Cooking Terms

BAKE - cook in an oven or oven-like appliance.  Always bake a dish uncovered unless the recipe specifies otherwise

BASTE - brush or spoon a glaze, sauce, or drippings over a food as it cooks to add flavor and to help keep the surface moist

BEAT  - use a brisk up-and-over motion to add air to a mixture and make it smooth.  Or, use an electric  mixer or rotary beater to achieve similar results

BLANCH - briefly boil or steam a food to prevent spoilage during freezing, or to loosen skins for peeling

BLEND - process a food in an electric blender to mix, chop or puree.  Or, combine by hand with a stirring motion to make a uniform mixture

BOIL - Ccok in liquid that is heated until bubbles rise to the surface and break.  In a full rolling boil, bubbles form rapidly throughout the mixture

BRAISE - cook slowly with a small amount of liquid in a covered pan on the range top or in the oven

BROIL - cook by direct heat under a broiler in an electric or gas range

CARAMELIZE - cook sugar over low heat till it melts and turns brown

CHILL - refrigerate to reduce temperature of a food

CHOP - cut into small irregular shaped pieces

COOL - Let stand at room temp to reduce the temperature of food.  When a recipe says, “cool quickly,” food should be refrigerated or set in a bowl of ice

CREAM - beat with a spoon or electric mixer to make mixture light and fluffy

CUBE - cut into pieces that are the same size on each side - at least ½ inch

DICE - cut into cubes that are 1/8 to ¼ inch on each side

DISSOLVE - stir a dry ingredient into a liquid until the dry ingredient is no longer visible

FILLET - cut lean meat or fish into pieces without a bone

FLAKE -  gently break into small pieces

FOLD - gently combine two or more ingredients

FRY - cook in hot fat.  When a large amount of fat is used, this is deep -fat frying

GARNISH - decorate a food, usually with another food

GLAZE - brush mixture on a food to give a glossy appearance or hard finish. Usually the glaze adds flavor

GRATE - rub across a grater to break food into fine particles

GRILL - cook over hot coals

GRIND - use a food grinder to cut a food into very fine particles

KNEAD - work dough with the hands in a pressing, folding and turning motion

MARINATE  - allow a food to stand in a liquid that adds flavor to the food

MINCE - cut into very tiny, irregular-shaped pieces

MIX - combine ingredients by stirring

PARTIALLY SET - a term used to describe gelatin mixtures at the point in setting when the consistency resembles raw egg whites

PIT - remove the seed from a piece of fruit

POACH - cook in hot liquid, being careful that the food holds its shape

PUREE - use a blender, food processor or food mill to convert a food into a liquid or heavy paste

REDUCE - boil rapidly to evaporate liquid so mixture becomes thicker

ROAST - cook a meat, uncovered in the oven. “Pot roasting” refers to braising a meat roast

SAUTE’ - cook in a small amount of butter, margarine, oil, or shortening

SCALD - bring to a temperature just below boiling so that tiny bubbles form at the edge of the pan

SCORE - cut shallow grooves or slits through the outer layer of food

SEAR - brown surface of meat quickly with intense heat

SHRED - rub on a shredder to form long, narrow pieces

SIFT - pass flour or a dry mixture through a sieve or sifter to incorporate air and break up lumps

SIMMER - cook in liquid that is just below the boiling point.  Bubbles burst before reaching the surface

STEAM - cook using steam, sometimes under pressure

STEEP - extract the flavor or color from a substance by letting it stand in hot liquid

STEW - cook slowly in simmering liquid

STIR - use a spoon to combine ingredients with a circular or figure-8 motion

STIR-FRY - cook quickly in a small amount of hot fat, stirring constantly

TOSS - mix ingredients lightly by lifting and dropping with a spoon or a spoon and fork

WHIP - beat lightly and rapidly, incorporating air into a mixture to make it light and to increase its volume