Cooking lessons for kids are pretty common these days, but most of us learn simply by watching and helping out. Apparently, I learned enough just hanging out in my mother’s kitchen to be able to cook when I had my first apartment. I never taught my kids how to cook the way I taught them how to drive. But I did set them up on the counter when they were little so they could “help” me. And I did require that they cook the occasional meal of their choosing, starting when they were 10 years old or so. When it comes to cooking, most of us absorb enough to get by — until we start following recipes that use unfamiliar language.
All cooking involves a combination of a few basic techniques. I’ve tucked this information into the back of the book just in case you need a little explanation of some of the language in the recipes and tables. You will find recipes throughout the book and especially in part 3 that rely on many of the following cooking methods.
Aromatics: Vegetables or herbs used to impart flavor. Typically, finely chopped carrots, celery, garlic, onions, parsley, and/or shallots are used as aromatics at the start of making a braise, soup, or sauce.
Bake: A dry-heat cooking method that mostly aims for a consistent and even texture throughout the baked item. It is quite similar to roasting, the difference being that we generally “bake” breads, cakes, and casseroles, but we “roast” meats and vegetables. In the old days, roasting was done on a spit over a fire. Today’s roasting is done in the oven, which makes it pretty similar to baking.
Barbecue: To cook over the very low, indirect heat of a charcoal or wood fire, where the temperature is maintained between 200°F and 275°F (93°C and 135°C) for long periods of time. Tough and fatty cuts, including brisket, pork shoulder, pork spareribs, beef ribs, and whole lamb shoulders, are well suited for barbecuing.
Blanch: To partially cook in a boiling liquid, usually water. Any food can be blanched, but it is a technique most commonly used with vegetables. Working in small batches (no more than 1 pound), you plunge the vegetables into boiling water and cook them just briefly, usually 30 to 60 seconds. Then you lift out the vegetables and drop them into ice water to stop the cooking.
Vegetables are almost always blanched before being frozen or dried; the blanching sets their color and destroys the enzymes that would otherwise continue to ripen them. Sometimes vegetables are blanched as a do-ahead step. For example, you could blanch a vegetable in the morning, then quickly sauté it in butter or olive oil to finish cooking the vegetable for dinner.
Peaches and tomatoes are blanched to make it easier to remove their skins. Bones are sometimes blanched to remove impurities before they’re used to make stock. Chicken feet are blanched to make peeling easier. Blanching times vary by ingredient.
Boil: To cook in boiling liquid, or to bring a liquid to boiling (212°F/100°C) so that the liquid is in motion, with bubbles rising to the surface and roiling the liquid.
In the case of vegetables, it means cooking in boiling, salted liquid, usually water, until tender. Most green vegetables are added to already boiling water; however, root vegetables and potatoes should be started in cold water and boiled gently. Water-soluble vitamins are leached into the cooking water when vegetables are boiled. Boiling is not recommended for high-sulfur vegetables such as cabbage and Brussels sprouts.
Pasta is one of the few foods that should be cooked at a rapid boil. When cooking meats and dried beans, you want to use a gentle boil, or even a simmer.
Boiling can be used to reduce a liquid (via evaporation). Jams and jellies, for example, are boiled to reduce their liquid content and concentrate their flavor. Maple sap and cider are boiled to reduce the liquid and concentrate the sugars.
Braise: To brown in oil or fat (butter, chicken fat, duck or goose fat, lard, tallow, or bacon grease), then cook, covered, in a small amount of liquid (stock, wine, cream, water). This is the very best method for cooking tough cuts of meat and old birds. It is a terrific way to cook vegetables, especially when you are feeling bored with your usual steamed flavors. The slow cooking can be done in a Dutch oven over a low flame or in a low oven or in a slow cooker.
When braising vegetables, after they become tender, if they are sitting in liquid, remove them from the cooking liquid with a slotted spoon and set aside. Then boil the cooking liquid to reduce it to a glaze or a sauce. Flavor the sauce with lemon juice, garlic, mustard, Parmesan, and fresh or dried herbs, and return the vegetables to the seasoned sauce. Of all the cooking methods, this has the potential to add the most flavor.
