Porters Pantry

Cooking Terms made easy!

 

Here we have a list of terms that you may be asked to do in recipes, hopefully this will make things clearer and less daunting!

Al dente - If you're a pasta fan this is a term you'll become very familiar with. It literally translates from Italian as 'to the tooth' and basically means cooking your pasta so it still has a little bite to it and isn't a big, soggy mess.

Baste - This is when you baste meat with a sauce or marinade as it cooks. Roast lamb or chicken will benefit from being basted with the juices in the pan during cooking, in order to keep the meat moist.

Beat - Eggs are the usual recipients of this technique. Hold the bowl to your chest with one hand and then beat the eggs firmly with a fork or whisk, with the other hand.

Blanch - Some vegetables should be cooked very briefly and will literally be dropped into boiling water for a minute. You can also blanch tomatoes, and other vegetables and fruit, if you want to remove the skin.

Chop - Possibly the most straightforward task you will do! However, pay attention to any precedding words as you might be asked to 'roughly' or 'finely' chop and there's a big difference!

Cream - Not the stuff you pour over apple pie - this is a culinary term that's often used in baking. You generally cream together the butter or margarine and sugar.

Dice - This is when you chop ingredients into neat cubes.

Fillet - If you're a novice cook you probably won't be tackling too many recipes that call for filleting. It's a bit of a skill but once mastered is very impressive! You fillet fish and meat in order to remove the bones.

Julienne - A posh form of chopping whereby you cut vegetables into long, fine, even strips.

Marinate - A sauce (marinade) is made and meat or fish are left to soak up the juices before cooking. Depending on the recipe, the food might be left to marinate for anything from a few minutes to overnight. It's always kept in the fridge.

Poach - This is a method that uses water or other liquid to gently cook food. The liquid is brought to a simmer and then the ingredients are added to the pan. Poached eggs are a healthy alternative to fried, and fish is kept moist and tender when it's poached in milk.

Purée - This is finer than mashing but it's basically the same process. For really creamy potatoes, you might purée them. You can use a sieve or a food processor. Other great vegetables purées include pea, and sweet potato - both great as an accompaniment to fish or chicken.

Sauté - This is where food is cooked briefly over a high heat, so you might sauté onions or chopped bacon.

Season - This generally refers to salt and pepper and you'll often see this instruction in a recipe book. If it's referring to anything other than salt or pepper, it will say. Other seasonings are most likely to be spices or herbs.

Simmer - Simmering is a more gently way of cooking than boiling as the water doesn't disturb the food as much.

Slice -To cut food into neat, even pieces.

So, now that's the basics dealt with, you should feel a bit more confident about working your way through a recipe. It's all about practise and building up some confidence in the kitchen. The only way you'll do that is to roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty.

Mushrooms last longer in the vegetables compartments of your refrigerator when stored in a brown paper bag.

Some handy cooking measurements

Customary Meaurements            

• 3 tsp = 1 tbsp
• 2 tbsp = 1 fl oz
• 8 fl oz = 1 c
• 2 c = 1 pt
• 2 pt = 1 qt
• 4 qt = 1 gal
• 16 oz = 1 lb

Metric Conversions

• 1/8 tsp = 0.5 ml
• 1/4 tsp = 1 ml
• 1/2 tsp = 2 ml
• 1 tsp = 5 ml
• 1 tbsp = 15 ml
• 1 fl oz = 30 ml
• 1/4 c = 59 ml
• 1/3 c = 79 ml
• 1/2 c = 118 ml
• 1 c = 225 ml
• 1 pt = 450 ml
• 1 qt = 900 ml (usually rounded up to 1 L)
• 1 gal = 3636.8 ml