Glossary of Cooking Terms

A famous dish of German origin in which meat is marinated in a sweet and sour mixture for several days and is then braised for several hours in the marinade, producing meat that is very tender and flavorful.

Shredded cabbage that has been mixed with a brine of pickling salt and spices after which it is allowed to ferment for a period of time.

A meat product generally consisting of pork, but also made of beef, veal, lamb, poultry, or a combination of several of these meats.

A device used for manually stuffing sausage meat into the casings.

Pronounced so-tairn or soh-tehrn. An appellation that produces outstanding sweet wines that have become famous throughout the world.

A round, lidded pan with small handles that is often used to sauté or braise a variety of foods.

A French word used to describe a method for cooking foods in a shallow pan using high heat.

A medium depth skillet or pan, which has straight or rounded sides, a long handle, and a cover.

Pronounced so-veen-yawn blahngk. A grape varietal used in the production of white wine.

Most notably known as "Sauvignon Blanc". A grape varietal used in the production of white wine.

Most notably known as "Sauvignon Blanc". Pronounced so-veen-yawn blahngk. A grape varietal used in the production of white wine.

Most notably known as "Cabernet Sauvignon". A grape varietal, used in the production of robust red wines, originating in the Bordeaux region of France.

A delicate herb with velvety soft leaves that are dark green on top and somewhat irredescent on the underside.

A flavorful crinkled leaf cabbage, which is one of the best varieties for cooking.

A leafy green vegetable with a flavor that is slightly bitter tasting. There are different varieties of spinach, which vary in the type of leaves they have, from smooth to very crinkled.

Some blades built to handle hardened objects such as frozen foods are formed with an alternating blade construction containing sets of double-toothed blade extensions separated by curved and serrated blade surfaces.

1. To heat a liquid, generally referring to milk, to just below the boiling point.

1. To measure or divide ingredients, batters or dough by weight or measurement. 2.

A device used to remove the scales of a fish by scraping in the opposite direction of which the scales lie.

A vegetable that is a young onion which has a white base, not developed into a bulb yet, and long, straight, green leaves.

A mollusk that is one of the two classes of shellfish that develops two separate shells used for swimming.

1. A type of design or pattern that can be produced on many different types of foods.

A casserole dish prepared by layering slices of potatoes with a cream sauce. This type of dish is also used for foods other than potatoes.

Thinly sliced meat that has been flattened by pounding and is generally cooked by sautéing or frying.

A type of mozzarella cheese that is a dried and heavily smoked cured variety. The unsmoked, smoked lightly version of this mozzarella is known as affumicata.

In the United States, this term is used in reference to large shrimp that have been split and brushed with butter, garlic and lemon.

A traditional Swedish, Finnish or Norwegian bread made from a dough with rye flour or combinations of flours such as wheat, barley, and potato and leavened with leavening agents.

A food dish commonly served in Italy that is prepared with ravioli pasta. Made with noodle dough, the ravioli is stuffed with raisins that are mixed with ricotta cheese that has been aged.

A variety of bean, which is also referred to simply as a Runner Bean that can be eaten as a fresh green bean, a fresh podded bean or a dried bean.

A type of soup in which the herb sorrel is the primary flavoring. The soup is a specialty of Jewish cooking and is prepared with water or broth, egg yolks, salt, and sorrel.

An Italian flat bread often referred to as a Tuscan flat bread that is prepared as a thin round sheet of dough with a dimple-surfaced crust.

An dry Italian sausage made in the traditional manner for this salami with an oblong and flattened shape.

Originating in Germany, this meat product is made from a lean cut of pork that is processed into a small slab of ham.

A German luncheon meat, which is made in a bologna-like manner and consists of beef and pork and large chunks of lean ham.

A term that refers to the rendered fat of chickens that is strained and used in a variety of Jewish dishes in much the same way that butter is used.

A German sausage made of pork, which is red in color and seasoned with white pepper and coriander.

In the U.S. it is a colorless liqueur, which is available in various flavors such as butterscotch, chocolate, licorice, peach, peppermint, and root beer.

A German word meaning "cutlet" that is commonly used to describe a food dish using a veal, pork, chicken, or turkey cutlet as the main ingredient.

Most notably known as "Pinot Noir". A grape varietal, used in the production of red and sparkling wines, originating in the Burgundy region of France.

In reference to wine making, "scion" is a grape varietal that has been grafted to a rootstock.

A kitchen tool specifically made for food preparation that is more versatile than a standard pair of cutting scissors.

A decorative cut made, in bread dough, using a scissor. The cut also allows the bread to rise and expand while baking, preventing tears and cracks along the sides or bottom of the bread.

A quick bread, originating in Scotland, that is often served as a breakfast food or as a snack with a hot beverage.

To make shallow cuts in the surface of meat, fish, bread or cakes. The scoring has several purposes, such as decorating the food, tenderizing, to aid in the absorption of flavor when marinating, and to allow fat to drain from meat while cooking.

A small but extremely hot chile pepper, which ranges in color from yellow to red and colors in between.

A type of soup made with regional foods representative of Scotland in a manner that would reflect a recipe derived from the heritage of this country.

An oat product that is basically oat groats that have been cut into smaller pieces.

An egg dish that blends the whites and yolks of eggs with milk and seasonings to be cooked in an open pan.

A sausage made from scraps of cooked pork head, pork cheeks, and organ meat that have been ground and combined with cornmeal or oatmeal, strained broth, sage, onions, and other seasonings.

Long narrow, green leaves that grow by the sea in Asia and Australia. The rich green leaves that have a sweet floral flavor and are used most frequently in puddings, rice dishes and curries.