Every recipe has one thing in common: following the list of necessary ingredients are the instructions--brief, sometimes abbreviated, orders on how to put the ingredients together and emerge with a steamy pot of soup, a crusty loaf of bread, a chewy batch of cookies.

Most terms are self-explanatory. Many others are quite simple--once you're used to hearing them. The science of cooking has a jargon all its own, and the following definitions should help you wade through almost any recipe.

Bake--To cook, either covered or uncovered, in an oven.

Baste--To keep foods moist during cooking by pouring a liquid over them; you can use the meat drippings, melted fat, or any other liquid.

Beat--To make a mixture creamy, smooth, or filled with air by whipping it in a brisk motion.

Blanch--To precook a food briefly in boiling liquid, usually to loosen the skin; for example, you can drop tomatoes in boiling liquid for less than a minute, and the skin comes off easily.

Blend--To stir two or more ingredients together until they are smooth and uniform throughout.

Boil--To cook at a boiling temperature - 212 F at sea level. When boiling a liquid, you will see bubbles forming rapidly, rising continually and breaking when they reach the surface of the liquid. You can either boil liquid, or can boil some other food in a liquid.

Braise--To first brown meat quickly in fat and then cook it in a covered pan on top of the stove or in the oven; liquid may or may not be added.

Bread--To coat a raw food with bread crumbs; the breadcrumbs are often mixed with a beaten egg, or the food is first dipped in the beaten egg and then coated with breadcrumbs.

Broil--To cook a food by placing it on a rack that is placed directly under the source of heat or directly over an open fire. To pan-broil is to cook the food in a heavy pan on top of the stove; the pan is usually ungreased, and any grease from the food is poured off as it accumulates so the food won't start to fry.

Chill--To put food in the refrigerator until it is cold throughout.

Chop--To cut food in pieces about the size of small peas.

Cool--To remove a food from the source of heat and let it stand at room temperature until it reaches room temperature; food should not be put in the refrigerator to bring the temperature down more quickly.

Cream--To mix one or more foods together until they are creamy and soft. Cut in. To use a knife or pastry blender to add shortening is actually cut into tiny pieces during the blending process.

Dice--To cut food in small cubes all of the same size and shape.

Dredge--To coat raw meat with a dry mixture, usually flour or cornmeal and usually prior to frying.

Fold in--To gently add a new ingredient to an already-beaten mixture. The new ingredient is dumped on top of the mixture; with a large spoon, the new ingredient is brought down through the middle of the mixture, and the mixture is scraped off the bottom of the bowl and brought to the top. The procedure is often used to add blueberries or other fruit to biscuit or muffin batter.

Fricassee--To braise small, individual serving pieces of meat or poultry in a little broth, sauce, or water.

Fry--To cook food in hot fat; no water is added, and no cover is used. To pan-fry, food is cooked in a small amount of fat (a few tablespoons to half an inch) in a frying pan; to deep-fry, food is cooked in a large kettle that contains enough hot fat to cover the food or allow it to float.

Glaze--To cover a food with glaze - a mixture that hardens, adds flavor, and makes the food look glossy or shiny.

Grate--To cut food into fine particles, usually with the use of a grater. Grill. To cook food on a rack directly under or over the source of heat.

Knead--To make a dough or dough-like substance smooth and elastic by folding, stretching, and pressing it continuously until it reaches the desired texture. (When fondant for candies is kneaded, it gets satiny instead of elastic.)

Marinate--To make foods more flavorful or tender by allowing them to stand in a liquid for several hours or overnight; the food is generally completely covered. Most marinades are a mixture of cooking oil and vinegar or lemon juice with a variety of spices added for flavor.

Mince--To chop food in very fine pieces.

Mix--To stir ingredients until they are very well blended.

Parboil--To cook a food in boiling liquid only until it is partly cooked.

Poach--To simmer I hot liquid slowly; poaching is a gentle process, and food should hold its shape.

Pot-roast--To brown a roast or other large piece of meat in fat quickly, and then cook it in a covered pan in the oven or on top of the stove; liquid is usually added to make the roast more tender.

Puree--To blend a cooked fruit or vegetable until it is smooth and uniform throughout.

Roast--To make a food in the oven, uncovered, without added liquid.

Saute--To cook a food quickly in melted butter until tender; onion are cooked until they are transparent.

Scald--To heat liquid to just below the boiling point.

Scallop--To cook a food in a sauce; many scalloped foods are cooked in a cheese or a cream sauce and topped with browned crumbs.

Sear--To brown meat rapidly by using extremely high heat.

Shred--To cut food in narrow, long, small pieces, usually with a grater.

Simmer--To cook a food in hot liquid just below the boiling point(usually above 185 F but below 210 F); bubbles form slowly, but they break before they reach the liquid's surface.

Soft Peaks--To beat egg whites or cream until the peaks hold their shape, but droop slightly.

Steam--To cook a food in steam; food is usually put on a rack or in a perforated pan, and placed in a covered container that has a small amount of boiling water in the bottom. In some cases, the food is cooked in a container that creates pressure (called a pressure cooker).

Steep--To simmer a food in liquid just below the boiling point over an extended period of time so that the flavor or other element is extracted into the water.

Stew--To simmer slowly in a small amount of liquid, usually for several hours.
Stiff peaks--To beat egg whites or cream until it is moist and glossy and the peaks stand up straight without drooping.

Stir--To use a spoon to thoroughly combine two or more ingredients.

Toss--To mix lightly and gently, usually with a slight lifting motion.

Whip-- To beat a food rapidly so you add air to it.