The complete culinary glossary. Every professional cooking technique defined, explained, and connected to the science behind it — your permanent kitchen reference.
Repeatedly spooning hot fat or liquid over food while cooking. Keeps the surface moist and adds flavor. Classic technique for roasting poultry and finishing steak in a pan.
Briefly boiling vegetables then immediately shocking them in ice water. Stops cooking, preserves color and nutrients, and is used before freezing or further cooking.
Cooking tougher cuts of meat slowly in a small amount of liquid in a covered pot. The moist heat breaks down collagen into gelatin over 2-4 hours, resulting in fork-tender results.
A knife cut producing 1/8-inch cubes. Used for garnishes, mirepoix, and precise preparations. Requires a julienne cut first, then cross-cut.
Splitting meat or poultry through the middle to create a flat, even piece that cooks faster and more evenly. Used for chicken breasts, shrimp, and lamb leg.
The browning of sugars through high heat. In vegetables, natural sugars brown above 320°F creating complex, sweet-savory flavors. Different from the Maillard reaction which requires protein.
A knife technique for cutting leafy herbs and greens into thin ribbons. Stack leaves, roll tightly, and slice crosswise.
Removing impurities from butter (making ghee) or stock (making consomme). Produces a pure, flavorful fat or liquid with a higher smoke point or more concentrated flavor.
Cooking food slowly submerged in fat at low temperature (160-200°F). Classic for duck legs. The technique both cooks and preserves.
Adding liquid to a hot pan after cooking protein to dissolve the fond — the browned bits stuck to the surface. Fond is concentrated Maillard flavor. Always deglaze before washing a pan.
Cutting food into even cubes. Small dice: 1/4-inch. Medium dice: 1/2-inch. Large dice: 3/4-inch. Uniformity ensures even cooking.
Combining two liquids that do not normally mix (fat and water) using an emulsifier such as egg yolk lecithin. Used for hollandaise, mayonnaise, and vinaigrette.
The browned bits stuck to the bottom of a pan after cooking protein at high heat. Not burnt — these are concentrated Maillard flavor compounds that form the base of pan sauces.
A gentle mixing technique that preserves air in a mixture. Used for souffles, whipped cream, and delicate batters. A cutting motion through the center and a folding motion over the top.
Cutting food into thin matchstick-sized strips, approximately 1/8-inch by 1/8-inch by 2-3 inches. Used for stir fries, garnishes, and as a base for brunoise.
A chemical reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars above approximately 280°F (138°C) that produces the brown color and complex flavors in seared meat, toasted bread, and caramelized vegetables.
French: everything in its place. The professional kitchen practice of preparing and organizing all ingredients before cooking begins. Essential for sauce work and multi-component dishes.
Whisking cold butter into a hot sauce off the heat to add gloss, richness, and a velvety texture. The butter must be cold and the sauce must be off direct heat or the emulsion breaks.
Cooking food gently in liquid held below the boil (approximately 160-180°F). Produces tender, delicate results. Used for eggs, fish, chicken breast, and fruit.
Simmering or boiling a liquid to evaporate water and concentrate flavor and thicken consistency. A sauce reduced by half is approximately twice as flavorful.
Allowing cooked meat to sit before cutting, allowing proteins to relax and juices to redistribute. Prevents juice loss when cutting. Essential for all proteins.
Equal parts flour and butter cooked together as a thickening agent. White roux: cooked briefly. Blonde roux: cooked to a golden color. Brown roux: cooked to deep brown for espagnole sauce.
Cooking food quickly in a small amount of hot fat over high heat. From the French word for jump — food is kept moving. Produces browning and concentrates flavor.
Cooking the surface of food at very high heat to create a browned crust through the Maillard reaction. Not a method of sealing in juice — a method of creating flavor.
French: under vacuum. Cooking food in a sealed bag submerged in precisely temperature-controlled water. Produces perfectly even doneness from edge to edge.
Cooking aromatics (onion, celery, garlic) in fat over medium-low heat until softened and translucent without browning. Extracts flavor without caramelization.
Bringing food (especially chocolate or eggs) to a moderate temperature before exposing it to heat or cold to prevent shocking. Eggs tempered before adding to hot cream prevents scrambling.