Primary Terms Flashcards
86
Noun meaning your restaurant is out of a menu item, or a verb meaning to remove an item from a dish.
A la carte
French for “of the menu” and refers to dishes that are priced separately on a menu, rather than served together for a set price.
A la grecque
served in the Greek style of cooking, with olive oil, lemon juice, and several seasonings, often referring to vegetables
A la plancha
Spanish method of cooking food on a griddle.
A point
cooking until the ideal degree of doneness, often referring to meat as medium rare
Acidulation
the process of making something acid or sour with lemon or lime juice
Aerate
the process when dry ingredients pass through a sifter and air is circulated through, changing the composition of the material, often referring to flour
Al dente
Italian for “to the tooth.” Describes cooking something until it’s edible but still firm. Traditionally, this term is used to describe pasta.
Appetizer
Small dish that’s served before the main course.
Aspic
a dish in which ingredients are set into a gelatine made from a meat stock or consommé
Au gratin
French for “by grating,” which means covering something with breadcrumbs and cheese and baking it until browned.
Au jus
with its own juices from cooking, often referring to steak or other meat
Au poivre
coated with loosely cracked peppercorns and then cooked, often referring to steak
Au sec
Reducing the liquid in a dish so that it’s nearly dry
Back of house (BOH)
The back of the restaurant, where the kitchen, offices, and storage are located.
Bain-marie
Cooking method that involves warming delicate foods in a dish above boiling water to avoid direct contact with the heat so as to prevent curdling.
Bake
Cooking food using dry heat in an oven.
Barbecue
Grilling food (usually outdoors) over a wood or charcoal flame.
Bard
to tie fat around lean meats to prevent them from drying out during the cooking process. Fat should be removed a few minutes before the meat is done to allow browning.
Baste
to spoon, brush, or squirt a liquid, like meat drippings, stock, or butter, on food while it cooks. This adds flavor and prevents the food from drying out.
Beat
Stirring ingredients in a circular motion with a utensil, mixer, or whisk until combined.
Beurre blanc
French sauce made with shallots, butter, and white wine that’s typically served with seafood.
Bisque
a thick, creamy soup, with a base of strained broth of shellfish or game
Blanch
to briefly submerge in boiling water, usually to partially cook a food. Oftentimes, blanched foods are immediately placed into a bowl of ice water to “shock” them, which stops the cooking process.
Bouquet Garni
a bundle of herbs tied together or placed together in a cheesecloth used for flavoring stew, broth, or soup. Common herbs include parsley, rosemary, bay leaves, and thyme. Also known as a sachet.
Braise
to brown or sear in butter and/or oil and then cook on low heat in a covered pot in cooking liquid for a long period of time. This process tenderizes the food and creates a full-flavored taste.
Brine
A salt water mixture that makes meat more tender when soaked in the solution.
Broil
Baking with maximum heat, usually only for a short amount of time.
Brown
Cooking food until it turns brown.
Butterfly
Cutting meat (typically poultry) down the middle without slicing the center and opening both sides so that it looks like a butterfly. This slicing method makes meat easier to cook more evenly.
Caramelize
To cook sugar until it turns to syrup, or to cook food until it browns and develops a caramel flavor (like caramelized onions).
Chiffonade
shredded or finely cut vegetables and herbs, usually used as a garnish for soup
Chit
Restaurant jargon for an order placed into the point of sale system. Also known as a ticket.
Chop
To roughly cut food into bite-sized portions.
Coddle
to heat food (usually eggs) in water kept just below the boiling point. The process usually takes longer than boiling or poaching, but produces a more tender result.
Comp
To offer a complimentary dish or item to a customer, whether to correct an error or give the guest special treatment.
Concasse
to roughly chop raw or cooked food by peeling, seeding, and chopping to make it ready to be served or combined with other ingredients, usually referring to tomatoes
Confit
Cook meat, usually duck, slowly in its own fat.
Consommé
a type of clear soup made from richly flavored stock that has been clarified, a process of using egg whites to remove fat
Core
To remove the stem and seeds from the center of a fruit, like a pear or an apple.
Coulis
a thick sauce made with fruit or vegetable puree, used as a base or garnish
Cream
to mix butter and sugar together until well-blended for baking. They should form a fluffy, light, and creamy substance.
Croquette
a small round roll of minced meat, fish, or vegetable coated with egg and breadcrumbs
Crush
To mash an ingredient with a utensil.
Cube
To chop food into small, half-inch cubes.
Cut In
to work solid shortening, lard, or butter into dry ingredients until they form small particles. You can use two knives, a pastry blender, food processor, or your fingers.
Dash
? of a teaspoon.
Deglaze
to dissolve the remains of roasted or sautéed food on a pan with a liquid such as wine or vinegar in order to create a sauce or gravy.
Degrease
to remove the fat from the surface of a hot liquid such as a sauce, soup, or stew, also known as defatting or fat trimming
Dice
Chopping food into fine pieces, usually no more than an eighth or a quarter of an inch in size.
Dollop
A semi-solid food, like sour cream, measured by the spoonful.
Dredge
Coating raw food, like meat, with breadcrumbs or flour, before frying.
Dress
to put oil, vinegar, salt, or other toppings on a salad or other food
Drizzle
Pouring a liquid ingredient, like oil or dressing, over food using a back and forth motion.
Dust
To sprinkle with powdered food, like powdered sugar.
Effiler
to remove the string from a string bean or to thinly slice almonds
Emincer
to slice thinly, similar to julienne style, but not as long (vegetable)
Emulsify
To combine liquids that usually wouldn’t stay mixed together due to their properties. Egg yolk, for example, helps emulsify oil and vinegar to turn it into mayonnaise.
Entree
The main course.
Escabeche
a dish consisting of fish marinated for approximately one day in a sauce of olive oil, vinegar, herbs, vegetables, and spices, and then poached or fried and allowed to cool
Fillet
a boneless piece of meat, poultry, or fish; the French version, spelled as “filet,” is also used when referencing a cut of beef that is boneless, such as filet mignon
Flambé
To cover a dish in alcohol and light it on fire during cooking or before serving for enhanced flavor and dramatic effect.
Fold
Combining light and heavy ingredients, like whipped cream and flour, by stirring the mixture from bottom to top.
Frenching
the process of removing all fat, meat, and cartilage from rib bones on a rack roast by cutting between the bones with a sharp paring knife, often referring to lamb, beef, or pork rib
Front of house (FOH)
The front of the restaurant, where guests are served and the host and servers work.
Full service restaurant (FSR)
A restaurant in which guests are seated and waited on, as opposed to a quick service restaurant.
Galantine
a Polish dish of de-boned, stuffed meat that is poached in gelatin stock, pressed, and served cold with aspic or its own jelly
Galette
flat, round cakes of pastry, often topped with fruit, or a food served in the shape of a flat round cake, such as “a galette of potatoes”
Gazpacho
a Spanish dish of cold, uncooked soup, which typically contain tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, garlic, oil, and vinegar
Glaze
To cover food in a liquid, sometimes a sauce, egg whites, or jelly, to add a glossy coat.
Grate
To slice food into small slivers using a grater.
Grease
Coating a dish in oil or butter so that food can easily be removed from the pan after it’s been cooked.
Grill
Equipment used to cook food on a flame, typically outdoors, or the cooking technique in which a grill is used to cook food. Grills can run on charcoal, wood, gas, or electricity, with each fuel providing its own flavor.
Harissa
a spicy, aromatic chile paste made from a variety of hot peppers and spices, often used in North African and Middle Eastern cooking