After meat or fowl has braised, remove the meat from the cooking liquid and let the fat rise to the surface of the liquid. Then skim it off. If you have the time, cool the cooking liquid in the refrigerator; the fat will harden and then be very easy to remove. If the cooking liquid is very thin, boil it to reduce it to a better consistency. Before serving, reheat the meat or fowl in the sauce. Good cuts for braising include any beef cut from the round or chuck, any pork from the leg or shoulder, and any lamb from the shoulder. All poultry can be braised.
Broil: To cook under an intense direct heat. Tender cuts of meat are all suited to broiling, especially beef steaks cut 3⁄4 inch to 2 inches thick, lamb chops, burgers, and kabobs. For best results, preheat the broiler before putting the meat under it. Let the meat rest for 5 to 15 minutes after broiling to reabsorb its juices.
Deep-fry: To cook in enough hot oil or fat to cover whatever you’re cooking. Generally you will need 4 to 8 inches of fat or oil, and the fat or oil is usually heated to around 365°F (185°C). The food is often dipped first in flour, then in a wash of buttermilk or eggs and milk, then in seasoned crumbs. Or it can be dipped in flour, then batter. Avoid adding too much food to the hot oil at once, so the oil temperature is not significantly lowered, which would result in greasy food. Generally, the fried food should be drained on paper towels or brown paper to absorb any excess oil. Once you’re done frying, the oil can be filtered through a paper coffee filter and reused a couple of times.
Dry heat: In terms of meat, dry-heat cooking means broiling, grilling, pan-searing, and roasting. Tender cuts cooked by dry-heat methods are at their best cooked until rare or medium-rare. Tender beef cuts, such as steaks, rib roasts, sirloin, and top round, can all be cooked by dry heat. Almost all pork cuts can be cooked by dry heat, except the shanks, hocks, neck, and shoulder. Almost all parts of a lamb can be cooked by dry heat, except for the shanks and neck. All ground meats and sausages can be cooked by dry-heat methods.
Grill: To cook over an open flame, usually gas, charcoal, or wood. Generally, vegetables and small pieces of meat, fish, or fowl are grilled over direct heat — that is, directly over the flames. Cuts of meat suited to direct-heat grilling include burgers, kabobs, steaks, chops, and sausages.
Indirect grilling means that the flames are on one side of the grill, but the food is on the other side of the grill, with a drip pan underneath to catch the dripping fats. Indirect grilling is done with the grill cover on. Good cuts of meat for indirect grilling include chicken, pork shoulder, and leg of lamb.
When you’re grilling vegetables, you may opt to use a vegetable grill plate, a flat piece of metal with open holes that allows the vegetables to cook without falling through the grate. Generally, vegetables are slicked with oil or a marinade to prevent them from drying out. The high heat of the grill gives the vegetables a slight char, indicating that the natural sugars in the vegetable have caramelized, and their flavor is enhanced by a slight smokiness from the grill. For best results, do not cover the grill when cooking vegetables. (Covering the grill traps smoke and steam, which results in a greasy film on the vegetables, especially in grills that are also used to cook meat.)
You can estimate the grill temperature by how long you can hold a hand 4 to 5 inches above the grill:
Moist heat: With respect to meat, moist-heat cooking usually means braising or stewing, but it can include poaching or boiling as well. Cuts of meat suited for moist-heat cooking are generally tough, with a lot of connective tissue. The meat is cooked until well done.
Pan-fry: To cook in a small amount of oil or fat (butter, lard, chicken fat, duck or goose fat, tallow, or bacon grease) over medium to medium-high heat until browned on all sides and cooked through. It differs from sautéing in that the food is not stirred or moved around as it cooks. It is a good idea to use a heavy pan and to preheat the cooking oil or fat along with the pan before adding the food. Foods that are pan-fried can be dipped in a batter or coating, but it isn’t necessary. It is important not to overcrowd the pan, so the food sears and doesn’t steam.
Pan-sear: To cook food in a very, very hot skillet over high heat. This method is suited for tender cuts of meat, such as steaks, pork chops, and lamb chops. The skillet can have a flat or ridged surface and should be quite heavy. Oil can be used to grease the pan, or not. For best results, preheat the pan until it is very hot before adding the meat, and do not crowd the pan. Meats should rest for 5 to 15 minutes after pan-searing to reabsorb the juices.
