Techniques

Blanching parboiling Brief cooking in heavily boiling water, usually followed by cooling. 100 °C

Blooming spices tempering; tadka; frying off spices Heating spices briefly in fat or a dry pan to release their aroma before they meet anything else. 160–190 °C

Braising pot-roasting Browning, then cooking slowly in a small amount of liquid in a covered pot. 80–95 °C

Deep-frying Cooking fully submerged in hot fat, usually 160–190 °C. 160–190 °C

Deglazing Dissolving the browned residue in a pan with liquid, to turn it into sauce.

Emulsifying making an emulsion Dispersing fat and water into each other so they behave as one smooth sauce.

Grilling broiling; charcoal grilling Cooking over or under direct radiant heat, close to the source. 200–300 °C

Poaching gentle simmering Cooking submerged in liquid held below a simmer, around 70–85 °C. 70–85 °C

Reducing reduction Simmering a liquid uncovered to evaporate water and concentrate what is left.

Resting meat Leaving cooked meat off the heat before cutting it.

Roasting oven-roasting; dry-roasting Cooking in dry oven heat, uncovered, so the surface browns while the inside cooks. 150–230 °C

Sautéing pan-frying; tossing Cooking small or thin pieces quickly in a little fat over fairly high heat, moving them often. 170–200 °C

Searing browning; pan-searing Cooking a surface hard and fast to brown it, before or after the inside is cooked. 180–230 °C

Smoking hot-smoking; cold-smoking Flavouring and, in hot-smoking, cooking food in the smoke of smouldering wood. 90–135 °C

Sous vide low-temperature water bath cooking Cooking sealed food in water held precisely at the temperature you want the food to reach. 50–85 °C

Steaming Cooking in the vapour above boiling liquid, without the food touching it. 100 °C

Stir-frying Very fast cooking of small pieces in a little fat over the highest heat available, in constant motion. 200–260 °C

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