To cook lightly so that it still offers resistance to the teeth.

A dish covered with a sauce or breadcrumbs or both, then browned under a grill or in the oven.

To brush or spoon food as it cooks with melted fat or the cooking juices from the dish. Basting prevents foods from drying out and adds color and flavor.

Blacan or Belacan (also belachan or blachang) is Malay for Shrimp paste. A common ingreadient used in Southeast Asian and Southern Chinese cooking.

To cook raw ingredients in boiling water briefly. Blanched vegetables are generally plunged immediately and briefly into an ice water bath to stop the cooking process and preserve color and crunch. Also to remove the skin from ingredient by submerging in boiling water then in cold water.

Refined sugar with a thin coating of molasses, not to be confused with raw, unrefined sugar

Also known as bulgur wheat. Is wheat that has been steamed, dried and cracked, which enables it to readily absorb moisture. To prepare burghul, place in medium bowl, cover with hot water for 10-20 minutes or until the water is absorbed and the grains expand and become fluffy. Burghul can also be used as an accompaniment to curries and stews.

To split food (meat, fish, fowl) down the center, cutting almost, but not completely through. The two halves are then opened flat to resemble a butterfly.

Cultured pasteurised milk, mildly acidic with a creamy flavour and thick consistency.

A strong flavoured cabbage, with dark green leaves.

Also known as gourmet's parsley. Chervil has a lemon-anise flavor that is lost with long coking, it should be added at the very end or used as a garnish. More delicate than parsley. Use to season poultry, seafood and vegetables. Popular in France, where it is added to omelettes, salads and soups.

To remove sediment from a cloudy liquid, thereby making it clear. To clarify liquids, such as stock, egg whites and/or eggshells are commonly added and simmered for approximately 15 minutes. The egg whites attract and trap particles from the liquid. After cooling, strain the mixture through a cloth-lined sieve to remove residue. To clarify rendered fat, add hot water and boil for about 15 minutes. The mixture should then be strained through several layers of cheesecloth and chilled. The resulting layer of fat should be completely clear of residue.

Clarified butter is butter that has been heated slowly so that its milk solids separate and sink, and can be discarded. The resulting clear liquid can be used at a higher cooking temperature and will not go rancid as quickly as unclarified butter

French for "gherkin". Cornichons are crisp, tart pickles made from tiny gherkin cucumbers.

The French name for custard.

An egg custard dessert with a hard caramel topping.

A sharp flavoured thick cream made from pasteurised milk.

Thin French pancake.

Daikon is a mild white radish shaped like a large carrot. also known as Japanese or Chinese radish or winter radish.

Traditional dukkah mixture combines chopped toasted nuts (often hazelnuts) with sesame, cumin and coriander seeds and spices. dukkah is usually eaten together with olive oil and pita or crusty bread.

Beaten egg and milk mixture, used to glaze pastry or bread.

Individual flower stems of the heads of vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower.

A fresh low-fat curd cheese blended until smooth. Frûche is a sweetened version of fromage frais. Equal parts low-fat cottage cheese or low-fat cream cheese blended with plain yoghurt until smooth can be used as an alternative.

A setting agent, derived from animals, available as a powder or a sheet.

Used to make jellies, mousses, etc.

Ghee is clarified butter, the butter oil, without the lactose and other milk solids. Used to replace oils and butter in recipes. Ghee has a longer shelf life than standard butter and has a nutty, unique flavor. Used in Middle Eastern, Asian and Indian cuisine. An excellent oil for sauteing vegetable.

The natural sugar, found in fruit and other foods, which is easily absorbed by the body.

The protein in flour which, gives the dough elasticity and strength.

An Italian cow's milk cheese, pale in colour with blue veining.

A sorbet made from a slightly sweetened syrup flavoured with coffee or liqueur.

A Tunisian hot red sauce or paste made from chilli peppers usually containing tomatoes and garlic. Is commonly used in couscous, pasta dishes or to add colour and spice to meat dishes. Can be used as a condiment or dipping sauce with a little oil and bread.

approximately 220°C

Granulated sugar that has been milled to produce a very fine powder.

To cut food into thin sticks. Food is cut with a knife or mandoline into even slices, then into strips

Sweet soy sauce.

To work and stretch dough to make smoother, more elastic, or to add additional ingredients.

Rendered and clarified, white pork fat, used for cooking.

To soak raw, dried or preserved fruit or vegetables in liquid to soften or absorb the flavour of the liquid.

A soft and creamy Italian cheese.

approximately 180°C

A cheese sauce used to coat fish, eggs or vegetables.

An Italian water-buffalo milk fresh or un-ripened cheese sold in whey.

The internal parts of an animal including brain, heart, kidney, liver, tongue and tripe.

A fruit with green skin, with an aromatic, orange flesh. Also called a paw paw.

To boil food in water, cooking it only partially. Parboiling is used for dense food like carrots and potatoes. After being parboiled, these foods can be added at the last minute to quicker-cooking ingredients. Parboiling insures that all ingredients finish cooking at the same time. Since foods will continue to cook once they have been removed from the boiling water, they should be shocked in ice water briefly to preserve color and texture.

Hard, cow's-milk Italian cheese.

Passata is a cooked tomato concentrate or smooth tomato sauce. For small amounts, you can substitute tomato paste .

A smooth tomato sauce.

To quickly place a heated object in cold water. This is usually done to either stop the cooking process or to separate the skin of an object from the meat. This process is sometimes referred to as shocking.

A small china or earthenware dish.

A vegetable stew with herbs.

To thicken or concentrate a liquid by boiling rapidly. The volume of the liquid is reduced as the water evaporates, thereby thickening the consistency and intensifying the flavor.

Made with partially puffed medium grain rice. Use in place of regular bread crumbs, for cooking applications such as cheesecakes or as a nutritious filler for rissoles.

An un-ripened soft and creamy Italian ewe’s milk curd.

Also known as risi or orso. Risoni is a rice-shaped pasta traditionally used in soups. It's also great in salads and stews.

A salt derived from the seams of compacted underground sources.

A green salad vegetable with a peppery flavour. Also known as arugula.

The eggs from a female fish (hard roe) or similar glands of a male fish (soft roe)

A French ewe’s milk cheese with blue-green veining.

To cook or brown in a pan in a little oil.

To cook food in liquid over gentle heat, just below the boiling point, low enough so that tiny bubbles just begin to break the surface.

approximately 140°C

An earthenware dish with a conical shaped lid. Also known as a tajine.

A dark viscous sugar syrup.

The stomach of a cow, pig or sheep.

To remove the outermost skin layers of citrus fruit using a knife, peeler or zester. When zesting, be careful not to remove the pith, the white layer between the zest and the flesh, which is bitter.