What is a beurre manié?
Beurre manié is a French cooking term meaning "kneaded butter." It is a thickening agent that uses the same ingredients as a roux, flour and butter, but the ingredients are not cooked together from the beginning. Instead, equal amounts of butter and flours are rubbed or kneaded together to make a paste. This paste can be added at the last minute to sauces or soups to quickly thicken them.
French Mother Sauces
The first three of the mother sauces, listed below, are based on a roux. A roux is a thickening agent that is made with fat (usually butter) and a wheat flour. This is usually accomplished by heating the fat in a saucepan and adding equal parts flour, which is stirred and cooked for a few minutes, just enough so that there is not a raw flour taste, which would be very disastrous to the finished sauce. The thickening power of the roux depends on the ratio of flour to fat.
'Flour, Sifted' Versus 'Sifted Flour'
Flour, sifted, means that you should measure the flour first and then sift it. Sifted flour means you should sift the flour before measuring it. The reason this is important is because the actual amount of flour you are measuring changes when it has been sifted, since air is incorporated into the flour. This is especially important for the home cook who relies on volume measurement rather than weight. Let's make this abundantly clear:
What do Chefs Mean by the Term "Thai Style"?
So, you know a good Thai dish when you taste one and you've even cooked one yourself on occasion. But sometimes, you hear people speak of "Thai style" dishes. If it isn't an actual Thai dish but only a Thai style dish, what gives?
Thai Menu Words: Why Can't My Server Understand Me?
The other day I was calling in a carry out order to my favorite Thai restaurant. I asked for the "pra" which is a hot and spicy salad I prefer with minced chicken. If all you've ever gotten are the Thai curries..you're missing out. Anyway, I said, "pra" exactly how it was spelled in those Roman letters on the menu page..and the guy on the other
end, nice as he could be, could not understand what in the heck I was saying.
Those Mexican Recipes: Not Only Dishes but General Terms
Has this happened to you? Instead of going to your favorite Mexican restaurant, you decide to try a new one in town. Of course, you have to order some chile rellenos. They're your favorite. But, when the waiter brings you order, you discover that these rellenos are not the same as the ones you're used to. They seem much different! What gives? You consider whether you should complain to the waiter that the chef doesn't know his rellenos from his tacos.
