Cooking Terms
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.
Blanch – to cook an item briefly in boiling water or hot fat before finishing or storing it.
Boil – a cooking method in which items are immersed in liquid at or above the boiling point
(212ºF/100ºC).
Braise – a cooking method in which the main item, usually meat, is seared in fat, then simmered in
stock to another liquid in a covered vessel.
Broil – a cooking method in which items are cooked by a radiant heat source placed above the food,
usually in a broiler or salamander.
Butcher - a chef or purveyor who is responsible for butchering meats, poultry and occasionally fish.
Cure – to preserve a food by salting, smoking and or drying
Deep fry – a cooking method in which foods are cooked by immersion in hot fat; deep-fried foods
are often coated with bread crumbs or batter before being cooked
Fillet – a boneless cut of meat, fish or poultry
Garnish – an edible decoration of accompaniment to a dish
Gratine – browned in an oven or under a salamander.
De Glaze-Adding Liquid such as stock or wine to a hot pan to loosen and dissolve the caramelized
beats of yumminess stuck in the bottom.
CUT - To divide food materials with a knife or scissors in any desired shape
DREDGE : To sprinkle or coat lightly with flour, cornmeal, or ground almonds.
DRIZZLE : To pour liquid into thin streams to have a thread like effect.
DUST : To sprinkle a fine substance such as sugar or flour gently on a surface
DIP :
(1) To briefly plunge bite-size foods in a liquid mixture.
(2) An informal appetizer made with softened cheese, sour cream, mashed avocado, bean puree, or
a food of similar consistency flavored to complement crisp, bite-size foods that are literally dipped
into the product
GRATE : To shred food into small pieces with the use of a grater.
Knead – to mix and squeezes by hands
Melt – to dissolve
Meringue – the beaten white of eggs, sweetened
PARE : To cut off the outside covering. Applied to potatoes, apples, etc.
Pre-heat – heat before
PUREE ( pew ray' ) : To mash a cooked product to a fine pulp, usually by forcing it through a sieve or
putting it into a blender
SIFT : To shake through a fine sieve.
Grill – a cooking technique in which foods are cooked by a radiant heat source placed below the
food. Also, the piece of equipment on which grilling is done.
What is the difference between a MARINATE from MARINADE?
Marinade – (noun)
-an apparel used in cooking to flavor and moisten foods, may be liquid or dry.
- Liquid marinades are usually based on an acidic ingredients, such as wine or vinegar, dry
marinades are usually salt-based.
Marinate – (verb) the action that take place when you apply the marinade into the meat.
Mis en place- to Gather and all ingredients and tools needed for cooking.
Meuniere- To coat a flour,saute in butter and finished with lemon and parsley.
Nappe-When a sauce pan is thick enough to coat the back spoon, and hold a clean line drawn across
With your finger.
Pan-broil – a cooking method similar to dry sautéing that simulates broiling by cooking an item in a
hot pan with little or no fat.
Panfry – a cooking method in which items are cooked in deep fat in a skillet over medium heat; this
generally involves more fat than sautéing or stir-frying but less than deep-frying.
Poach – a method in which items are cooked gently in simmering liquid
Roast – a dry heat cooking method in which items are cooked in an oven or on a spit over a fire
Sauté – a cooking method in which items are cooked quickly in a small amount of fat in a pan on the
range top.
