flavored with vanilla, coffee, chocolate, or a fruit puree.

Béarnaise – A warm, emulsified egg and butter sauce similar to hollandaise, but with the addition of white wine, shallots, and tarragon.

Beat – To agitate a mixture with the goal of making it smooth and introducing as much air as possible into it.

Béchamel – A classic white sauce made with whole milk thickened with a white roux, and flavored with aromatic vegetables,

Beurre Blanc – A rich butter sauce made by whisking butter into a reduction of white wine, white wine vinegar, and shallots, and sometimes finished with fresh herbs or other seasoning.

Bisque – A soup based on purees of vegetables and/or crustaceans. It is classically thickened with rice and usually finished with cream.

Blanch – A method of cooking in which foods are plunged into boiling water for a few seconds, removed from the water and refreshed under cold water, which stops the cooking process. Used to heighten color and flavor, to firm flesh and to loosen skins.

Boil – To cook in water or other liquid heated until bubbling vigorously. Few techniques cause as much confusion as boiling, simmering, and poaching. Boiling is, in fact, often a technique to be avoided. Most foods—meat and seafood, for example—are poached instead (cooked in liquid held just below the boil so it just shimmers slightly on the surface), because boiling turns them dry or stringy, and it can cause the liquid to become murky or greasy.

Bouillabaisse – Mediterranean seafood soup.

Bouillon – French, for broth. Refers to the liquid resulting from simmering meats, vegetables, and aromatics in water until the meats have lost all their nutritional elements to the water and the broth can jell upon cooling.

Braise – To cook in a small amount of liquid (also called stewing or pot roasting). In contract to poaching, in which the food is completely submerged in simmering liquid, braised dishes use a relatively small amount of liquid. Usually, the purpose of braising is to concentrate the food’s flavors in the surrounding liquid so that it can be made into a sauce, or allowed to reduce so that it coats or is reabsorbed by the foods being braised.

Bread – To coat foods to be sautéed or deep-fried with flour or a breadcrumb mixture to create a crust.

Brine – A salt, water, and seasoning solution used to preserve foods.

Brisket – A cut of beef from the lower forequarter, best suited for long-cooking preparations like braising.

Broil – To cook with a direct heat source—usually a gas flame or an electric coil—above the food.

Broth – Broth and stock are interchangeable terms and mean a flavorful liquid made by gently cooking meat, seafood, or vegetables, often with herbs, in liquid, usually water.

Brown stock – An amber liquid produced by simmering browned bones and meat with vegetables and aromatics.

Buttercream – A mixture of butter, sugar, and eggs or custard.

Butterfly – To cut and open out the edges of meat or seafood like a book or the wings of a butterfly.

Buttermilk – A dairy liquid with a slightly sour taste similar to yogurt.

C. Cooking Terms

Caramelize – The flavor of many foods, including vegetables, meats, and seafood, is often enhanced by a gentle browning that caramelizes natural sugars and other compounds and intensifies their flavor. Meats for stews, for example, are usually browned to caramelize juices that if not caramelized are much less flavorful. Chopped vegetables, especially aromatic ones such as carrots and onions, are often caramelized—sometimes with cubes of meat—in a small amount of fat before liquid is added to enhance the flavor of soups, stews, and sauces.

Chop – To cut into irregular pieces. Foods can be chopped from very fine (minced) to coarse.

Chowder – A thick soup that usually contains potatoes.

Clarified butter – Because butter contains milk solids which burn at relatively low temperatures, it can’t be used to sauté at the high temperatures required for browning most meats and seafood and some vegetables. Clarifying removes the water and milk solids in butter. You can purchase clarified butter called ghee at most larger grocery stores.

Coat – To cover the back of a spoon with a layer of a thickened sauce or stirred custard.

Compound butter – Whole butter combined with herbs or other seasonings and used to sauce grilled or broiled meats or vegetables.

