Cooking Terms P-W

PAN-BROIL

• To process solids by hand or mechanically to reduce them to tiny particles.
• From the French word for "crust." Term used to describe any oven-baked dish--usually cooked in a shallow oval gratin dish--on which a golden brown crust of bread crumbs, cheese or creamy sauce is form.
• To cook uncovered in a hot fry pan, pouring off fat as it accumulates.
• Neither cool nor warm; approximately body temperature.

PAN-FRY

• To cook in small amounts of fat.
• To preserve meats, vegetables, and fruits in brine.
• To cook on a grill over intense heat.
• To work and press dough with the palms of the hands or mechanically, to develop the gluten in the flour.

PARBOIL

• To boil until partially cooked; to blanch. Usually this procedure is followed by final cooking in a seasoned sauce. 
• To incorporate a delicate substance, such as whipped cream or beaten egg whites, into another substance without releasing air bubbles. Cut down through mixture with spoon, whisk, or fork; go across bottom of bowl, up and over, close to surface. The process is repeated, while slowing rotating the bowl, until the ingredients are thoroughly blended.
• To decorate a dish both to enhance its appearance and to provide a flavorful foil. Parsley, lemon slices, raw vegetables, chopped chives, and other herbs are all forms of garnishes.
• To sprinkle food with dry ingredients. Use a strainer or a jar with a perforated cover, or try the good, old-fashioned way of shaking things together in a paper bag.

PARE

• To cook uncovered in a hot fry pan, pouring off fat as it accumulates.
• To cut or chop food into extremely small pieces.
• Cooked on a thick hardwood plank.
• To remove the outermost skin of a fruit or vegetable.

PEEL

• To remove the peels from vegetables or fruits.
• To combine ingredients usually by stirring.
• To cook very gently in hot liquid kept just below the boiling point.
• Dredged with flour and sauteed in butter.

PICKLE

• To cook uncovered in a hot fry pan, pouring off fat as it accumulates.
• To remove the outermost skin of a fruit or vegetable.
• To preserve meats, vegetables, and fruits in brine
• To mash foods until perfectly smooth by hand, by rubbing through a sieve or food mill, or by whirling in a blender or food processor.

PINCH

• To boil until partially cooked; to blanch. Usually this procedure is followed by final cooking in a seasoned sauce.
• A pinch is the trifling amount you can hold between your thumb and forefinger.
• To soak dried fruits in liquid until they swell.
• To cut or chop food into extremely small pieces.

PIT

• To remove pits from fruits.
• To remove the peels from vegetables or fruits.
• To cook uncovered in a hot fry pan, pouring off fat as it accumulates.
• To cook very gently in hot liquid kept just below the boiling point.

PLANKED

• To cook in small amounts of fat.
• To preserve meats, vegetables, and fruits in brine.
• To flavor and moisturize pieces of meat, poultry, seafood or vegetable by soaking them in or brushing them with a liquid mixture of seasonings known as a marinade. Dry marinade mixtures composed of salt, pepper, herbs or spices may also be rubbed into meat, poultry or seafood.
• Cooked on a thick hardwood plank.

PLUMP

• To remove pits from fruits.
• To make solid fat into liquid by melting it slowly.
• To soak dried fruits in liquid until they swell.
• To cook very gently in hot liquid kept just below the boiling point.