CULINARY TERMS:

A La Carte \ ä-la-kärt\ Aerate

 Menu in which items and beverages are priced  To incorporate air into a mixture by sifting or mixing.
individually
Al Dente
Aioli \i- ö-lë\  Italian term meaning “to the tooth”. Used to describe
 A permanent emulsion of egg, vinegar, oil and garlic.. the mainly pasta that is cooked until a slight resistance
or garlic mayonnaise when bitten into.

Antipasto Albumen
 Italian for snacks served as first course of meal – an  Primary protein found in egg whites
assortment of cold appetizer
Allemande \ah-lah-mahnd\
Aspic  Sauce made by adding lemon juice and liason to
 A clear jelly typically made of stocks and gelatin and velouté made from veal stock.
used as a glaze or garnish or to make a mold of meat,
fish, or vegetable. Au gratin \ö- grä-t-n\
 Food cooked with a browned or crusted top, often
Aubergine \ ö-bar-zhën\ made with bread crumbs, cheese and/ or sauce
 French for Eggplant topping and cooked under a salamander/ broiler.

A point \a-pwan\ Au Jus \ö-zhue\

 French term for cooking until the ideal degree of  Roasted meat, poultry or game served with their
doneness. When referred to meat, it means medium natural unthickened juices.
rare.

Bain Marie \ban-ma-rë\

  Hot water bath used to gently cook food or keep food  A piece of cloth with small strainer like sieve, a tool in
hot. Container for holding food in hot water bath. making cheese, also used as a strainer, a package used
for a sachet d epice.
Ballontine
 Boneless poultry leg stuffed with forcemeat and gently China cap/ Chinois
roasted/braised, traditionally shaped into ball.  A conical shaped strainer.

Barding Canapé \ ka-ne-pē\

 Tying thin slices of fat such as pork or bacon, ocer  A small, prepared and usually decorative appetizer,
meats or poultry that have little fat to help keep moist. often able to eaten in one bite.

Baste Cantelope
 To moisten food using their natural juices periodically  Italian for Rock melon
during cooking.
Carpaccio \kär-pä-ch(ē-)ō\
Blanching  Italian for “thin shavings”. Very thin slices of raw beef
 To briefly submerge in simmering water, boiling water, or fish.
or fat to assist in preparation of foods. Example:
Tomato concassee. Ceviche
 Raw seafood marinated or “cooked” in a citrus
Bouquet Garni \-gar – në\ mixture.
 Fresh herbs and vegetable tied into a bundle and used
to flavor sauces, soups, stocks, stews. Chiffonade \shi-fe- nãd\
 Leafy vegetables or herbs cut into fine shreds; often
Bulgogi used as a garnish.
 A popular Korean beef dish. It is made from thinly
sliced marinated steak that is cut into thin strips before Chorizo
cooking.  A spicy, coarse textured pork sausage.

Cheese cloth Confit \kon-fë\

  Meat, such as duck, that has been salted, then cooked  French term for any kind of tasting – cheese, wine, etc.
and preserved in its own fat. (Dégustation menu: Tasting menu)

Consommé \kän(t)- se- mã\ Daikon

 A clear soup, served hot or as cold jelly.  A white radish from Japan, having a long root that is
eaten raw, picked, or cooked.
Coulis \kü- lē\
 A thick puree of vegetable or fruit. Demi-glace \ de-më- glas\
 “Half-glaze.” A mixture of equal proportions of brown
Courgette \kur- zhet\ stock & brown sauce that has been reduced by half.
 French for Zucchini One of the grand sauces.

Couscous \’kus- küs\ Demitasse \ de-mi-tas\

 A granular pasta or originating in North Africa, usually  The French term for a small coffee cup not exceeding 3
made from semolina. fl.oz (50ml).
 Small, spherical bits of semolina dough that are rolled,
dampened and coated with a finer wheat flour; a Dredging
staple of the North African diet.  To coat a food item in flour or ground crumbs prior to
frying or sautéing.
Concassée/ Concassé
 Peeled, seeded and diced tomato Dress
 To trim or clean an animal for cooking.
Deglaze
 To swirl or stir in a liquid into a hot pan to lift a away FIFO
caramelized food particles.  First in First Out. Inventory management system.

Degrease Fillet
 To remove fat from the surface of a liquid such as a  Removing the side of the fish intact while removing all
stock or sauce by skimming the surface. bones.

Degustation Fattoush
  A salad made from moistened toasted bread,  This is your basic Greek salad, familiar to many
cucumbers, tomatoes, mint, and other ingredients. Horiatiki means village -style.

