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Al dente

An Italian phrase meaning ''to the tooth,'' which is used to describe the correct degree of doneness for pasta. It refers to pasta that is cooked firm and tender but never mushy. Pasta cooked al dente will hold up to any type of sauce that is used with it whereas pasta cooked too long may fall apart.

Bain-marie

Refers to a method of cooking in which food is cooked in a warm water bath. The food is placed in a pan that is then placed in another pan containing warm, simmering water. This is a good method for melting chocolate, cooking custards, and similar dishes that may scorch or burn if placed over direct heat.

Bind

To add ingredient that holds other ingredients together.

Brown

To cook food in a way that imparts a golden colour, without burning it. To cook food quickly at a moderately high heat to brown the surface. This may be done on the stove top or under the broiler in the oven.

Chop

To cut meat in small pieces

Crush

To compress, to grind something into small pieces.

Deseed

To remove the pips from a fruit or a vegetable.

Deglaze

The process of loosening, reducing, and dissolving the residue remaining in a pan after meat has been sautéed. After cooking, the meat is removed from the pan and a liquid such as wine, vinegar, stock, or juice is added to the remaining meat juices and bits, often sticking to the bottom of the pan. This flavorful residue is heated and combines with the liquid to produce a sauce or gravy for the meat. The longer the liquid is cooked, the thicker the mixture gets as the liquid evaporates and reduces. Cream or butter is often added to create a smoother sauce. Although this is not the same as reducing, it is similar. When reducing, the liquid contents are rapidly boiled in order to reduce the volume of liquid so that the remaining contents are thicker and more flavorful. Deglazing involves less reduction and a slower cooking of the contents.

Macerate

To soak foods, usually fruit, in liquid so they absorb the liquid's flavor. The macerating liquid is usually alcohol, liqueur, wine, brandy or sugar syrup. Macerate is also frequently applied to fruits sprinkled with sugar, which intensifies natural flavor of the fruit by drawing out its juices.

Marinate

To steep food in a liquid mixture before it is cooked. Marinades add flavor to foods and tenderize certain cuts of meat. Beef cuts that benefit from marinating include boneless skirt steak, flank steak, top round steak, tip steak, and chuck blade steak.

Peel

To remove the skins of oranges, tangerines, etc., with the finger; to skin tomatoes and other thin- skinned fruits and vegetables.

Poach

To cook food gently in a simmering liquid so the food retains its shape.

Pod (peas)

To strip peas out of their pod so that they can be eaten or cooked.

Put ingredients by

To keep ingredients warm or cold in reserve.

Reduce

To thicken or concentrate a liquid by boiling rapidly. The volume of the liquid is reduced as the water evaporates, thereby thickening the consistency and intensifying the flavor.

Scald

To heat a liquid, generally referring to milk, to just below the boiling point. It should be heated just until tiny bubbles begin to form at the very edges. To place fruits or vegetables into boiling water for a short period of time to aid in peeling the skin off.

To sear

To brown the surface of meat by frying it quickly in hot fat.

Seed

To take the seeds out of a fruit or vegetable before eating or cooking.

Simmer

To cook food in liquid over gentle heat, just below the boiling point, low enough so that tiny bubbles just begin to break the surface.

Skim

To remove scum, fat or other impurities from the surface of a liquid, such as stock or jam, while it is cooking. A slotted spoon is generally used to remove solid impurities, while an unslotted spoon would be used to remove liquids such as fat.

Singe

To pass a pluck bird over a flame so as to burn off the down that may have been left on.

Slice

To cut, generally across grain, into thin pieces that are consistent in thickness.

Soak

To immerse an item into a liquid for a period of time.

Sweat

To cook vegetables in fat over gentle heat so they become soft but not brown and their juices are concentrated in the cooking fat. If the pan is covered during cooking, the ingredients will keep a certain amount of their natural moisture. If the pan is not covered, the ingredients will remain relatively dry.

Tail

To remove tail from a fruit or vegetable before eating or cooking.

To toss

To cook rapidly small pieces of meat, fish or vegetables into a frying pan with a few fat.

Trim the fat off

To remove the excess of fat.

Truss

To tie meat or poultry with a string, this may be woven through the bird parts by using a needle threaded with the string, in order to create a more compact shape to the food being prepared. Typically, the wings and legs of poultry are tied or trussed securely against the body to enable a more compact shape for the bird to be evenly cooked.