abats – in butchery, the offal, or those parts of a meat animal which are used as food but which are not skeletal muscle.
Archives: Glossary Terms
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amourettes
amourettes (“ah-moo-RHETZ”) The spinal marrow of an ox or calf.
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amuse-bouche
amuse-bouche (“uh-MYUZ boosh”) A small bite served at the start of a meal, usually with the chef’s compliments.
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apéritif
apéritif (“ah-pey-ree-TEEF”) A small alcoholic beverage or cocktail, served before a meal, to stimulate the appetite. From the Latin verb aperire, which means ‘to open.’
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baba-mould
Baba-mould – a kind of small, deep cylindrical cake mould, slightly wider at the top than at the bottom. Used for making rum baba, a cake soaked in rum.
Illustration: Baba moulds from Charles Elmé Francatelli’s The Cook’s Guide, and Housekeeper’s & Butler’s Assistant, 1867.
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bain-marie
bain-marie (“BAHN mah-REE”) is a container placed in water-bath in the oven.
Used to keep food or utensils warm, or to slowly cook items. Custards are an example, in which a low temperature is desired, so as to avoid burning. Commercial steam tables are another example of the bain-marie.
Illustration from Isabella Beeton’s Mrs Beeton’s household management: a guide to cookery in all branches. London: Ward, Lock & Co, 1907.
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blanch
blanch (“BLONCH”) To boil a food in water. ‘Big-pot blanching’ is to boil vegetables in salt water, then plunge them in an ice bath to fix their color.
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clarified syrup
clarified syrup – clear simple syrup. In times past, when boiling loaf sugar, impurities would foam to the top of the liquid, or the syrup would become cloudy. Remedies included straining and clarifying with egg whites or isinglass.
Using today’s bleached and refined sugars, there is usually no need to clarify your syrups.
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crème fraîche
crème fraîche (“krem FRESH”) Literally ‘fresh cream.” This is a heavy, heavenly cream that has a slightly sour taste, but it’s not as sour or as thick as its cousin, sour cream.
