Common Culinary Terms (A to Z) PDF

**Common Culinary Terms (A to Z)** Al dente **-** To cook food until just firm, usually referring to pasta, but can include vegetables. Bake - To cook food in an oven using dry heat. Baste - To moisten food while cooking by spooning, brushing, or squirting a liquid, such as meat drippings to stoc...

**Common Culinary Terms (A to Z)** Al dente **-** To cook food until just firm, usually referring to pasta, but can include vegetables. Bake - To cook food in an oven using dry heat. Baste - To moisten food while cooking by spooning, brushing, or squirting a liquid, such as meat drippings to stock, to add flavor and prevent it from drying out. Beat - To stir rapidly in a circular motion to make a smooth mixture, using a whisk, spoon, or mixer. Braise - To cook first by browning the food in butter or oil, then gently simmering in a small amount of liquid over low heat for a long period in a covered pan until tender. Broil - To expose food to direct heat on a rack or spit, often used for melting food like cheese. Brown - To cook over high heat (usually on the stove-top) to brown food. Caramelize - To heat sugar until it liquefies and becomes a syrup. Chop - To cut vegetables into large squares, usually specified by the recipe. Cream - To beat ingredients (usually sugar and fat) until smooth and fluffy. Cube - Like chopping, it is to cut food into small cubes, usually about 1/2 inch. Dash - 1/8 teaspoon. Dice - To cut into small pieces, usually 1/4 to 1/8 chunks. Dollop - A spoonful of semi-solid food, like whipped cream or mashed potatoes, placed on top of another food. Dredge - To lightly coat uncooked food with a dry mixture, usually with flour, cornmeal, or bread crumbs, to be pan-fried or sautéed. Dress - To coat foods with a sauce, such as salad. Drizzle - To pour the liquid back and forth over a dish in a fine stream, usually melted butter, oil, syrup, or melted chocolate. Dust - To coat lightly with a powdery ingredient, such as confectioners' sugar or cocoa. Fillet - To cut the bones from a piece of meat, poultry, or fish. Flambé - To drizzle a flammable spirit over a portion of food while it\'s cooking, to ignite the just before serving. Fold - To combine light ingredients, such as whipped cream or beaten egg whites, with a heavier mixture, using an over-and-under motion. Glaze - To coat foods with mixtures such as jellies or sauces. Grate - Creates tiny pieces of food, best for things like cheese to melt quickly or a vegetable used in a sauce. Grease - To coat the interior of a pan or dish with shortening, oil, or butter to prevent food from sticking during cooking. Julienne - Cutting vegetables until long, thin strips, approximately 1/4 inch thick and 1 inch long. Knead - The process of mixing the dough with the hands or a mixer Marinate - To soak in a sauce or flavored liquid for a long time, usually a slice of meat, poultry, or fish. Mince - To cut as small as possible, most commonly used with garlic. Pan Fry - Cook larger chunks of food over medium-heat, flipping once only. Parboil - To partially cook by boiling, usually to prepare the food for cooking by another method. Poach - To cook gently over very low heat, in barely simmering water just to cover. Pinch - 1/16 teaspoon. Purée - To mash or grind food until completely smooth. Roast - Like baking but concerning meat or poultry, it is to cook food in an oven using dry heat. Sauté - To cook small pieces of food over medium-high heat with oil in a pan, usually to brown food. Scald - To heat liquid almost to a boil until bubbles begin forming just around the edge. Sear - To brown the surface of meat by quick-cooking over high heat into order to seal in the meat's juices. Shred - Done on a grater with larger holes, resulting in long, smooth stripes to cook or melt. Simmer - Bring a pot to a boil, then reduce the heat until there are no bubbles. Skim - To remove fat or foam from the surface of a liquid. Slice - To cut vertically down, thickness sometimes specified by the recipe. Smidgen - 1/32 teaspoon. Steam - To cook food on a rack or in a steamer set over boiling or simmering water. Steep - To soak a dry ingredient in a liquid just under the boiling point to extract the flavor, such as with tea. Stew - To cook covered over low heat in a liquid for a substantial time. Whip - To beat food with a whisk or mixer to incorporate air and increase volume. Whisk - To beat ingredients with a fork or a whisk. Zest - The outer, colored peel of citrus fruit. **Common Terms, need to know** Glaze -To coat foods with mixtures such as jellies or sauces. Grate- Creates tiny pieces of food, best for things like cheese to melt quickly or a vegetable used in a sauce. Grease- To coat the interior of a pan or dish with shortening, oil, or butter to prevent food from sticking during cooking. Julienne - Cutting vegetables until long, thin strips, approximately 1/4-inch thick and 1inch long. (matchsticks size) Knead-The process of mixing the dough with the hands or a mixer. Marinate-To soaks in a sauce or flavored liquid for a long time, usually meat, poultry, or fish. Mince-To cut as small as possible, most commonly used with garlic. Pan Fry-Cook larger chunks of food over medium-heat, flipping once only. Parboil-To partially cooks by boiling, usually to prepare the food for cooking by another method. Poach-To cook gently over very low heat, in barely simmering water just to cover. **Spice, herbs and condiments** A Spice is a product from another part of the plant (usually dried), including seeds, berries, bark, roots, and fruits. Herbs are any plants used for food, flavoring, medicine, or perfume. Culinary use typically distinguishes herbs from spices. Herbs refer to the leafy green parts of a plant. A condiment is a spice, sauce, or other food preparation that is added to food to impart a particular flavor, to enhance its flavor. **Condiments examples:** Barbecue sauce: is a flavoring sauce used as a marinade, basting, or topping for meat cooked in the barbecue cooking style, including pork or beef ribs and chicken. Aioli: is a sauce made of garlic, olive oil, usually egg yolks, and seasonings. There are many