Glossary of Cooking Terms

An aromatic herb with square stems that can grow to be six feet tall and bear large, curved leaves with spiked edges surrounding small pink and white colored flowers.

A preparation technique, used primarily for vegetables, that "shocks" the food item by exposing it to ice water after the food item has been blanched.

An heirloom variety of sweet corn with kernels tightly formed on the cob that do not grow in straight rows but irregular, jagged groupings.

Short narrow pieces of potatoes that have been cut into matchstick like sizes and fried so they can be served as a snack food.

Descriptor of wine that does not linger on the palate after consuming.

A popular Chinese cabbage that is used for braising and stuffing. The cabbage is barrel shaped with crisp white stalks and crinkled leaves, which are pale green or yellow in color.

A pastry crust made with a higher proportion of fat that contains no raising agent to make it rise and expand during baking.

A classification of rice in which the grains must be less than two times longer than they are wide.

Beef ribs that are cut into 3 to 4 inch sections, consisting of meat, fat and bone.

Short ribs that have been cut from the beef chuck primal (ribs 1 through 5). They have plenty of meat and have less fat than short ribs from the plate.

Refers to the ends of the ribs contained within the plate primal cut of beef (ribs 6 through 12).

A rich, buttery flavored dough that is baked into a tender but crumbly texture for cookies and dessert crusts.

Constructed of a heavy cast iron or a coated aluminum surface, this type of pan is made for baking shortbread cookies.

A cake or biscuit that is most often served as a dessert food but can also be served with savory fillings.

A measure and utensil used to determine the amount of alcohol added to a mixed drink beverage, such as a "jigger" or a "shot" of rum.

A Japanese word for "soy sauce." A salty brown Asian sauce used as a seasoning or a condiment for Asian dishes.

A method of cutting food into thin slices or pieces using a sharp knife, food processor or grater.

Also commonly known as pulled beef, this method of preparation typically involves longer cooking of beef cuts to create individual strands of tender meat for various food dishes.

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Also known as hand-pulled or simply pulled pork, this type of meat is typically made with the Boston butt, which is a cut of meat taken from the pork shoulder.

A method to prepare fully cooked poultry that has the skin removed so the meat can first be pulled off the bones and then pulled into shreds.

A cereal grain that has been steel-cut and then processed into small bits or continuous narrow strands of wheat that are combined, shaped, and roasted into a small, medium, or large ready-to-eat biscuit-shaped cereal.

A very popular, small crustacean type shellfish from which includes hundreds of species worldwide.

A kitchen utensil that serves as a tool to remove the intestinal black vein when preparing either cooked or raw shrimp.

An Asian paste made from grinding fermented shrimp and salt together, which may be dried to be shaped into cakes or kept in a soft, paste form.

A cheese originally from Scotland, made from cow's milk, which combines a base of creamy but firm texture with the typical blue cheese veins.

The process of removing, peeling or discarding the outer covering on food items such as nuts, corn and shellfish.

Also referred to as Sicilian style, this Italian olive is a large green variety that is highly seasoned in a marinade of herbs and has a somewhat salty or sour flavor.

An Italian sausage made from coarsely chopped, cured lean pork and some finely chopped lean beef.

A California olive that has a large oval shape and is green in color. It is brine-cured and preserved with the natural lactic acid produced by the olive or by a commercially produced grade of lactic acid.

A cut of pork taken from the fresh pork side of the flank area. This cut can be sliced and sold fresh, but is more commonly smoked, cured, sliced and then sold as bacon.

A kitchen utensil that is used to strain liquids such as boiling water or to sift dry ingredients, such as flour or powdered sugar.

The preparation procedure of passing a dry ingredient such as flour or sugar through a mesh bottom sieve.

A kitchen utensil with a mesh bottom used to sift dry ingredients, such as flour or powdered sugar.

Silicone bakeware is a fairly new product that is used for baking molds. It is made of a flexible and bendable silicone material that can be used in the oven, microwave, and freezer.

Designed for a variety of different sized pans and baking sheets, the Silicone Baking Mat is made as a liner to keep baked goods from sticking to the surface of pans, cookie sheets and counters.

Descriptor of wine that is smooth and satin in texture on the palate and at the finish.

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

Is the same as lemony thyme except for its color. The leaves of the lemony thyme are a dark green and the silver thyme has lighter green leaves with a variegated edge.

A white and silvery colored connective tissue attached to various pieces of meat.

To gently cook food in a liquid, heating to just below the boiling point. Tiny bubbles should slowly float to the surface.

Descriptor of a wine that exhibits few additional characteristics after the initial impression.

A type of syrup made from a combination of sugar and water that is cooked over a low to medium heat setting while stirring the contents until the sugar is fully dissolved and the mixture is clear.

A Single Crust Pie is a dessert that does not have a top crust. It only has the bottom crust that lines the pie plate and holds the filling.

A type of rolling pin used for the preparation of dough when making lefse, flat breads, pizza, and other dough-based foods.

A type of olive oil that is obtained from olives grown on an individual farm. The olives are usually harvested by hand and the oil is pressed and bottled on site.

A type of English cheese that at one time was made only with the milk from Gloucester cows, which are now almost extinct.

A small piece of toasted or fried bread, such as croutons, which is used as a garnish in soups, broths, gravy and meat.

A crosscut steak from the beef sirloin. There are several different sirloin beefsteaks and each is given a different name depending on the shape of the piece of hipbone that is contained within the steak: 1) pin bone, which is a crosscut from the front section of the hip, next to the Porterhouse, and is the most tender of the bone-in sirloin steaks; 2) flat bone, which is another crosscut from the front section of the hip; 3) round bone, which is a third crosscut steak from the front section of the hip; and 4) wedge bone, which is the least tender of the four because of its proximity to the rump.

A chop from the sirloin end of the leg of lamb. It is identifiable by the crosscut section of round leg bone within the meat.