Consommé – Broth or stock that has been clarified by simmering it with beaten egg whites, which attract and trap the impurities clouding the broth.

Corned – As in corned beef or other meat; refers to a meat that has been salted and cured.

Cream – To stir a fat—usually butter—and sugar together rapidly until the mixture looks white, aerated, and somewhat like stiffly beaten whipped cream. Or, that part of milk, containing 32 to 42 percent of butterfat in emulsion, that rises to its surface after the milk cools to room temperature and stands for several hours.

Crème anglaise – Custard sauce or vanilla sauce.

Crème brulee – Custard topped with sugar and caramelized under the broiler before serving.

Crème fraiche – Heavy cream cultured to give it a thick consistency and a slightly tangy flavor. Substitute sour cream, if necessary.

Crème patisserie – Custard made with eggs, flour or other starches, milk, sugar, and flavorings, used to fill and garnish pastries or as the base for puddings, pies, soufflés, and creams.

Crepe– A thin pancake made with egg batter.

Croute, en – Enclosed in a bread or pastry crust.

Curry – A mixture of spices that may include turmeric, coriander, cumin, cayenne or other chilies, cardamom, cinnamon, clove, fennel, fenugreek, ginger, or garlic.

Custard – A liquid mixture that is combined with whole eggs, egg whites, or egg yolks, or a combination, and gently baked until set. Examples of custards are a quiche filling; a crème caramel and a crème brûlée.

D. Cooking Terms

Deep-fry – To cook completely submerged in hot oil. Deep-frying at the proper temperature, foods absorb little oil and are surprisingly light. But if the oil is too hot, foods will brown too quickly and stay raw in the middle. If the oil isn’t hot enough, the foods will sit in the oil too long and absorb too much oil. You can judge the oil by how certain foods behave. When the oil is too cool for frying, foods sink to the bottom and stay there. In somewhat hotter oil (but still not hot enough) foods sink to the bottom and then slowly rise to the top. The oil is at the proper temperature when the food doesn’t drop all the way to the bottom when it is added and then bobs back to the surface within a second or two. When the oil is too hot, foods immediately float, remaining on the surface, surrounded with bubbles. These are not necessarily hard and fast rules. French fries, for instance, require oil that’s hot enough to immediately surround the potatoes with bubbles.

Deglaze – To add liquid to a pan in which foods have been sautéed or roasted in order to dissolve the caramelized juices stuck to the bottom of the pan. The purpose of deglazing is to make a quick sauce or gravy for a roast, steak, chop, or a piece of seafood fillet or steak. To make a pan-deglazed sauce, first pour out any fat left in the pan, and make sure that the juices clinging to the bottom of the pan haven’t blackened and burned. Add a few tablespoons of flavorful liquid, such as wine, broth, or, in a pinch, water, to the pan. Gently scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to loosen the caramelized juices. You can use such a sauce as is, or you can turn it into something richer and more elaborate by adding reduced broth, swirling in a few pieces of butter, adding a little heavy cream, or thickening it with a vegetable puree, such as garlic or tomato, and then reducing the sauce to the consistency like. You can add nuance and flavor to the sauce by adding chopped herbs or ingredients such as green peppercorns.

Degrease – To remove the fat that forms on the tops of simmering broths, sauces, jus, and braising liquids. There are a couple of reliable methods for degreasing broth. The first, which requires a little practice, is to use a ladle or spoon to skim around the edges of the simmering broth to catch and remove just the surface fat. An easier method is to chill the broth overnight in the refrigerator and then remove the fat that has congealed on the surface. You can also use a degreasing cup that is specially made for this task. You simply pour the juices into the cup and then pour them out, leaving the fat behind.

Demi-glace – A mixture of equal parts of brown stock and brown sauce that has been reduced by half.

Dice – To cut into cubes (unlike chopping, which cuts foods into irregular pieces).

Dredge – To coat a food with flour, any finely crumbled ingredient, or, in pastry, with fine sugar.

