FRENCH COOKING TERMS

Aioli

(n) a sauce made of oil and eggs, usually flavored with garlic, from the Provence region of France; olive oil, egg yolk, garlic and saffron

Canapé

A bite-sized, layered hors d'oeuvre that translates to "couch." They start with a sturdy base layer (the couch) on top of which the main ingredients sit

Escalope

A boneless piece of meat that is pounded with a mallet or rolled with a pin until thin. (Essentially, a thin cutlet.) Often sautéed, rolled and stuffed, or breaded and pan-fried.

Bouillon

A clear, seasoned broth, made from simmering meat, vegetables, and seasonings in water. The term is often used interchangeably with broth.

Demi-glace

A concentrated sauce made from equal parts of Espagnole and brown stock (made from roasted veal and/or beef bones). The mixture is slowly reduced by half until it's rich in texture and glossy, with a deep, meaty flavor.

Chinois

A cone-shaped strainer constructed with a fine, metal mesh. Great tool to have for straining sauces, purees, soups, and stocks to a very smooth consistency. Often paired with a stand to position it over a bowl or pot, and a pestle to help press foods through the mesh

Croquette

A cylindrical or egg-shaped patty rolled in breadcrumbs and fried. They are shaped from cooked meats (most often minced or ground after cooking), fish, and/or vegetables. To form the patties, the ingredients are bound together with eggs or a thick sauce, such as béchamel or velouté.

Ragoût

A hearty, slowly-cooked French stew. Ragoût can be made with meat, poultry, seafood, and/or vegetables

Chiffonade

A knife technique for cutting leafy ingredients, such as spinach, broad-leafed lettuces, kale, and herbs, such as basil and mint. To make: stack and roll the leaves, and cut them into thin, ribbon-like strips. Makes a beautiful and delicate garnish.

Julienne

A knife technique of cutting food (usually, vegetables) into small, thin strips.

Brunoise

A knife technique where a julienned vegetable (carrot, turnip, celery, etc.) is stacked and cut from the end into a very small dice (1/8- to 1/16-inch cubes). Smallest dicing size in French cuisine.

Coulis

A light, smooth sauce made from pureed fruits or vegetables. Coulis is often drizzled as a garnish, or poured/spooned as a base for plating.

Mirepoix

A mixture of aromatics containing 2 parts diced onions to 1 part diced celery and 1 part diced carrots. Often sweat a this as the base for soups, stews, and sauces.

Pâté

A mixture of meats, organ meats (such as chicken or duck liver), seafood, or vegetables, minced or ground with fat into a paste. The texture ranges from coarse to quite smooth, depending on the recipe. Can be baked and served en croute, prepared as a terrine, or simply served chilled in a crock as a spread.

Cartouche

A parchment paper lid that sits directly on the surface of ingredients in a pot or pan. Most often used when simmering, poaching, braising, and sweating. It slows down the evaporation of liquids in the pan, but still allows steam to escape, so ingredients can cook gently and evenly.

Roux

A paste of equal parts of flour and melted fat (classically, butter), cooked together and used to thicken liquids, such as sauces.

Confit

A preservation method where meats are both cooked slowly and stored in their own rendered fat. (i.e. Duck Confit, made from duck legs and duck fat.)

Vol-au-vent

A puff pastry cup or shell used to serve meats, vegetables, or fish (often with a cream sauce), or custards with fruit.

Soufflé

A puffed baked egg dish with a fluffy texture. They can be savory or sweet, and are made by folding whipped egg whites into a flavored base, such as a cream sauce (béchamel), puree, or pastry cream.

Terrine

A pâté, cooked or prepared in a loaf-shaped mold (earthenware, porcelain, or metal), often using a bain-marie. Many classic ones are lined with pork fat before the pâté is added.

Court bouillon

A quickly-cooked broth most often used to poach other foods, like seafood. Common ingredients include water, white wine, lemon juice, and aromatics.

blanquette

A ragoût (stew) of white meat (veal-de veau, chicken-de poulet) that isn't browned during cooking

Fricassée

A rustic, stew-like dish where the meat is first sautéed without browning, braised, and served in a white sauce. The meats and vegetables in a traditional one should not be caramelized.

à la meunière

A simple seafood dish (typically made with sole or another white fish), where whole fish or fillets are dredged in flour, sautéed in butter, and finished with a brown butter, lemon, and parsley sauce.

