Glossary of cooking terms N - Z

for the glossary of cooking terms A-M

Nice

As in 'this is nice' - what you say to someone when they serve you up some bland tastless rubbish. It is best not to offend it might put them off cooking for life. Stick to this is nice.

Noodles

A sort of egg pasta that comes in strands.

Offal

The edable inards of livestock

Olive oil

Popeyes wife

Olive oil (2)

An oil used on salads and in medetarian cooking made from oil obtained from olives; a hard stoned fruit of the olive tree

Paprika

A seasoning made from powdered sweet red pepper

Parboil

Partial cooking by boiling

Pectin

A sugar in fruit and veg that helps jellies and jams to set

Polenta

A flour like ceral made from maize, very difficult to make it taste even nice*.

Punch

An alcoholic drink made with fruit, spices and sugar and often the left overs of a drinks cabinet.

Quiche

Savory egg tart

Quince

A fruit that is high in pectin and so used in jams and jellies, shaped like a pear.

Ramekins

Individual baking dishes

Sake

Rice wine from Japan; pronounced "sar key"

Salt

If you don't know what this is then get out of the kitchen

Saucepan

See above

Saute

To fry lightly in fat in a shallow open pan.

Skillet

A frying pan

Skimming

Removing the scum or fat from the surface of a liquid

Smoke

To expose fresh food to smoke from a fire for a prolonged period of time; to not only preserve it, but to give it a very different taste.

Steam

To cook using just the steam created from boiling water. I do this by putting a collander or metal sieve over a pan, then putting a plate over the top. (cheaper than buying a steamer)

Tofu

Soy bean curd (see how to make your own)

Utensil

The name given to any implement used to help you in cooking such as a wooden spoon or whisk.

Vinegar

An impure dilute solution of acetic acid obtained by fermentation beyond the alcohol stage and used as a condiment and preservative. (ref)

Water

See salt and saucepan

Yam

A root vegetable that is used in Carrabean cookery.

Yorkshite pudding

Similar to Yorkshire pudding only not as nice, often served as a typo.

Zest

Made from the outer rind of citrus fruits and often used in flavouring.