Poach: To simmer (not boil!) in just enough liquid to cover. Delicate foods like fish, eggs, and fruit are often poached, which allows them to be cooked without falling apart.
Pot roast: A piece of meat braised in the oven, cooked low and slow in an aromatic liquid.
Reduce: To boil a liquid to concentrate the flavors and make thicker in consistency. Pan juices are often reduced, sometimes with the addition of wine, to make a simple sauce or gravy for meat.
Reverse sear: To partially roast meat in a very low oven until almost done and then quickly sear it on the stovetop in a very hot skillet to add an attractive color and tasty crust on the meat.
Roast: To cook with dry oven heat. The temperature will vary depending on what you’re roasting. Spatchcocked chicken should be roasted at 450°F (230°C). Slow roasting at 250°F to 275°F (120°C to 135°C) is good for all beef cut from the chuck or the round — tough cuts of meat. Slow-roasted cuts from the round can be cooked until rare, then thin-sliced for sandwiches. High-temperature roasting at 450°F (230°C) or higher can be used with very tender meats such as beef tenderloin, strip steak, prime rib, lamb loin, and rack of lamb. Moderate-temperature roasting at 300°F to 350°F (150°C to 180°C) is best for smaller and leaner roasts, such as pork tenderloin, beef sirloin, or leg of lamb.
Vegetables are best roasted quickly in a hot oven, at 425°F to 450°F (220°C to 230°C). Generally, it is best to slick the vegetables with oil and cook on a sheet pan or roasting pan with low sides. Vegetables roast most evenly when all are cut to the same size and aren’t crowded on the pan. Smaller cubes roast more quickly and evenly than larger pieces. Root vegetables are particularly enhanced by roasting. After roasting, a drizzle of pomegranate molasses, balsamic vinegar, or maple syrup and/or a sprinkle of coarse salt will enhance the flavor.
Sauté: To cook in a small amount of oil or fat (butter, lard, chicken fat, duck or goose fat, tallow, or bacon grease) over medium to medium-high heat until browned on all sides. Sautéing differs from pan-frying in that the food is occasionally stirred or moved around as it cooks — don’t stir too much or the food will never brown. As with pan-frying, it is important to avoid overcrowding the pan, which will cause the food to steam instead of sear.
Simmer: To cook in a liquid that is just below the boiling point, at 180°F to 190°F (82°C to 88°C). Unlike boiling, where the gases are rising so rapidly that the cooking liquid is in motion, simmering means that a bubble will break the surface of the liquid every few seconds. Simmering cooks food gently and slowly.
If the food is simmered in just enough water to cover it, the process is often called poaching. And although we call some meats boiled — like corned beef and cabbage — meats should be simmered if you want them to be moist and fork-tender. Boiled meats are often dry and tough. Stocks are simmered so the fat and proteins released by any cooking meat or bones float to the top, where they can be skimmed off instead of being churned back in, which can make the stock cloudy and greasy.
Steam: To cook, covered, in a perforated basket over a small amount of boiling water. Delicate or young spring and summer vegetables such as asparagus, peas, and young green beans are good candidates for steaming — no flavor is added, but none is lost.
Stew: As with braising, in stewing the meat is browned and then cooked in an aromatic liquid. The difference lies in the quantity of liquid. For stewing, the meat is covered in liquid. When the meat is almost done, vegetables can be added to cook in the gravy. To thicken the liquid, the meat should be dredged in seasoned flour (salt, pepper, and whatever herbs you choose) before browning. If the stew is still thin after cooking, the meat and vegetables can be scooped out with a slotted spoon and the gravy boiled until reduced. Alternatively, a slurry of a few tablespoons flour dissolved in cool water can be added; then the liquid should be brought to a boil.
Stir-fry: To cook in a wok or skillet, over high heat, moving the ingredients around. To stir-fry well requires very high heat. Preheat a wok or large skillet; then add the oil. To compensate for the fact that home stoves do not generate enough heat, stir-fry small amounts at a time, transferring the food to a bowl to keep warm before adding the next ingredient. Stir-fried meat can be from either tough or tender cuts, as long as the pieces are cut into thin matchsticks.