After writing a couple of movie reviews, I thought I would give readers a chance to rate me on my “cooking” knowledge, being that I did mention in my profile that I love to cook. For me, cooking has become a treat and very pleasurable. It was not always fun. I had to learn a few tricks of the trade to be bold enough to write a review on cooking. Now, I love trying new dishes. Many are produced from the very ingredients my mom and other family members use, and some are a combination of my own ingredients, mixed with a little of other cooks recipes from the pages of cookbooks.
I have learned the difference in everything from graduated nesting measuring cups and spoons, to folding (lightly combining ingredients without removing air). Let me be the first to admit that I have not always used good judgment when it comes to cooking terms. I have had more than my share of botched meals, as a result of NOT understanding the term or definition of a word. So, today, I want to share a few of these “words” with you. Many of you may already be graduated cooks, but for those of you, like myself, are confused by some of the cooking terms, please…by all means, take note. I am a big kid at heart, so everything to me has a funny side.
COMMON “word” MISTAKES
Blanch – No…not “Blanch” of The Golden Girls. We are talking about the ‘blanching’ of food. That happens when you briefly plunge food into boiling water to preserve color, texture, and nutritional value, or, after blanching, simply remove the skin.
Bread or Coat - When you hear someone say, “You should ‘bread’ or ‘coat’ your fish.” They do not mean, “wrap your fish in a piece of bread, ” or “put a coat on your fish, ” they are telling you to dip the fish into a liquid (usually beaten eggs or milk), then into bread or cracker crumbs, cornmeal, or flour before baking or frying. (pssst…can you keep a secret? fooled me the first time too).
Al Dente - Funny, I’ve never really used this term. Should the need ever arise for me to use it, or if I hear someone say, “Al Dente” at least I’ll know what it means. Let’s say you’ve boiled a pot of pasta and you’ve cooked it until tender but firm to the bite. A nice compliment of the description of your pasta would be – “Al Dente.”
Flake - I have heard of snow ‘flakes’ and I have called a few people ‘flaky’ but the first time I saw my friend ‘flake’ her fish, I thought, “my, what a picky eater.” It was not until she caught me staring in awe, that she explained, “I do this all the time. I break my fish into small pieces before I eat it.” She was not ‘breaking’ her fish into small pieces, she was lightly doing so in an annoying kind of way. But, that is what they call ”flaking.”
Deglaze - One quick lesson I learned is that “deglaze” does not mean, “strip a doughnut of its glaze.” Deglaze (in cooking terms) is accomplished when you add a small amount of liquid in a pan, after you have removed the excess fat, then you stir the loosened brown bits of food in the pan. This mixture can then be used as a base for sauce.
Flute - Now, when I hear the word “flute” I immediately think of a musical instrument. However, in cooking it has an entirely different meaning. To flute - is to pinch pastry with your fingers to make a finished, decorative “pie crust” edge.
Hull - Hull to me sounds a lot like maybe the hull of a watermelon, cantaloupe, or any type nut. I was literally blown away when I was asked to “hull” the strawberries. I think I must have stood at the kitchen sink for about 20 minutes before I was relieved from the confusion of it all. A simple, “have you removed the stem and leaves from the berries yet?” quickly jolted me back to reality. At that moment, I probably could have passed as one of the strawberries.
Husk - is definitely not a ‘husk-y’ football player. It is, however, the removal of the leaves and outer shell of corn on the cob.
Julienne - The first time I was asked to “julienne” the carrots, I immediately replied, “excuse me, but my name isn’t “Julienne, ” it’s “Jan.” Of course, there were lots and lots of laughter, followed by hiding myself in the closet for the remainder of the evening, but I managed to face the crowd at the next dinner party, when I asked to “julienne” the carrots, the cucumbers, the bell peppers, etc. I julienned everything that was edible. Now cutting vegetables and fruits into thin strips with a knife or food processor is a blast.
Score - What do you think of when you hear the word “score?” Football! A winning touchdown! Am I right? Well, I did. But unfortunately, scoring occurs when you lightly cut the surface of a food (meat, or bread) about one-fourth inch deep, using a knife (not a football).
Well, I guess that is enough for now. Maybe I will be able to “enlighten” (open your eyes to the truth) about more cooking terms in another review.
Thanks for reading and for your time.