E. Cooking Terms

Egg wash – A mixture of egg or egg white, oil, and water brushed over floured items, which are then deep-fried or pan-fried in clarified butter or oil.

Emulsion – An emulsion is a smooth mixture of two liquids, such as oil and water that normally do not mix. Mayonnaise, beurre blank, hollandaise, cream sauces, vinaigrettes, and béchamel sauce are examples of emulsions.

F. Cooking Terms

Flambé – To ignite a sauce or other liquid so that it flames. Most of the time flambéing has no real function other than to delight your guests. If you are going to flambé a dish keep in mind that it is impossible to flambé a cold dish by sprinkling it with spirits and trying to light it—the spirits only release their flammable fumes when hot. Do not pour flaming spirits.

Flan – A liquid or semi liquid mixture, held together with whole eggs, egg whites, or egg yolks, that is gently baked in a mold or pastry shell. Quiches, crème caramel, and crème brulee are examples of sweet flans. Any puree, or pureed soup, can be converted to a flan with the addition of egg. One whole egg, 2 egg whites, or 2 egg yolks will bind ¾ cup of liquid.

Foie Gras – The livers of geese and ducks that have been force-fed a mixture of corn, lard, and salted water.

Fold – To incorporate an egg-white foam into an egg yolk foam or a flour batter without deflating it so that it retains its full leavening power.

Frittata – A flat Italian baked or sometimes also half-fried/half-baked omelet.

Fritter – Any food coated with a batter or crumbs and deep-fried.

Fry – To cook in a hot fat.

G. Cooking Terms

Ganache – A mixture of grated or finely chopped chocolate, black or white, and scalded heavy cream, whisked on medium speed until completely cool.

Garnish – To add an interesting and completely edible item to a plate to make it look more attractive; or any such edible item.

Génoise – A sponge cake made with whole eggs, used for layer cakes and other desserts.

Glaze – To give food a shiny surface by brushing it with sauce, aspic, icing, or another appariel. For meat, to coat with sauce and then brown in an oven.

Gnocchi – Gnocchi are starchy dumplings that are made in various shapes. There are two basic types of gnocchi: those based on potatoes and those based on flour or cornmeal.

Grand sauce – (or Mother sauce). One of several basic sauces that are used in the preparation of many other small sauces. The grand sauces are: demi-glace, veloute, béchamel, hollandaise, and tomato.

Gratin – A way of binding together, or combining, cooked or raw foods (usually vegetables or pasta—baked macaroni and cheese is a gratin) with a liquid such as cream, milk, béchamel sauce, or tomato sauce, in a shallow dish and baking until cooked and set. Typically the gratin is sprinkled with cheese or bread crumbs so a crunchy, savory crust forms on top. A gratin is really the same thing as a casserole, except a gratin is usually baked in a special oval, shallow dish.

Gravy – A gravy is an American-style jus that has been thickened with a roux. This roux can be made using butter and flour or by cooking flour into some of the fat skimmed off the jus. Cornstarch mixed with a little water can also be whisked into the jus and the jus brought to a simmer to get the cornstarch to thicken. Once the gravy is thickened, other ingredients, such as herbs or chopped giblets, can be added to it to give it extra flavor. Vegetable purees can also be used to thicken a natural jus and turn it into a flourless gravy. Garlic, roasted along with meats and poultry, or separately, is excellent pureed and whisked into the jus to thicken it.

Grill – To cook above the heat source (traditionally over wood coals) in the open air.

Grind – To pass meats or nuts through a grinder or a food processor to reduce to small pieces.

H. Cooking Terms

Hash – Chopped, cooked meat, usually with potatoes and/or other vegetables, which is seasoned, bound with a sauce, and sautéed. Also, to chop.

Hollandaise – One of the Grand or Mother sauces. It is made with a vinegar reduction, egg yolks, and melted butter flavored with lemon juice.

