French Cooking Terms

You may want to check out these common French cooking terms, if you are into French cuisine like me and they may come in handy if you are trying to read a menu or a list of ingredients.

French Cuisine is acclaimed as one of the top four cuisines in the world by culinary authorities, along with Italian, Chinese and Turkish. It is a style of cooking that originated from France and developed over centuries.

It is a very large cuisine with a variety of dishes and ingredients specific to each town and region, cheese and wine being a major part of it. French love talking about food, hence the long list of French cooking terms..

Most of us know what restaurant, menu, cafe, entree or aperitif means but if you want to familiarize yourself a little more with the French cuisine, here is a list of some common French cooking terms:

French Cooking Terms: Affiné to Canapé

• Affiné: Cheese, foie gras or wine that has been aged to develop a better taste.

• Agneau: Lamb.

• A la carte: Dishes individually priced on a menu.

• À la mode: In the current- contemporary style.

• Anglaise: Beaten egg with oil and seasoning.

• Apéritif: A small alcoholic drink served before a meal.

• Au bleu: Viande au bleu: under cooked meat; truite au bleu: trout dish with trout so fresh that its skin is blue.

• Au gratin: Sprinkled with breadcrumbs and/or cheese and browned.

• Bain-marie: A large dish or pan filled with water partially to allow food to cook more slowly and be protected from direct high heat.

• Bavarois: A type of pudding made from cream, eggs and gelatin.

• Bechamel: White sauce made from cream, onion and herbs.

• Beurre Noire / Beurre Noisette: Butter that has been cooked until it turns brown.

• Bien cuit : Well done – cooked.

• Bisque: A thick soup made of shellfish.

• Blanc de Cuisson: Water, flour and lemon juice used to keep foods from losing their color while cooking.

• Blanchir: To immerse fruit, vegetables and nuts in boiling water for a short time, to kill enzymes, to get rid of a bitter taste and to allow them to be easily skinned.

• Bouillon: Unclarified stock made from vegetables or meat.

• Braiser: To cook something slowly in a small amount of liquid and with a lid on it.

• Brule: Having a coating of caramelized sugar.

• Bouquet garni: A bunch of herbs (usually parsley, bay leaf and thyme tied inside celery and leek) used to flavor stews and casseroles. They should be removed before serving.

• Brunir: To cook a meal until its surface just turns light brown.

• Canapé: A piece of bread topped with a savory topping, usually served as an appetizer.

French Cooking Terms: Chantilly to Frappé

• Chantilly: Sweetened whipped vanilla flavoured cream.

• Chaud-Froid: Something that has been cooked but is served cold in gelatin.

• Chateaubriand: The head of the fillet of beef.

• Compote: Fruit stewed in sugar or syrup.

• Confit: Meat, chicken or turkey cooked and conserved in its own fat or fruits conserved in a sugar syrup.

• Concasser: To chop ingredients informally without carefully dicing or mincing.

• Consomme: Basic clear soup.

• Coulis: A heavy thick sauce – puree of fish, poultry, fruit or vegetables, with a thin consistency so that it can be poured.

• Crepe: A very popular French pan cake.

• Croutons: Diced small cubes of fried or toasted bread, usually added to soups or salads.

• Crudites: Any type of raw fruit or vegetable served as a starter, perhaps with a dip.

• Croquettes: A mixture of cooked meats and vegetables coated in a batter and fried.

• Croûtons: Diced, toasted and occasionally seasoned bread used to top salads or soups.

• En branche: Vegetables cooked and served as whole leaves.

• En croute: Wrapped in pastry and then baked in an oven.

• Entrecote: A steak from a boned sirloin.

• Escalope: A thin, boneless slice of meat.

• Espagnole: Spanish sauce; brown sauce.

• Farce: Stuffing.

• Farci: Stuffed.

• Flamber: The process of adding alcohol to a dish and igniting.

• Foie gras: Goose or duck liver that has been specially fattened.

• Frappé: Something that is iced or set on or in a bed of ice.

French Cooking Terms: Fremir to Vol-au-Vent

• Fremir: Keeping a liquid just below the boiling point.

• Fumé: Smoked salmon, ham etc.

• Glacer: To decorate a cake or other pastry with icing.

• Hors d’Oeuvre: Appetizer.

• Julienne: Cut into fine strips.

• Jus de viande: Juices that occur naturally from cooking.

• Liaison: The thickening of a sauce, perhaps with cream or corn starch, at the end of cooking.

• Luter: To seal a cooking dish with dough made from flour and water.

• Macédoine: Mixture of finely diced fruits and vegetables.

• Mijoter: To cook something slowly on the stove top with the lid on.

• Mille-feuilles: “Thousand leaves”, a puff pastry cream slice.

• Napper: To cover a dish with sauce.

• Noix: Nut, also the cushion piece of leg of veal.

• Paner: To cover a food with flour, beaten egg, and/or bread crumbs.

• Paysanne: (Country style) Root vegetables cut into thin 15mm round or square shapes.

• Nouvelle cuisine: A style of cooking that features lighter dishes with lighter sauces and very fresh ingredients.

• Pâté: Pureed meat.

• Rechauffer: To reheat.

• Rouille: Olive oil and garlic emulsion pounded with chilies and bread crumbs.

• Sabler: To add butter into flour until it is pebbly.

• Sauter: To fry something in oil lightly on high heat.

• Souffle: A savoury or sweet dish made with egg whites that have been whisked.

• Tarte Tatin: A fruit pie cooked with a topping of caramelized pastry.

• Vol-au-Vent: Puff pastry case.

 

Return from French Cooking Terms to Glycemic Index home page 

Or take me back to Mediterranean Diet from French Cooking Terms