Caramelization - Browning sugar over a flame, with or without the addition of some water to aid the process. The temperature range in which sugar caramelizes is approximately 320º F to 360º F (160º C to 182º C).
Carre - Rack of lamb or veal
Carrelet - Flounder
Cassis - Blackcurrant
Charcutier - Butcher and sauage maker
Chateaubriand - Double steak cut from the center of the beef fillet
Chaud-froid - Food coated with cold white sauce
Chef de Cuisine - Executive chef
Chiffon - Pie filling made light and fluffy with stabilized gelatin and beaten egg whites.
Chiffonnade - Leaf vegetables cut into thin ribbons
Chinois - Cone shaped strainer
Chipolata - Small sauage
Chop - To cut into irregular pieces.
Choucroute - Sauerkraut
Clarify - Remove impurities from butter or stock by heating the liquid, then straining or skimming it.
Clarifier - To clarify
Coat- To evenly cover food with flour, crumbs, or a batter.
Coddle- A cooking method in which foods (such as eggs) are put in separate containers and placed in a pan of simmering water for slow, gentle cooking.
Combine - To blend two or more ingredients into a single mixture.
Compote - Stewed fruit
Concasser - Rough chop
Confit -To slowly cook pieces of meat in their own gently rendered fat.
Coq au Vin - Chicken stewed in wine
Core - To remove the inedible center of fruits such as pineapples.
Court-bouillion - Poached fish wine, herbs, and seasoning
Cream - To beat vegetable shortening, butter, or margarine, with or without sugar, until light and fluffy. This process traps in air bubbles, later used to create height in cookies and cakes.
Crimp - To create a decorative edge on a piecrust. On a double piecrust, this also seals the edges together.
Crisp -
To restore the crunch to foods; vegetables such as celery and carrots can be crisped with an ice water bath, and foods such as stale crackers can be heated in a medium oven.
Crush -
To condense a food to its smallest particles, usually using a mortar and pestle or a rolling pin.
Crystallize -
To form sugar- or honey-based syrups into crystals. The term also describes the coating.
Curd -
Custard-like pie or tart filling flavored with juice and zest of citrus fruit, usually lemon, although lime and orange may also be used.
Curdle -
To cause semisolid pieces of coagulated protein to develop in food, usually as a result of the addition of an acid substance, or the overheating of milk or egg-based sauces.
Cure -
To preserve or add flavor with an ingredient, usually salt and/or sugar.
Custard
A mixture of beaten egg, milk, and possibly other ingredients such as sweet or savory flavorings, which is cooked with gentle heat, often in a water bath or double boiler. As pie filling, the custard is frequently cooked and chilled before being layered into a prebaked crust.
Cut in -
To work vegetable shortening, margarine, or butter into dry ingredients.