Fritto Misto \ frē- to- mē-stō\ Horissa

 An Italian mixed fried platter, similar to Japanese  A spicy North African sauce made from chili peppers,
tempura platter. garlic, cumin, and other seasonings.
 A mixture of vegetables, meat, and /or fish are dipped
in a light batter and quickly deep fried to prevent a Hors d’oeuvre \òr-derv\
saturation of grease into food.  Appetizer
 A food served in small portions before the main part of
Flambé a meal
 Food flamed by use of alcohol for flavor.
Jacquarding
Frenching  The process of poking holes into the muscle of meat in
 Trimming racks of rib or poultry so the bone is cleaned order to tenderize.
and prominent.
Jus \zhoo\
Glace de viande  French for juice. Jus refers to the unthickened juices
 Dark, syrupy meat glaze made by reducing beef stock. from roasted meat.

Gazpacho \ gez- pä-chō\ Jus lié \zhoo-lee-yay\

 A chilled soup made with chopped tomatoes,
cucumbers, onions, peppers, and herbs.
Granita
 A granular dessert ice with sugar-syrup base, usually
flavored with fruit purée, coffee, or wine.
 Can be called fond lie, sauce made by thickening brown
stock using corn starch or similar starch.
 A French term referring to meat juice that has been
lightly thickened with cornstarch or arrow root.
Larding
 Inserting thin slices of fat directly into meat product to
infuse moisture.

Horiatiki Mascarpone \mas-kär-pö-nã\

  A soft Italian cheese that is a delicately flavored triple
cream cheese. Often used in the same fashion as
whipped cream. It is an important ingredient in
Tiramisu.
Mince
 To cut into very small pieces where uniformity or
shape is not important.
Mise en Place
 Meaning “Everything in place”, refers to the
preparation and organization of ingredients and
equipment.
 Studding an onion with a bay leaf and cloves. Used in
bechamel sauce.
Parboiling
 To partial cook a food in simmering/boiling water.
Similar to blanching but cooked for longer.
Parcooking
 Partially cooking food by any cooking method
Paupiette \pō- pyet\
 Thin slice of meat, poultry or fish spread with savory
staffing and rolled and braised or poached.

Nappé Paella \pä- e- le\

 A certain consistency in liquid that coats the back of a  A Spanish rise dish originating in the town of Valenicia.
spoon. There is no exact recipe. The only ingredients that are
necessary for paella are rice, tomatoes, and saffron.
Needling Other ingredients are chicken, chorizo, mussels, squid,
 Injecting fat or flavors into a ingredient to enhance peppers and beans. More elaborate preparations may
moisture of flavor. include shrimp, lobster, or duck.

Nori Pancetta \pan-che-te\

 Thin sheets of dried seaweed
Oignon Brülé
 French for burnt onion, made by charring onion halves.
Used to flavor and color stocks & sauces.
 Italian bacon that has been cured in salt and spices and
then air-dried.
Parmigiano Reggiano
 A very good quality of Italian Parmesan Cheese.

Oignon clouté Plat du jour \ plä-da- zhur\

  French for Dish of the day.  To cook quickly in a pan until the food is browned.

Polenta Sommelier
 A mush made from cornmeal. It can be eaten hot or  A French term used to describe the wine steward in a
allowed to cool and set. It is then sliced. restaurant

Praline \prä- lēn\ Sous Vide

 Sweets made of almond and sugar.  French for “under vacuum”. This is a method of
cooking that is intended to maintain the integrity of
Proscuitto ingredients by heating them for an extended period of
 The Italian word for ham, usually referring to the raw time at relatively low temperatures. Food is cooked, in
cured hams of Parma. some cases for well over 24 hours, in airtight plastic
bags placed in hot water that is well below boiling
Raft point.
 Crust formed during production of consommé.
Shocking
Remouillage \ruh-moo-yazh\  Submerging a hot food item in cold water to quickly
 The process of reusing bones for a second stock. stop the cooking process. Also known as an icebath.
French meaning “rewetting”.
Tapas
Render  Spanish for appetizer.
 To transform solid fat into liquid form by use of heat.
Ricer
Ragu  Sievelike tool used to force soft foods through to
 [Italian] Meat and tomato sauce. Typically served with evenly breakup the product, such as potatoes.
pasta.
Roulade
Sabayon  Slice of meat, poultry or fish rolled around a stuffing.
 A light, frothy mixture made by beating egg yolks with
water or other liquid over gentle heat.
Sauté Sachet
  A mini package of herbs and spices used to flavor  To slowly add hot liquid to eggs while stirring
sauces or stocks. vigorously to slowly bring mixture up to temperature
without curdling the eggs.
Savoury / Savory
 Spied or seasoned foods, opposed to sweet. Truss
 Tying whole poultry or meat to encourage even
Scald cooking.
 To heat a liquid, usually milk to just below boiling.
Zushi
Sear  The seasoned rice used in preparing sushi.
 Brown food quickly over high heat, done as a
preparatory step for further methods such as braising
or roasting.

Silverskin
 Tough connective tissue that surrounds certain
muscles.

Staling
 Change in moisture within starch that causes products
to turn firm, drier and more crumbly.

Steep
 Soaking food in a hot liquid in order to extract flavor or
remove impurities.

Sweat
 To cook food in a pan usually covered, without
browning over low heat to encourage flavors to be
extracted from vegetable and spices.
Tempering