variations, such as the addition of mustard. Aioli is, like mayonnaise, an emulsion. Cocktail sauce: originally known as Marie Rose sauce is one of several types of cold or room temperature sauces often served as part of the dish referred to as seafood. Chutney: is a family of condiments associated with South Asian cuisine made from a highly variable mixture of spices, vegetables, or fruit. They can range from a wet to dry, or coarse to fine. Chili sauce: is a condiment prepared with chili peppers and red tomato as primary ingredients. Chili sauce may be hot, sweet. Fruit preserves: are preparations of fruits, vegetables, and sugar, often canned or sealed for long-term storage. The preparation of fruit preserves today often involves adding commercial or natural pectin as a gelling agent. Fish sauce: is an amber-colored liquid extracted from the fermentation of fish with sea salt. It is used as a condiment in various cuisines. Fish sauce is a staple ingredient in numerous cultures in Southeast Asia. Mayonnaise: is a thick, creamy sauce often used as a condiment. Guacamole: is an avocado-based dip or salad. It is traditionally made by mashing ripe avocados and sea salt with a molcajete. Mustard is a condiment made from the seeds of a mustard plant. The whole, ground, cracked, or bruised mustard seeds are mixed with water, salt, lemon juice, or other liquids, and sometimes other flavorings and spices, to create a paste or sauce. Herbs examples Caraway: Roots of caraway can be boiled and used like parsnips or carrot. Fresh leaves can be harvested as needed and used in salads, soups, and stews or eaten like spinach. Seeds are used in baking, slaws, cheese, and potato dishes. Basil: It is used to flavor soups, stews, tomato dishes, meat, game, fish, egg dishes, herb butter, and herb vinegar. Dill: Used to flavor fish, lamb, egg dishes, soups, and potato salad. Seeds are used in pickling recipes and vinegar. Parsley: Parsley is often seen used as a garnish. It also has the unique ability to blend with the flavors of other herbs. It is used to flavor stews, soups, and other vegetables. Chervil: Leaves are used much the same way parsley is used in soups, salads, sauces, and cheese, and egg dishes. It is also used as a garnish. Lemon Grass: Leaves are used to flavor fish, soups, curries, sauces, and teas. The stems and leaves are used in Vietnamese and Thai dishes. Larger parts of the stalk can be added to stews or soup and removed. Fennel: Herb fennel is used in fish dishes, soup, and stews, and fennel seed is used in sausage. Fennel bulbs are used raw in salads or steamed. Cilantro: Cilantro is most often associated with Mexican or Asian foods. It is used in salsa, fish, and chicken dishes. Rosemary: Use rosemary sparingly as an accent to food as the flavor can be somewhat pungent and resinous. Use with Oregano: Oregano is used in sauces, tomato dishes, pizza, Mexican dishes salads, and soups. Mint: Mint is often used with veal, lamb, and pork dishes as well as beverages and jellies. Marjoram: Marjoram is used in soups, egg dishes, beef, and chicken dishes, sausages, cheese, and tomato dishes. Thyme: Thyme can be used either fresh or dry. It is widely used in soups, stews, casseroles, stuffing, and poultry dishes. Its flavor and fragrance are not adversely affected by long, slow cooking. Tarragon: Use in vinegar, oils, marinades, and salads.  Sorrel: Used in mixed salads, sauces, soups, cheese dishes and pork, and fish dishes. Sage: Leaves are used in fish, pork, and poultry dishes. Also, with vegetables and in sausages. Cumin: seeds used for adding a special flavor to food, or the plant that produces them. Clove: a brown dried flower bud used as a spice for adding flavor to food. Cinnamon: brown powder or small stick made from the bark of a tree and used for giving a special taste to food, especially sweet food. Cardamom: The seeds of a plant used for giving a particular flavor to food. Spices Allspice: is ground from the imm9ature berry of a tropical tree native to Jamaica. Historically, it was named "allspice" because it contained the flavor nuances of several other popular spices, including cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. Due to its full and slightly sweet flavor, allspice is found in many baking recipes though also used in savory dishes. Nutmeg: a brown powder used as a spice to give flavor to food. It comes from the hard seed of a tropical tree. Mace: the crushed shell of nutmeg, used for adding flavor to food. Bay Leaf: bay tree leaves add a tangy, earthy flavor to a recipe. Bay leaves are wonderful in soups, sauces, or cooked with meats and fish. They are usually added whole during cooking and then removed before serving. Annatto seeds: are collected from a small tropical tree native to South America. Typically heated in oil, which retains the flavor, the taste is rather earthy and peppery. Annatto is used primarily in Latin and Caribbean cooking and as a natural coloring agent for cheese, rice, and vegetable dishes. Spices examples: Cardamom - Brown Pod: Its strong, smoky (with a hint of mint) flavor and aroma is derived from the open-flamed traditional drying procedure. Typically associated with Indo-Asian and African cooking, brown cardamom adds a wonderfully unusual flavor to hearty dishes such as stews, soups, and sauces. Black Peppercorn: Left on the vine until about half ripe and just before they turn red, the peppercorns are then picked and allowed to dry. It is at this stage that they turn black and develop a deep robust flavor with hints of fruit and spiciness. Grind fresh on top of grilled meats, vegetables, salsas, etc. Star Anise: is a spice that closely resembles anise in flavor, obtained from, a medium-sized native evergreen tree of northeast Vietnam and southwest China. The star-shaped fruits are harvested just before ripening. Star anise oil is a highly Cinnamon Stick: Cinnamon is a spice consisting of dried, cured tree bark. Korintje cinnamon (cassia) comes primarily from Indonesia and is known for its slightly sweet flavor. It is notably fresh and the "sticks" are great for beverages; mulled wine, coffee, tea, cocoa, or ground for baking.