Cooking Terms, Part XV Trivia Quiz

Answer: cooked until tender but still slightly chewy

In Italian, "al dente" means literally "to the tooth" which suggests that cooked pasta should offer some resistance to being bitten. Many Italian chefs regard most pasta cooked in the United States as overcooked, therefore too soft.

Answer: All of these

The word "sauce" derives from Latin, via Old French, meaning "salted." The use of the word "sauce" as a synonym for an alcoholic beverage began in the 1940s.

Answer: to soak food in a liquid to which herbs and spices have been added

The English word "marinate" derives from the French verb "mariner" which meant "to pickle in sea brine." The liquid in a marinade is often acidic, e.g. wine, vinegar, citrus juice. The purposes of marination are to tenderize meats and to add flavour to whatever is immersed in them.

Answer: the dark-brown crunchy crust on the outside of the pork

Bark is produced through a complex chemical reaction between the dry rub, the fat in the meat and the water in the meat, as they are slowly heated in the cooker. As it dehydrates, the surface develops a sort of crust. The "burnt ends" on a slow-smoked beef brisket are a perfect example of bark.

Answer: a mushroom

In addition to being called "hen of the woods," the Grifola frondosa mushroom is known as "ram's head" and "sheep's head" in some places, as "maitake" in Japan, and as the "signorina" mushroom among Italian Americans. Long used in Chinese medicine, there has been recent scientific interest in this mushroom for its role in treating cancer and in reducing serum glucose in diabetics. Cooked in butter with a little garlic, these fungi are superb.

Answer: Butterfly it by removing the sternum and backbone

A flattened bird cooks more quickly and easily than a whole bird, particularly on a grill. For the less surgically inclined, some butcher shops sell chicken already spatchcocked.

Answer: A Meyer lemon is a cross between a common lemon and a Mandarin orange.

Compared to a common lemon, a Meyer lemon has thinner skin, all of which is edible, has less acid and more sweetness. This hybrid was brought to the United States from China in 1908 by Frank Nicholas Meyer, thus the name. The Chinese grew this shrub as an ornamental; Americans prize it for its culinary uses.

Answer: lettuce for salad

Tossing is a method of combining ingredients, often with a sauce or dressing, by lifting and gently turning them over with tongs, forks, spoons or the hands until they are thoroughly blended. It is commonly heard with reference to salads but is also used to describe the process of mixing small carrots with melted butter before service.

Answer: flour and egg

A slightly runny dough of eggs and flour may be thinned with a bit of water and seasoned with a bit of salt. This is then turned into tiny "dumplings" or bits of pasta by scraping the dough across a notched board, turning it in a ricer, pushing it through a colandar, or sliding it across a grater.

The result may be dressed in butter or gravy or sauce or added to soup or baked with cheese or made into a dessert with apples or cherries.

Answer: mix it with warm water and see if it bubbles

Yeast is a living creature, a fungus which occurs in nature. The sort used in baking is often partially dehydrated so that it becomes dormant until heated with moisture. It keeps well in cool, dark environments but it can die in time. Mixing it with warm (not more than 115 degree F) water allows it to reproduce rapidly and produce carbon dioxide which inflates the bubbles which are proof of its viability.