Hors d'oeurve

A small taste of food served prior to sitting down for a meal, or in place of a meal at a cocktail party

Sauté

A stovetop cooking technique that involves quickly cooking food in a shallow pan, at a high temperature, with a small amount of fat.

crème fraîche

A thick, fermented cream. Compared to American sour cream, it has a higher fat content (30-40%, compared to 18-20%), giving it a richer texture. The flavor is lightly-tangy and not as assertively sour as sour cream.

beurre manié (byurr man-YAY):

A thickener made of equal parts flour and soft, whole butter.

Béchamel

A white sauce made by thickening milk with white roux. One of the mother sauces

Hollandaise

An emulsion of egg yolks, vinegar (traditional; some recipes use lemon juice), water, and butter. One of the five French Mother Sauces, it is rich, creamy, and pastel yellow in color

bain-marie

Any type of hot-water bath meant to keep food items warm.

Espagnole

Basic brown sauce, made from a mirepoix, brown roux, tomato puree and brown (veal or beef) stock. It is a reduced sauce and is very richly flavored, so it's usually the basis for other sauces and flavoring agents (such as demi glace and sauce Bordelaise) rather than served on its own. One of the five French Mother Sauces

Duxelles

Chopped mushrooms sautéed in butter with onions or shallots and herbs, such as parsley. Often used in stuffings and fillings (such as Beef Wellington, omelettes, and vol au vent). It also makes a delicious hors d'oeuvre, on top of goat cheese crostini.

Gratiné/ au Gratin

Dishes that are baked or broiled with a crust of breadcrumbs and/or cheese

Fines herbes

Finely-chopped mixture of fresh parsley, tarragon, chives, and chervil (sometimes, also marjoram) commonly used in French cooking. You'll find this in dishes including omelettes, salads, and sauces, such as beurre blanc.

Flambé

Foods containing strong alcohol (such as brandy, cognac, rum) that are ignited. The flame extinguishes as the alcohol cooks out of the dish.

en Papillote

Foods wrapped in a parchment paper or foil packet and baked. The packet traps steam and creates a moist-cooking environment. Most commonly used for delicate foods, like fish fillets. Herbs, citrus juices and slices, a splash of wine, and/or aromatics are typically included in the packet to infuse into the primary ingredient with flavor.

Bouquet garni

Herbs (fresh or dried), tied together with cooking string or twine in a bundle, and used to flavor soups and stews. Classic ingredients are thyme, rosemary, bay leaf, and parsley. Sometimes, they contain aromatics, such as leeks or celery.

Entrée

In France: The course before the main dish (an appetizer). In the United States: The main dish of a meal.

Sauce Tomat

Includes fresh tomatoes and aromatics cooked in rendered salt pork. It is one of the five French Mother Sauces.

Velouté

Light sauce made from a white stock (veal, chicken, vegetable) thickened with blond roux. It is prepared similarly to béchamel, but is lighter since it doesn't use milk. The first of the five French Mother Sauces,

En croute

Literally, "in crust." Foods that are wrapped in pastry (such as puff pastry, pie dough, or phyllo) and baked.

Au Jus

Meats that are served with their natural juices . As the meat roasts, the drippings will collect in the pan. Deglaze the pan to extract all the flavor while the meat rests.

Amandine

Prepared or garnished with almonds

Lardons

Small strips of slab bacon, usually around 1/4-inch wide and thick. The shape and thickness of the cut renders fat particularly well, and allows the bacon to achieve a crisp-tender/meaty texture (while strip bacon would just be crisp).

Bisque

Smooth, creamy soup made from crustaceans such as lobster and shrimp. The shells flavor the stock, with the meat either stirred into the soup and/or used as a garnish.

Consommé

Stock that has been clarified (usually, using egg whites) and concentrated. It has a clear color and a stronger flavor than the stock used to make it.

Sous vide

Technique where foods are placed into vacuum sealed bags and cooked in a bath of circulating, temperature-controlled water.

Charcuterie

The art of preserving meats with salting, cooking, and curing methods. Examples are: sausages, confit, terrines, ham, bacon, and pâté.

Mother Sauces

The five basic sauces and sauce-making techniques of French cuisine that form the basis for most, if not all, other sauces. The sauces are: Béchamel, Espagnole, Hollandaise, Velouté, and Sauce Tomat.

Mise en place

To get set up and have everything in you need for a recipe or meal in place before you start cooking. All of your ingredients are prepped (measured, cut, etc.) and organized.

Fondue

Traditionally: Warm, melted cheese and white wine emulsion of Swiss-French origin, served in a pot (a "caquelon"), and used as a dip for skewered bread cubes.

beurre blanc

an emulsified butter sauce made from shallots, white wine and butter

Beurre Noisette

brown butter