Whether you are a student who is delving into the world of culinary, or just a regular person who enjoys cooking at home. Here are some terms to help you better understand the language of the kitchen!
Al dente - This is an Italian term that translates to “to the tooth” which is used to describe pasta. It essentially means that the pasta has some firmness to it when bitten but not too firm that it is hard or seems uncooked. This is considered to be the ideal consistency of pasta, a happy medium between hard and mushy.
A la mode - This is a French term which means “in the style of” or “in the manner of” However, how does that relate to food? Well, originally in the 1800’s “à la mode” referred to a savory dish. However, today we usually associate the term with desserts, and more specifically desserts served with ice cream.
Baste - It means to add liquid onto a piece of meat usually. To baste is to take the juices or pan drippings of what you are cooking and placing and sort of reapplying the liquid onto the food every so often. You’ll probably see this on television or online when someone is cooking a steak. When the butter, oils, and aromatics are all melted and melded together, they usually take a spoon and scoop the liquid over the meat a few times. This helps moisten the meat and adds extra flavor to the crust.