J. Cooking Terms

Jambalaya – A Cajun and Creole composition of rice, smoke sausage, cubed ham, aromatics, and any meat that interests the cook.

Julienne – To cut into long thin matchstick size strips.

Jus – The natural juices released by roasting meats and poultry.

L. Cooking Terms

Lard – To insert strips of fatback into a piece of meat to be braised, using a special cutter with a hollow blade called a lardoir. Also, to wrap a tenderloin of beef in a thin sheet of fatback before roasting it.

Lemongrass – A tall, lemon-scented grass, used in Thai cooking.

Liqueur – A spirit flavored with fruit, spices, nuts, herbs, and / or seeds and usually sweetened.

London Broil – A large steak generally grilled or broiled and cut out of the rib cap, flank, or chuck of beef.

Low-fat Milk – Partially defatted milk containing 1 to 2 percent fat.

M. Cooking Terms

Mahimahi – A firm-fleshed fish with a light, delicate flavor.

Mandoline – A slicer that can be fitted with diverse cutting blades.

Marinade – A mixture of ingredients used to flavor and moisten foods. May be liquid of dry. Liquid marinades are usually acidic based and dry marinades are usually salt based.

Marinate – To combine foods—usually meat or seafood, and occasionally vegetables—with aromatic ingredients in order to flavor the food.

Marsala – An Italian fortified wine made in the vicinity of Marsala in Sicily.

Melt – To liquefy a fat or a gel by heating it.

Meringue – Egg whites beaten until they are stiff, with added sugar or sugar syrup, used as a topping or shaped and baked until stiff.

Mince – To chop very fine.

Mirepoix – Many cooking preparations, particularly braises, stews, roasts, and soups, call for sweating various mixtures of chopped aromatic vegetables before liquid is added. These mixtures are designed to add freshness and flavor to meats and seafood. The best-known mixture is the French mirepoix, a mixture of 2 parts onion, 2 parts carrot, and 1 part celery, but other countries and regions have their own variations. Italy has its soffritto (onion, carrot, celery, and usually, garlic). Spain has its sofregit and sofrito (onion, carrot, celery, ham, and sometimes tomato). Indonesia has bumbu (garlic, shallots, spices, and shrimp paste).

Mirin – Heavily sweetened rice wine used as cooking wine. You can substitute sweet white wine.

Miso – A thick paste made from fermented and processed soy beans. Red miso is a combination of barley and soy beans and yellow miso is a combination of rice and soy beans.

Mix – To combine ingredients by hand or with a mixer with the goal of blending them well and uniformly together.

Mousse – A general term that can describe any mixture lightened with something airy, usually beaten egg whites or whipped cream.

Mousseline – A sauce made by folding whipped cream into hollandaise. Or, a very light forcemeat based on white meat or seafood lightened with cream and eggs.

Mozzarella – Italian cheese made of pasta filata, a cheese paste that pulls into strings when cooked to approximately 96 to 98 degrees F.

N. Cooking Terms

Napoleon – A pastry made with alternating layers of puff pastry and a cream of your choice and glazed.

Noodles – Pasta made with flour or a mixture of flour and semolina, whole eggs, or egg whites.

Nori sheets – Dried seaweed pressed into square sheets. Used for nori rolls, soups and Japanese cuisine.

O. Cooking Terms

Omelet – Beaten eggs that are cooked in butter, then rolled or folded into an oval. They may be filled with any variety of ingredients before folding.

Oyster mushrooms Thin-ridged, delicately flavored, cultivated mushrooms with a slight taste of oysters.

P. Cooking Terms

Paella – A Spanish dish of rice cooked with onion, tomato, garlic, saffron, vegetables, and various meats, including chicken, chorizo, and/or shellfish.

Panfry – Most cooks use the terms panfry and sauté interchangeably, but strictly speaking, there is a difference. Although both terms refer to cooking in a small amount of hot oil, butter, or other fat, sautéing means to toss foods over high heat, while pan-frying describes cooking pieces of meat, seafood, or large pieces of vegetables in a hot pan, turning with tongs, a spatula, or a fork only once or twice.

