Glossary of Cooking Terms

A meat product that is sometimes mistakenly referred to as "fat back". This cut of meat comes from the side and the belly of the hog and consists of a layer of fat with some lean meat streaks running through it.

A seasoning that contains no sodium or small amounts of sodium and replaces regular salt for anyone with health concerns when flavoring foods.

A popular baked white cracker that is crispy, rough textured, and most often square in shape.

A chemical substance, also referred to as potassium nitrate, that is used in the kitchen to preserve meat.

Long and slender in shape, the leaves of this herb are commonly used in Asian cooking.

Considered one of the four basic tastes perceived by taste buds. The four basic tastes: sweet, sour, bitter, salty.

A type of cured dry sausage made from raw muscle meat of pork, beef, veal, chicken, or turkey, that is ground up and mixed with fat.

An Italian term for "sausage shops" or meat delicatessens.

An Italian term applied to any foods, typically meat products (most often pork), that have been cured with salt and air dried.

A paste that is made up of a mixture of ground chiles, salt and brown sugar. It is generally served with rice and curried dishes and is used as a condiment or a side dish.

Triangle shaped Indian pastries that are filled with meat or vegetables, or both.

A corn product made from hominy that has been coarsely cracked. (Hominy is also coarsely ground.

A fresh bean that grows in the sea in the form of a long, pencil thin, cylindrical green stem that may have spherical-shaped, spike-like buds on the ends.

A type of sourdough bread made famous in San Francisco. It is one of the most well known varieties of American bread outside of the United States.

Shaped like a plum tomato, this variety of tomato originated in the San Marzano region of Italy.

san simon,

A thin chile pepper that is often used as a flavoring in Indian foods. Flat in shape, this pepper ranges in size from 3 to 5 inches long.

A wine growing region located in the Loire Valley of France that produces light, easy to drink red, white, and rosé wines.

A traditional Chinese clay pot that is used to cook beans, chickpeas and vegetables.

These small tart-like tins are used to make a traditional Norwegian cookie. The tins are available in several different shapes.

A sharp-bladed kitchen utensil used to slice through a medium amount of food ingredients "sandwiched" between two slices of bread.

A small flat, round bladed utensil that is serrated on one side and smooth on the other, appearing somewhat like a round spatula.

Pronounced san-jaw-vay-zeh. A grape varietal, used in the production of red wines, originating in the Tuscany region of Italy.

A beverage originating in Mexico that is made from vegetable juice, citrus juices and spicy seasonings.

A beverage made from wine, fruit juices, soda water, and fruit. In addition, liqueurs and/or brandy may also be added to the mixture.

Using a germicide to wash utensils and surfaces to eliminate bacteria.

An herb that comes from the young leaves and berries of a Japanese prickly ash tree named Sansho.

A very large sized olive that can be dark green as a table olive and ripen to a dark violet in color when used to produce olive oil.

A very large sized Italian olive that is dark green and elliptically shaped. It is highly valued for the quantity of meat.

A variety of melon that grows to approximately 1 foot in length and is oblong in shape.

A variety of chile that is usually no more than five inches in length, has a pale yellowish color, and a flavor that ranges from moderate to hot.

A type of knife commonly used to prepare ingredients for Asian food dishes. This knife, which is also known as an Asian cook's or chef's knife, is very similar to a traditional chef's knife with a wide blade that has a long straight edge curving up slightly at the end.

An imported tropical fruit originating in the Malaysian area, which is oval to round in shape and 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 inches in diameter.

Term used in reference to wine. Also described as “salty”. Considered one of the four basic tastes perceived by taste buds.

An egg-shaped fruit native to Central America, that is grown on a Sapodilla tree which not only produces this tasty fruit, but also a gummy sap used in the production of chewing gum.

A powdery resin that covers quinoa seeds, which must be rinsed off before the seeds can be used.

A fruit, originating in Mexico and Central America, which has several varieties, the white sapote, the black sapote and the mamey sapote.

Potatoes sliced very thin that are deep-fat fried, which are also known as potato chips.

A small, young, saltwater fish with soft edible bones, found in the Mediterranean.

Generally the first course served in a Japanese meal, which consists of raw fish, sliced or prepared with daikon radish, wasabi, pickled ginger and soy sauce.

A traditional Japanese knife used for preparing a variety of foods quickly and with ease.

A type of tree that provides leaves that are used as a seasoning for foods. Sassafras leaves are typically dried and ground into a fine powder to make sassafras tea, file powder and a seasoning for various sauces such as barbecue sauce.

sate, sateh,

The sauce that is created for the traditional Asian food dish which may consist of some type of cubed meat or vegetables that are marinated, placed on a skewers (bamboo sticks), and then grilled, broiled or roasted on an open fire.

A mandarin variety that is light orange in color and has the shape of a flattened orange.

One of the three categories of fatty acids that also includes monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats.

A thickened liquid that is flavored or seasoned to enhance the flavor of the food that it is to accompany.

sauce pan,

Flat whisk, sauce pan whisk,

As a shorter and different shaped version of a sauce pan, the saucier is a pan often used for preparations requiring more repetitive motions with the ingredients in the pan, such as stirring or whisking.