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About This Quiz
Do you know all your cooking terminology? Find out by taking this quiz!
What is the term for the brown bits left at the bottom of a pan after cooking meat or vegetables?
Fond.
These brown bits, called fond, are full of flavor. Use wine, broth, or other liquid to loosen these brown bits and create a gravy or sauce.
Fondant.
Fawn.
Fondue.
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In what country is a tagine commonly used?
Japan.
Morocco.
The tagine, used to cook Moroccan stews, is a shallow earthenware vessel with a cone-shaped lid. Some tagine stews include olives.
New Zealand.
Nigeria.
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What is "al dente"?
Poking holes into foods with skins, such as sausage links or cucumbers, so they will not explode in a microwave.
A term to describe the ideal texture of cooked pasta.
When pasta is cooked al dente, it is firm to the bite.
Thinly sliced.
Spicy and sour.
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In the cooking world, what is the difference between mirepoix and the Holy Trinity?
Celery vs. onions.
Onions vs. potatoes.
Celery vs. leeks.
Carrots vs. green bell peppers.
Mirepoix and the Holy Trinity are both veggie mixtures. They differ in their use of carrots vs. green bell peppers. Mirepoix is a mix of onions, celery, and carrots; The Holy Trinity is a mix of onions, celery, and green bell peppers.
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What is the term for cooking food briefly in boiling water, to seal in flavor and color?
Fry.
Julienne.
Beat.
Blanch.
After food is blanched in boiling water, it is usually cold shocked in a bowl of ice water to halt the cooking process.
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What is the name of a popular cold vegetable soup, popular in Spanish countries, served with a variety of garnishes?
Kiburu.
Borscht.
Gazpacho.
Garnishes for cold gazpacho may include roasted almonds, avocados, shrimp, chopped hard-boiled eggs, yogurt, sliced olives, and croutons.
Vichyssoise.
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What is charcuterie?
A French sauce derived from hollandaise.
A cheese platter.
A variety of pork preparations.
Charcuterie is a French term for pork varieties, including sausages, hams, pâté, and more, whether cured, smoked, or otherwise processed.
Chef's knives.
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What is the common term for cooking or baking with only basic ingredients, using no premixed items or convenience foods?
From scratch.
Cooking from scratch basically means starting from nothing. That's great, but it's also fine to take a few shortcuts along the way. Any attempts at home cooking should be encouraged.
Al dente.
With elbow grease.
Non-microwave cuisine.
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What is nougat?
A candy made with sugar, nuts, and honey.
Nougat, a sticky filling made with sugar, nuts, and honey, is often used in candy bars and candies.
A synonym for wok.
The Android OS version for some phones that follows Marshmallow in their sweet alphabetical system.
The most popular recipe format.
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How is virgin olive oil different from other grades of olive oil?
Virgin olive oil is made from green olives, while other grades are made from black olives.
Virgin oil comes from the first pressing of the olives.
Virgin olive oil, from the first pressing of the olives, has the finest flavor and the lowest acid content. Choose virgin oil for dipping or for final drizzles, and use lesser grades of oil for cooking.
Virgin oil comes from olive trees that have not been grafted with other trees.
Virgin is the only grade of olive oil produced in Italy.
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What is the French culinary term for preparing ingredients and gathering equipment prior to cooking?
Avec des glaçons.
S'il vous plaît.
En croute.
Mise en place.
The idea is that having everything laid out in advance, mise en place, saves time in the long run. It's even possible to purchase special mise en place bowls.
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What is couscous?
Rice.
Seeds.
Pasta.
To make couscous, water and semolina wheat are combined, then pushed through a sieve, to create pasta pellets.
Bread crumbs.
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Empanadas, potstickers, pierogies, gyoza, ravioli, and kreplach are all types of what beloved food?
Dumplings.
Dumplings are found in most cuisines. The dough is mixed and formed, perhaps stuffed, then the dumplings are boiled or sauteed.
Noodles.
Biscuits.
Canapes.
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What is the term for cooking some of the fat out of a meat, to collect the drippings?
Poaching.
Parboiling.
Basting.
Rendering.
Rendered fat is used in many recipes because it's more flavorful than cooking oil.
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Béchamel, velouté, espagnole, hollandaise, and tomate are collectively known as what?
The basic food groups.
Bouquet garni.
The five sisters.
The five mother sauces.
In French cooking, these five mother sauces are the starting points for many other small sauces. For example, béchamel sauce is the starting point for making mornay sauce or cheddar cheese sauce.
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What is the common mistake that results in tough pie crust or biscuits?
Using stale flour.
Overworking the dough.
Overworking dough develops too much elasticity in the flour gluten, resulting in tough dough.
Too much butter.
Overbaking.
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What Chinese sauce, used in Mu Shu pork and other dishes, is made from soybeans, chiles, garlic, red beans, vinegar, and spices?
Vinaigrette.
Tzatziki sauce.
Chutney.
Hoisin sauce.
Hoisin sauce has a sweet, tart, salty flavor. It's used to make Peking Duck.
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What is a bouquet garni?
A bundle of herbs, floated in cooking liquid for flavor, then removed before serving.