Pan gravy – A sauce made by deglazing pan drippings from a roast and combining them with a roux or other starch and additional stock.

Parboil – To cook partially in boiling water.

Parchment paper – Heat-resistant paper used in baking to line pans. It does not need to be buttered or greased, and it keeps rich cookies from losing their shape and from sticking to the pan.

Paring knife – A short knife used for paring and trimming fruits and vegetables. Its blade is usually 2 to 4 inches long.

Parmigiano-Reggiano – The king of Italian hard-grating cheeses made from cow’s milk. Once you have tasted this cheese grated over the top of a pasta dish you will always have it on hand!

Pâté – A rich forcemeat of meat, game, poultry, seafood, and /or vegetables, baked in pastry or in a mold or dish.

Pâté à choux – Cream puff paste, made by boiling a mixture of water, butter, and flour, then beating in whole eggs.

Pâté brisee – Short pastry for pie crusts.

Pâté en croute – Pâté baked in a pastry crust.

Phyllo dough – Pastry made with very thin sheets of a flour-and-water dough layered with butter and / or crumbs; similar to strudel. Also called filo dough.

Poach – To cook completely submerged in barely simmering liquid.

Puree – To work or strain foods until they are completely smooth.

Q. Cooking Terms

Quiche – Originally a pie made with a butter crust and filled with eggs beaten with heavy cream and very smoky bacon. American cooks have created a plethora of recipes for quiche.

Quick bread – Bread made with chemical leaveners, which work more quickly than yeast.

R. Cooking Terms

Ragout – Stew.

Ramekin – A small, ovenproof dish, usually ceramic.

Ratatouille – An ancient Mediterranean mixture of vegetables cooked slowly until they make a well-bound compote.

Resting – Roasted meats should not be served straight out of the over, but should be allowed to rest in a warm place for 20 to 30 minutes, loosely covered with aluminum foil. (The foil keeps the meat warm; loose wrapping ensures that the outside of the meat doesn’t steam and lose its crispness.) Resting allows the meat to relax so the juices become redistributed in the meat and aren’t squeezed out onto the platter during carving.

Ricotta – A fresh, creamy white cheese, smoother than cottage cheese, with a slightly sweet flavor. It is available in whole milk and part-skim milk versions, and is often used in lasagna and stuffed pastas. A little can be stirred into a sauce to add richness as well as creamy body. Refrigerate and use within a week.

Roast – The purpose of roasting is to create a golden brown crust on whatever it is we are roasting and, at the same time, make sure the meat, fish, or vegetable properly cooks in the center. When roasting, no liquid such as broth, wine, or water comes in contact with the food—only hot air, or, if the roast is being basted, hot fat. Roasting is both simple and complex—simple because there’s very little to do except slide the food into the oven; complex because if the temperature isn’t right, the food may never brown or cook properly.

Roma tomatoes – Also known as egg tomatoes. Oval-shaped tomatoes, which are great for cooking and eating.

Romano cheese – A hard, salty grating cheese. Pecorino Romano is the best known, and is made with sheep’s milk, while many other types are made with cow’s milk or a blend of cow’s and goat’s milk. Grate as you would Parmesan and use as a tangy accent for pasta dishes.

Roulade – A slice of meat or fish rolled around a stuffing.

Roux – A mixture of flour and butter used to thicken sauces, soups, and gravies. Usually the butter is cooked with the flour in a heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat. Most roux are white roux, made by cooking the flour for only a minute or two. Brown roux—made by cooking the flour until pale brown to dark brown—is also used in many recipes, especially Cajun cooking.

S. Cooking Terms

Sabayon –A light, frothy mixture made by beating egg yolks with water or other liquid over gentle heat.

