Cooking Terms

• baste—To pour or spoon liquid over food to flavor and moisten it as it cooks.
  
• beat—To stir rapidly in a circular motion.
• blanch—To submerge a food briefly in boiling water.
• boil—To heat a liquid over high heat until bubbles form and rise rapidly to the surface.
• bone—To remove the bones from meat or fish.
  
• broil—To cook food under a direct flame.
• brown—To cook food quickly over high heat so that the surface browns evenly.
• bruise—To crush food slightly, enabling more of the flavor to be released while cooking.
• core—To remove the core (the inedible central part) from a fruit.
• cut in—To combine a fat such as vegetable shortening with flour, by cutting or breaking the fat into small pieces and mixing it throughout the flour until mixture has a coarse, mealy consistency.
  
• dice—To chop food into small, square pieces.
• deep-fry—To cook food by immersing it completely in very hot oil or fat. This cooking method seals in flavor and gives food a crispy surface.
• fillet—A boneless piece of fish or meat.
• fold—To blend an ingredient with other ingredients by using a gentle overturning circular motion instead of by stirring or beating.
  
• garnish—To decorate a dish with small pieces of food, such as chopped parsley or slices of lime.
• grate—To shred food into tiny pieces by rubbing it against a grater.
• grill—To cook over hot charcoal.
  
• marinate—To soak food in a seasoned liquid in order to add flavor and tenderize it.
• mince—To chop food into very small pieces.
• preheat—To allow an oven to warm up to a certain temperature before putting food in it.
• roast—To cook in an open pan in an oven so that heat penetrates the food from all sides
  
• sauté—To fry quickly in oil or fat, over high heat, stirring or turning the food to prevent burning.
• simmer—To cook over low heat in liquid kept just below its boiling point. Bubbles may occasionally rise to the surface.
• steam—To cook food with the steam from boiling water.
• stir-fry—To cook food in a small amount of oil over high heat, stirring constantly. All the ingredients are cut into small pieces before stir-frying so that they cook rapidly. Because of quick cooking, meats are firm yet tender, and vegetables stay fresh and crunchy.
• zest—To scrape the peel from a lemon, lime, orange, or other citrus fruit using a cheese grater or a special utensil called a zester