French Terms Used in Cooking and Serving Dishes.
ln preparing the Creole Cook Book
The Times-Picayune has sought to overcome the great
difficulty that the majority of people outside of Louisiana experience in
understanding French terms, as applied to various dishes and orders of service.
Discussions have been going on in all parts of the country as to the
desirability of abolishing French terms on bills of fare, one newspaper
declaring: "What is the use of calling a dish 'Canard Canvasback,' when
there is no French name for the famous Canvasback Duck?" All this is very
amusing in Louisiana, where the Canvasback Duck has been always known as the
"Canard de Cheval." And so with other dishes. The use of French,
however, continues in bills of fare prepared for elaborate banquets, etc.,
critics to the contrary notwithstanding, because the French order of service is
the one accepted the world over, in state and official gatherings. An air of
distinction is conferred upon even a homely dish by calling it by its French
name, and criticisms against the practice will not easily do away with the
usage.
This cook book has sought to overcome the difficulty experienced
by those who are not acquainted with the French language and French terms in
cooking by giving with each recipe not only the correct English name of the
dish, but the French one also. it further assists housekeepers and caterers
generally by giving the definitions of a few additional French terms used in
cooking and serving dishes:
Assaisonnement — A Seasoning; a salad dressing.
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Assaisonnement Aromatique — An aromatic seasoning, such as parsley, chervil,
etc.
Aspic—This is a meat jelly or savory for cold dishes. Boned Turkey, Galantine,
Calf's Foot
Jelly, Cold Tongue, Cold Danube, are all termed "En Aspic."
Au Gratin—All baked or roasted dishes that are prepared with crumbs grated and
sprinkled over are called "Au Gratin."
Houchces—A Bouchee indicates a mouthful, and is from the French
"Bouche," the mouth. It is applied in cooking to all very thin, small
patties or cakes, as "Bouchees d'Huitres," "Bouchees
a la Reine," etc.
Bonne Bouche—A good mouthful.
Baba—A peculiar sweet cake, made of yeast, flour, milk and eggs.
Bisque—A soup made of shellfish It is red in color, such as
"Crawfish Bisque," the shells of which are boiled, mashed, pounded,
strained and added to the soup stock. A "Lobster Bisque" may be
prepared after the same manner as the "Crawfish Bisque" in latitudes
where lobsters may be obtained fresh. The Bisque then becomes "Bisque de
Homard."
Bisque d'ficrevisse — A Crawfish Bisque or soup.
Blanchir—To blanch. To blanch an article set it on the fire till
it boils, and then plunge in cold water. This rule applies to vegetables,
poultry, nuts, almonds, etc. The skin is thus removed and the article is
blanched. Blanching also means simply to scald, as blanching oysters.
Bouillon—A bouillon is a clear soup, much stronger than broth,
and yet not quite so strong as Consommé.
Boudins—A form of sausage.
Boulettes—A small ball of meat, fish, etc., hashed and formed in
balls and fried.
Bouillabaisse — A famous French Creole way
of cooking fish, the French using the Sturgeon and Perch, the Creoles the
Redfish and Red Snapper. The fish is cooked to the point where it begins to
boil; then you must stop on the instant. Hence the word
"Bouillabaisse," from "Bouillir," to boll, and
"Baisse," to stop. (See recipe for Bouillabaisse.)
Braise — Smothered. All meats, fish, vegetables, etc., cooked in
a closely covered stewpan, so as to retain not only their own flavor, but those
of all other ingredients entering into the dish, are termed "Braise"
or "u la Braise."
Brioche—This is a delightful Creole
breakfast cake, made of slightly sweetened egg and milk, batter and yeast, set
to rise over night, and formed into a "Brioche," or cake, with a
central cake for a head, and the other cakes arranged around to the number of
six or eight, and sprinkled with sugar.
Canapes—On toast. Anything served on toast is called "sur
Canapes."
Cannelle—Cinnamon.
Caneton (masculine); Canette (feminine) Duckling.
Caneton—Meat stuffed and folded up; forcemeat balls.
Charcuterie—The term for all sausages.
Civet—A stew made of hare and so called because of the flavor of
chives (cives) that enters into its composition.
Consommé—A clear soup that has been boiled down to almost a
jelly broth, and which is very rich.
Consommé Dore—A gilded or golden yellow consommé.
A la Crème—With Cream, as "Sauce a la Crème," etc.
Crème ft la Glace—Ice Cream.
A la Crapaudine—Crapaudine means like toadstool, or stone, as
"Pigeons a la Crapaudine," which means pigeons cooked and dressed to
resemble little toadstools or frogs on a stone. (See recipe Pigeons a la
Crapaudine.)
Courtbouillon—A fish stew, generally made of Redfish.
Courtbouillon a la Creole—A stew of
Redfish.
