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Cooking techniques

Chef Alain Ducasse at Congresso Italiano di Cucina D'autore 2010 with Massimo Bottura (left)

Here are words and phrases that might pop up on French menus or recipes; the cooking terms and kitchen kit might help if you’re following a recipe (recette) or find something essential missing from your gîte.

If you do want to get serious about cooking à la française, there are thousands of recipes online, but perhaps the best with step-by-step instructions and videos is Meilleur du chef—a site that sells all the equipment a chef needs, but also includes hundreds of superb recipes.

Cooking styles explains what the French mean by haute cuisine, cuisine bonne femme and all the rest.

cooking terms

from ajouter to verser

aumônière

little bags of goodies

brasérade

do-it-yourself cooking at your table

brochette

skewer or kebab

brunoise

a fine 2mm dice

cocotte

pot for cooking and serving

confit

preserved by slowly cooking in fat

Cooking styles

Haute cuisine to restauration rapide

cromesquis

croquette or fried pierogi

étouffée

‘smothered’ or Louisana seafood stew

étuvé

steamed

friture

fry

gratin

baked with a brown uppercrust

julienne de légumes

vegetables cut in thin strips

juste saisi

seared

Matignon

rough dice

mirepoix

diced vegetable base

panaché

a shandy—or a mélange

panure

breading

papillote

in parchment

paupiettes

meat rolls (veal birds)

pierrade

cooking on a hot stone

remouillage

‘re-wetting’ bones

salpicon

minced ingredients bound together in a sauce

snacké

cooked quickly

timbale

cooked in a deep mould

vapeur

steam

Text © Dana Facaros

Image by br1dotcom