The bundle of herbs in a bouquet garni may vary, but often includes parsley, thyme, and bay leaves. The herbs may be tied with string or enclosed in cheesecloth.
A leafy garnish, such as parsley, used as a plate decoration.
Edible flowers.
A bouquet of herbs, thrown by the bride at a Greek wedding.
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Often when we think we are buying and using true cinnamon, we are actually using what similar, related spice?
Allspice.
Cloves.
Cassia.
Cassia is cheaper and easier to produce than true Ceylon cinnamon. Both come from the bark of trees. Dried cinnamon bark curls are called quills.
Nutmeg.
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Mixing lemon juice and milk makes a workable substitute for what?
Mayonnaise.
Lemonade.
Buttermilk.
Buttermilk is what's left after churning butter from cream. Therefore, it contains no butter. Its sour taste can be mimicked with an acid and a dairy product.
Margarine.
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In Italian cooking, what is "al forno"?
Fish with roasted vegetables.
Baked in an oven.
Pasta and pizza are frequently prepared al forno, in an oven.
Dining outside.
Sauteed with fennel.
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Other than pasta, what are the main ingredients in pasta carbonara?
Pork meatballs and tomatoes.
Cream smoked over charcoal, ham, and garlic.
Pancetta or prosciutto, egg yolks, and grated cheese.
For pasta carbonara, egg yolks are tempered, or partially cooked, in a bit of hot pasta water, then tossed with pasta, crispy ham, and grated cheese. Sometimes wine is cooked down in the ham drippings as well, for extra flavor.
Heavy cream, asparagus, and peas.
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How many teaspoons are in a tablespoon?
Four.
Eight.
Three.
There are three teaspoons in one tablespoon. A teaspoon is smaller, so it's abbreviated with a lower-case t. A tablespoon is bigger, so it's abbreviated with an upper-case T.
Ten.
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Which celebrity chef first revealed the mysteries of French cuisine to an American audience?
Anthony Bourdain.
Emeril Lagasse.
Julia Child.
Julia Child wrote "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" and appeared on many television shows. She was especially charming whenever she made a mistake while cooking on live TV.
Wolfgang Puck.
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What is the Portuguese term for rice?
Couscous.
Kimchi.
Arroz.
Arroz is the Portuguese word for rice. A popular Portuguese dessert is arroz doce, which is rice pudding with cinnamon.
Kheer.
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In Native American cooking, what are the Three Sisters?
Onions, celery, and carrots.
Corn/maize, onions, and potatoes.
Corn/maize, beans, and squash.
The Three Sisters are interdependent: beans grow up the corn stalks and add nutrients to the soil, while squash keeps the weeds out.
Onions, celery, and bell peppers.
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What is a bain-marie?
A water bath.
A container of delicate food is placed in a bain-marie - a shallow pan of water - to facilitate slow, gentle cooking in an oven or on a stove top. This technique is used for custards, cheesecakes, and mousses.
A savory pie.
A bouquet of herbs.
A cherry-infused pastry.
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What term should be used to ask a sous-chef to cut vegetables into long, thin strips?
Dice.
Chiffonade.
Julienne.
Hard vegetables are easier to julienne than soft ones. First, square off the sides of the vegetable, then cut it into slices, then cut the slices into strips.
Mince.
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What is the term for coating uncooked meat with a flour or crumb mixture?
Deglazing.
Macerating.
Dredging.
Sometimes meat is dipped in egg or some other liquid before it's dredged in flour or crumbs.
Drudging.
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What is adobo?
A technique for cooking masa.
A spicy meatball.
An herb that grows in Central America.
A paste made from chiles, vinegar, and added seasonings.
Adobo paste, featuring chiles, vinegar, and herbs, is used as a marinade or sauce, to add Latin flair to foods.
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Cavatappi pasta has what shape?
Corkscrew.
Corkscrew-shaped cavatappi pasta holds up well with sauces and is great in pasta salad.
Bell.
Butterfly.
Little ears.
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To macerate fruit, what should you do?
Bruise its skin.
Chop it into fine pieces.
Soak it in a flavored liquid.
Macerated fruit is a delicious topping for ice cream, yogurt, or cake.
Blend it into a smoothie.
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What is a paillard?
A wild Canadian duck.
A goose that is raised to make foie gras.
A long, narrow French pastry.
A piece of meat, pounded thin, then grilled or sauteed.
Chicken paillard is made from pounded chicken breast, paired with lemon and herbs, tomatoes and fennel, or many other flavorful foods. The paillard technique can also be used with pork veal, or fish.
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Sesame seeds are the main ingredient in what condiment?
Ajika.
Teriyaki sauce.
Tahini.
Tahini is a condiment popular in the Middle East. There are two types - hulled and unhulled. Unhulled tahini is more bitter than hulled. Tahini is used to flavor soups and to make hummus.
Pesto.
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Why is it called a "hamburger" when there's no ham?
Burgers used to contain ham.
Germans in Hamburg were inspired by the Russian introduction of steak tartare to make cooked Hamburg steaks.
No matter what, hamburgers (without ham) are the definitive American food - along with French fries, which aren't even French.
The name came from a misunderstanding, similar to the case with buttermilk.
Members of the pork industry coined this name to encourage use of pork rather than beef in the popular cooked patties.
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