To pour melted fat or the juices of the liquid over meat or other food while cooking to keep it moist. To cover a meat with a layer of fat before cooking, it maintains the moisture of the meat while it cooks to avoid overcooking. Au secĭescription of a liquid that has been reduced until it’s almost nearly dry, a process often used in sauce making. With its own juices from cooking, often refers to steak or other meat.

The phrase ‘au gratin’ literally means “by grating” in French, or “with a crust”. Sprinkled with breadcrumbs and cheese, or both, and browned. Al dente is translated as ‘to the tooth’ meaning something cooked but left with a bite of firmness. Generally, this cooking term is used when referring to the cooking of pasta and rice, but technically includes vegetables and beans too. We’re here to put an end to all the confusion and have compiled a comprehensive A-Z of cooking terms to help you out. Recipes can sometimes be a minefield of terms, jargon and foreign words that lead even the most gifted cook to question everything they know.

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