Croutons—Crusts of bread cut like dice or in any fancy shape,
and toasted or fried in butter.
Croustades—Pieces of bread larger than Croutons toasted or fried
in butter or lard, and used to serve minces or meats upon.
Dindonneau—A turkey chick.
Dariole—A custard pie.
Diable- The devil.
A la Diable According to the devil. Generally applied to hot,
fiery preparations of meats,
sauces, ,itc.
Entree—A side dish, served between the courses at dinner.
Entremets—A small by-dish. Entremets are sweet or otherwise.
Entremets Sucre—A sweet by-dish. Sweet entremets are generally
served towards the close of the meal, just before the roasts.
Flan—A custard.
Fondue—Melted. Generally applied to a light preparation of
melted cheese, such as "Welsh Rarebit."
Fondant—Sugar boiled and beaten to a cream paste.
Granits—Aromatized fruit waters.
Grille—Broiled.
Hors d' ores —A by-dish; an outwork, a digression. Under this
term are classed all foods that are regarded simply as accessories to a meal,
and designed to excite the appetite, but not to satisfy. It is undoubtedly
because they are placed on the table outside or apart from other dishes that
they have been so called.
A la Jardiniere—Cooked with many chopped vegetables.
Matelota—A rich fish stew, made with wine.
Mayonnaise—A rich salad dressing, made with eggs, oil, vinegar,
etc., and served with chicken, shrimp or fish 'salad generally.
Meringue—The whites of eggs beaten to a stiff froth with sugar.
Meringues—Covered with a Meringue.
Marinade—A rich liquor of spices, vinegar or -wine, etc., in
which beef or fish are steeped for several hours before cooking.
A la Mode—After the latest fashion.
Mironton—Cold boiled meat; hashed and warmed over, and served in
various ways.
Neige—Snow.
A la Neige—Snowy; like snow.
Pate—A batter; a pie dough.
Pates—Small pies or patties of oysters, meats, fruits, etc.
Panache—Mottled, variegated. As "Crème Panache," or
"Variegated Ice Cream."
Poulet—A chicken. A la Poulette—As a chicken; for instance, a
"Sauce a la Poulette," always has eggs added, the eggs giving the
distinctive name "a la Poulette."
Praline—A distinctive Creole sugar
cake made of cocoanut and sugar or pecans and sugar. (See recipes
"Praline.")
Pralinee—Sugared, or sugar-coated.
Piment—Pepper.
Pimento—Peppered.
Piquant—A sauce of piquant flavor, vinegar or acid
predominating, and highly seasoned with pepper.
A la Plaque—A "Plaque" is a flat baking pan or
griddle. Articles baked in it are called "a la Plaque," as Pan Bread,
or "Pain a la Plaque."
Quenelles—Meat, liver, fish or potatoes chopped and highly
seasoned and rolled into balls or boulettes and boiled and served as a garnish.
We have also "Potato Quenelles."
Ragout—A rich stew of meat or poultry, generally made with
vegetables, such as mushrooms, green peas, truffles, potatoes, etc.
Remoulade—A dressing for salads, made somewhat like Mayonnaise,
but differing in this, that the eggs are all hard-boiled and rubbed in a mortar
with mustard, vinegar, minced garlic, etc.
Releves—A side dish; a term applied when it is desired to serve
another dish beside an entree.
Rissoles — Minced meat or fish, rolled in thin pastry and fried.
Roux—A mixture of flour and butter, or flour and lard, used as a
foundation for sauces or as a foundation for stews, salmis, etc.'
Roti—A roast.
Tarte—A pie.
Tartelette—A tartlet.
Sauter—To smother and toss meats, fowl, vegetables, etc., over
the fire in butter or fat.
Savarin—A wine cake.
Salmi—A rich stew of venison, duck or other game, cut up and
dressed generally with wine.
Salmigondls — A hotch-potch of game.
Saucissons de Lyons—Bologna Sausage.
Salade d' Anchois—Anchovy Salad.
Soufflé—An omelet, pudding or custard, thoroughly beaten and
whipped until it becomes so light that when cooked it must be eaten
immediately, else it will fall.
Talmouse—A cheese cake.
Tartine d'Anchois—Anchovy Tartines; circles of brown bread,
spread with Anchovy Paste, yolks and whites of hard-boiled eggs, chopped fine,
also chopped pickles, all arranged in alternate rows.
Timbale—A pie cooked in a mold. In "Macaroni en
Timbale" the macaroni is cooked in the cheese head.
Vinaigrette—A sauce or salad dressing, made of salt and pepper,
with vinegar predominating.
Vol-au-Vent—A chicken, meat, fish or game pie, baked in a light
Puff Paste, and served as an entree.
Times Picayune Creole Cookbook 1901
