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Showing: à blanc - acids

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à blanc

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

A French term meaning "in white" and identifying foods, usually meats, that aren't browned during cooking.

à la

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

A French idiom meaning "in the manner (or style) of"; the full phrase is à la mode de. In cooking, this phrase designates the style of preparation or a particular garnish. A la bourguignonne, for example, would mean "as prepared in Burgundy."

à la carte

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

A menu term signifying that each item is priced separately. See also PRIX FIXE; TABLE D'HÔTE.

à la king

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

A dish of diced food (usually chicken or turkey) in a rich cream sauce containing mushrooms, pimientos, green peppers and sometimes SHERRY.

à la mode

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

French for "in the manner (or mode) [of]," referring to the style in which a dish is prepared. The term has been Americanized to also mean pie topped with ice cream.

à point

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

1. The French term used for food cooked just to the perfect point of doneness. 2. When referring to meat, à point means that a steak is cooked rare.

A.Q.

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

A menu term meaning "as quoted," referring to generally high-priced foods (such as lobster), the price of which may vary depending on the season. The server will be able to quote the price of an A.Q. item.

abalone

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

A GASTROPOD MOLLUSK (see both listings) found along the coastlines of California, Mexico and Japan. The edible portion is the adductor muscle, a broad foot by which the abalone clings to rocks. As with any muscle, the meat is tough and must be pounded to tenderize it before cooking. Abalone, used widely in Chinese and Japanese cooking, can be purchased fresh, canned, dried or salted. Fresh abalone should smell sweet, not fishy. It should also be alive-the exposed muscle should move when to...

abbacchio

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

Italian for a very young lamb.

absinthe

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

Reputed to be an aphrodisiac, absinthe is a potent, bitter LIQUEUR distilled from WORMWOOD and flavored with a variety of herbs. It has a distinct ANISE flavor and is 68 percent alcohol (136 PROOF). Absinthe is usually diluted with water, which changes the color of the liqueur from green to milky white. Because it's considered habit forming and hazardous to health, absinthe is prohibited in many countries and was banned in the United States in the early 1900s.

Ac'cent

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

see MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE

acerola

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

A tiny tree and the small, deep-red, cherrylike fruit that grows on it, found primarily in and around the West Indies. The fruit, which has a sweet flavor and one of the highest concentrations of vitamin C, is used in desserts and preserves. It's also called Barbados cherry, Puerto Rican cherry and West Indies cherry.

Acesulfame-K

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

Formulated by the Germans in the late 1960s, this noncaloric ARTIFICIAL SWEETENER (also called Ace-K) was approved in the United States by the Federal Drug Administration in 1988. It's 200 times sweeter than sugar and, unlike ASPARTAME, retains its sweetness when heated, making it suitable for cooking and baking. When used in large amounts, however, Ace-K has a bitter aftertaste, much like that of SACCHARIN. This sweetener is composed of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen, sulphur and pota...

acetic acid

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

Acetic acid is formed when common airborne bacteria interact with the alcohol present in fermented solutions such as WINE, BEER or CIDER. Acetic acid is the constituent that makes vinegar sour.

aceto

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

Italian for "vinegar."

achar

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

An East Indian word referring to pickled and salted relishes. They can be made sweet or hot, depending on the seasoning added.

achee

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

see ACKEE

achiote seed

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

The slightly musky-flavored seed of the annatto tree is available whole or ground in East Indian, Spanish and Latin American markets. Buy whole seeds when they're a rusty red color; brown seeds are old and flavorless. Achiote seed is also called ANNATTO which, in its paste and powder form, is used in the United States to color butter, margarine, cheese and smoked fish.

acidopholous milk

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

see MILK

acids

BY: The Food Lover's Companion

The word "acid" comes from the Latin acidus, meaning "sour." All acids are sour to some degree. Sourness (acidity) is found in many natural ingredients such as vinegar (ACETIC ACID), wine (TARTARIC ACID), lemon juice (CITRIC ACID), sour-milk products (LACTIC ACID), apples (MALIC ACID) and rhubarb leaves (toxic OXALIC ACID). When used in a marinade, acids-such as wine and lemon juice-are natural tenderizers because they break down connective tissue and cell walls.

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