Sake – Japanese fermented rice wine. Used in cooking to tenderize and add flavor. Store in a cool, dark place and use soon after opening. Substitute dry white wine.

Salsa – Tomato sauce or other type of sauce flavored with a fairly wide variety of ingredients.

Sauté – To cook over high heat in a small amount of fat in a sauté pan or skillet.

Scald – To heat milk just below the boiling point. Or, to immerse a vegetable or fruit in boiling water in order to remove its skin easily.

Scallions – Immature onions (also called green onions) with a milk and slightly sweet flavor. Both the white bulb and the green tops can be used in cooking. The green tops also make an attractive garnish.

Sear – To brown the surface of pieces of meats and or fish by submitting them to intense initial heat.

Shallot – A member of the onion family, looking rather like large cloves of garlic. Shallots are used to infuse savory dishes with a mild, delicate onion flavor. Refrigerate for not more than 1 week to maintain maximum flavor.

Shred – To cut into fine strips. Shredding is similar to cutting into chiffonade but less precise.

Simmer – To maintain the temperature of a liquid just below boiling.

Skim – To lift and discard any unwanted foam or fat from the surface of a stock, broth, sauce, or soup.

Smother – To cook in a covered pan with little liquid over low heat.

Sorbet – A frozen dessert made with fruit juice or another flavoring, a sweetener (usually sugar), and beaten egg whites, which prevent the formation of large ice crystals.

Souffle – A preparation made with a sauce base, whipped egg whites, and flavorings. The egg whites cause the soufflé to puff during cooking.

Steam – To cook in steam by suspending foods over (not in) boiling water, in a covered pot or steamer.

Stew – A cooking method nearly identical to braising but generally involving smaller pieces of meat, and hence a shorter cooking time. Also, the dish prepared by using this method of preparation.

Stir-fry – Chinese technique of cooking think slivers of meat, shellfish, and vegetables in hot oil.

Sun-dried tomatoes – Plum tomatoes that have been dried slowly to produce a chewy, intensely flavorful sauce ingredient. They are available in both oil-packed and dry-packed. For many recipes, the dried tomatoes must be soaked in hot water to soften them before using.

T. Cooking Terms

Tart – A pie that has only a bottom crust.

Tempura – A Japanese method of cooking vegetables and shellfish. They are coated with a light cornstarch batter and deep-fried.

Terrine – A loaf of forcemeat, similar to a pate, but cooked in a covered mold in a bain-marie. Also, the mold used to cook this item.

Tomato paste – A concentrated essence of cooked tomatoes, sold in cans and tubes. It is commonly used to thicken and accent the flavor and color of sauces; however it is slightly bitter and should not be used alone or in large quantities. If you are using only part of a can, save the remainder by freezing it in a plastic bag.

V. Cooking Terms

Veloute – One of the Grande or Mother sauces. A sauce of white stock thickened with white roux. Also, a cream soup made with a veloute sauce base and flavorings that is usually finished with a mixture of egg yolks and cream.

Vinaigrette – The classic French salad dressing made of one part vinegar and three parts oil. Mustard and cream can be added if desired.

W. Cooking Terms

Whip – To beat a preparation with the goal of introducing air into it. Or, the balloon wire whisk often used to do so.

White sauce – Traditional white sauces are divided into two types: those based on béchamel sauce and those based on velouté sauce. A basic béchamel sauce is made by adding hot milk to a white roux, and a basic veloute sauce is made by adding hot broth to a white roux.

White stock – A light-colored stock made with bones that have not been browned.

Z. Cooking Terms

Zabaglione – A whipped custard made with egg yolks and sugar gradually diluted over heat with Marsala or other wine, fruit juice, or liqueur.

Zest – The thin, brightly colored outer part of the rind of citrus fruits. The oils make it ideal for use as a flavoring. Remove the zest with a grater, citrus zester, or vegetable peeler. Be careful to remove only the colored layer, not the bitter-white pith beneath it.