Mise en Place

Okay, so you have now accumulated the appropriate tools to allow you to get started on this new journey. The next step comes with actually diving in, rolling up your sleeves, putting on that apron, and getting to work. The French have a term which best describes getting properly prepared for your recipe and that term is "mise en place." Now I'm not French, but my interpretation of this term is something like "everything in its place."

I have pictured for you here all the ingredients which I assembled for a recent Melon Semifreddo that I prepared a couple of weeks ago. It really doesn't matter the recipe, this simply demonstrates to you that through the use of small, medium and large vessels, you can get all your ingredients lined up for smooth incorporation. I happen to be a bit of a compulsive shopper when it comes to buying "small" bowls. I love to have them handy when measuring out spices, fresh herbs, vegetables, etc so you will find way too many of these in my cupboards. Not necessary for most of you, just be sure that you invest in an adequate quantity of measuring cups, mixing bowls, and plain old custard cups.

One of my followers happens to be a Sales Director for Pampered Chef and I know she would love to help each and everyone of you acquire prep and batter bowls, right Vanessa? As I get smarter about the capabilities of this blog site, I hope to incorporate links where you can just click and order from sites like hers. More to follow on that....

So now we have learned another term, Mise en Place, to add to your cooking repertoire. Let's go on to explore some other basic cooking terms which you'll see in recipes and on this blog site.
I have used a wonderful book in order to share these definitions with you, you might want to add it to your library, The Kitchen Companion by Polly Clingerman. You can find a world of helpful hints in this book.

Blanch: Cook food in boiling water for a very short time to prepare for further cooking or freezing.

This practice is used most often with fresh vegetables like green beans. Remember when "blanching" you'll want to immediately immerse them after draining, into an ice bath to set the color and stop the cooking.

Bouquet garni: Herb bouquet used to flavor liquid dishes.

This garni is typically wrapped in cheese cloth and tied with kitchen string. Your recipe will advise what herbs to put in your bouquet garni typically thyme, bay leaf, rosemary, parsley.

Deglaze: Pour water, stock or wine over brown and caramelized pan drippings in order to loosen them by stirring and scraping. The flavor-rich liquid is then used for sauce.

A very simple step to take that will add incredible richness to any meat prepared in a saute pan. I most always use wine or stock, rarely will I use water as you really want this step to impart a wonderful depth to your sauce. It is best done on a very warm pan so stand back and let the liquid reduce in the pan when it first hits the hot surface.

Dredge: Sprinkle food with flour, sugar, bread crumbs or seasoning.

Always be sure that if you are dredging meat or poultry in any of these that you keep your hands clean so as to not cause cross-contamination. In other words, wash your hands frequently.
En papillote: A method of cooking in a wrapper, usually parchment or foil.

Such an elegant way to prepare a nice piece of fish and your clean up is so easy when you prepare en papillote!

Julienne: Cut food into uniform pieces about the size and shape of a kitchen match: 2" long by 1/4 ".

This step will take a bit more time, but the end result will be well worth it. If you choose this approach, it is best to insure that all pieces are close in size so that they look nice and cook at the same time.

Poach: Cook food in a liquid heated to just below the boiling point.

We typically think of poaching eggs, but fish and chicken can be nicely prepared this way.

Reduce: Boil a liquid so some of the water content evaporates and the liquid becomes thicker and more concentrated.

As I mentioned above with the explanation of deglazing, you want to boil a liquid like wine or stock down so that it thickens and the flavor intensifies.

Saute: French for "pan fry." The term means "to jump;" when you saute, you toss the food to keep it from sticking or burning.

This is only accomplished with a good saute pan, must have a thick bottom to allow for even distribution of the heat. Can't have enough saute pans!!!

Sweat: Cook sliced or chopped ingredients in a little oil or butter over low heat, until they ooze their juices and begin to brown.

This is very often a preliminary step for stewing or soup making and you'll see the term used most often with onions, celery, carrots, peppers, etc.

Zest: The outermost surface of the peel of a citrus fruit.

There are a couple of different ways to zest, one is to use that wonderful Microplane grater I mentioned before. You can also use a swivel bladed peeler, just be careful that you do not remove any of the bitter white pith from underneath the peel.

Hopefully this have given you a good foundation for some of the terms you have seen or will see in recipes. If we can "demistify" this thing called cooking, then you will see that it can really be a fun and creative past time.

Bon Appetit!!!