Key to Times Style

Unless otherwise indicated, make the following assumptions in Times recipes:

Butter: unsalted (sweet).

Eggs: large.

Flour: all-purpose.

Milk: whole.

Oil: vegetable oil (canola, peanut, safflower, etc.).

Sugar: granulated, unless otherwise indicated.

Fruit and vegetable sizes: Onions and other items are assumed to be medium.

Glossary

Al dente: “To the tooth.” Used in recipes to indicate when something is cooked just until it’s tender but still firm to the bite.

Baking potatoes: Starchy potatoes that are light and fluffy when cooked.

Boiling potatoes: Waxy potatoes that are firm when cooked.

Blanch: To immerse food briefly in boiling water, most often to help remove skin from fruits and vegetables.

Mince: To chop extremely fine.

Zest: The colored part of citrus rind. When removing it from fruit with a zester or vegetable peeler, be sure to avoid getting the white pith, which is especially bitter. Also, the act of removing the outer peel from citrus.

Lesson

Poaching means cooking something gently in liquid, with an emphasis on gently. The technique is most frequently used for delicate pieces of meat or fish that will either dry out or break apart if subjected to the violent heat and motion of boiling. The best way to poach is to bring the liquid (flavored or not) to a simmer, with the surface barely moving, before adding the meat or fish. For exceptionally delicate items, such as fragile fish fillets, you can lay a round of buttered wax paper over the top to retain some of the heat and make the food cook more evenly.