From al dente to zest
The glossary opens with 26 terms that cover the words you will encounter most often when following a recipe or reading one of the guides. They are arranged alphabetically and grouped by type — technique, science, knife cut, baking, ingredient — so you can scan by category if you want to explore rather than look something up.
Plain language, sourced definitions
Every definition is written for a beginner, with no assumed knowledge. We aimed for a single sentence that says what the word means in practice. Where the etymology or origin of a term adds meaning — mise en place (French: "put in place"), al dente (Italian: "to the tooth") — that is included. For scientific terms like the Maillard reaction, we draw on food science literature indexed on ScienceDirect and keep the definition accurate without being technical.
Cross-references between terms
Cooking vocabulary is a network. Sear leads to fond; fond leads to deglaze; deglaze leads to reduce. Each entry shows a "see also" list so you can follow that network naturally. Terms that have a full guide — searing and browning, baker's percentages, mise en place — link directly to the guide from the glossary entry.
What's in the first 26
- Al dente (Technique) — Pasta or vegetables cooked until tender but still firm to the bite. Italian for "to the tooth".
- Bain-marie (Equipment) — A bath of hot water that a dish sits in, so it cooks or stays warm gently and evenly.
- Baste (Technique) — To spoon or brush fat or pan juices over food while it cooks, adding flavour and helping it brown.
- Blanch (Technique) — To cook briefly, then cool quickly in iced water. Sets colour, loosens skins and part-cooks vegetables.
- Braise (Technique) — To brown food, then cook it slowly in a covered pot with a little liquid.
- Brunoise (Knife cut) — A very fine dice, roughly 3 mm cubes.
- Caramelise (Science) — To cook sugar until it browns and develops deep, nutty flavour.
- Chiffonade (Knife cut) — Leafy herbs or greens stacked, rolled tightly and sliced into thin ribbons.
- Deglaze (Technique) — To add liquid to a hot pan and scrape, dissolving the browned bits stuck to it into a sauce.
- Emulsion (Science) — A smooth, stable mixture of two liquids that don't normally mix, such as oil and vinegar.
- Fold (Baking) — To combine a light, airy mixture with a heavier one using gentle sweeping turns, so the air stays in.
- Fond (Ingredient) — The browned bits left on the bottom of a pan after searing. The base of a pan sauce.
- Julienne (Knife cut) — To cut into thin, even matchsticks.
- Knead (Baking) — To work dough by pressing, folding and stretching it, which develops gluten and gives bread its structure.
- Maillard reaction (Science) — The browning reaction between amino acids and sugars that gives seared, roasted and baked food its savoury flavour.
- Mise en place (Technique) — Having every ingredient measured, cut and within reach before cooking starts.
- Poach (Technique) — To cook gently in liquid kept below a simmer.
- Proof (Baking) — The final rise of shaped dough before it is baked.
- Reduce (Technique) — To simmer a liquid uncovered so water evaporates, thickening it and concentrating its flavour.
- Roux (Ingredient) — Flour cooked in fat, used to thicken sauces, soups and stews.
- Sauté (Technique) — To cook quickly in a little fat over fairly high heat, keeping the food moving.
- Sear (Technique) — To brown the surface of food quickly over high heat.
- Simmer (Technique) — To cook in liquid just below boiling, with small bubbles breaking the surface.
- Sweat (Technique) — To cook vegetables gently in a little fat so they soften and release moisture without browning.
- Temper (Technique) — To raise the temperature of an ingredient gradually, such as eggs, or to heat and cool chocolate so it sets glossy.
- Zest (Ingredient) — The thin, coloured outer skin of citrus fruit; also, to remove it.