How Top Kitchen Food Cutlery words from food industry newbies must know

July 13, 2022October 22, 2022 Team DigitalGumma

If you are new to the restaurant industry or a seasoned veteran looking to be more involved in the process, you are definitely going to have to brush up on your restaurant lingo. Terms such as the ones above are used on a daily basis in most restaurants, and while some terms are more common than others, you should definitely learn what they mean – lest you make a fool of yourself in front of your staff.

So whether you just got your first job as a restaurant line cook or are a manager who has absolutely no idea what firing a dish means, it can be incredibly valuable to get up to speed on the lingo and show your coworkers that you know what you are talking about.

What are the things you need to remember when working in the kitchen?

Kitchen appliances

The one appliance that all kitchens must have is a stove or cooker. Some kitchens have a large all-in-one gas or electric stove with several gas rings or electric hotplates on the top, a grill or broiler underneath, and an oven under the grill for baking and roasting. Instead of having an all-in-one stove like this, a kitchen can have a single or multiple hotplate that sits on a bench along with a microwave or toaster oven and a separate electric grill.

Modern kitchens also have a refrigerator with a cooler for keeping food and drinks cold and a freezer for storing frozen foods. Most kitchens also have a toaster for making toast, an electric water boiler or kettle for making tea and coffee, and a blender for making fruit smoothies and milkshakes. Other common appliances include food processors, rice cookers, coffee makers and machines, and dishwashers of various sorts.

Kitchen Safety Rules

List of Kitchen Essentials

1. Always wear shoes.

Why is it important to know the kitchen utensils?

Kitchenware

Modern kitchens are also full of kitchenware of two basic kinds; cookware, meaning pots, pans and cooking dishes, and kitchen utensils like kitchen knives and stirring spoons. Many different kinds of cookware are used in different parts of the world, but the most common include cooking pots, saucepans, frying pans and woks. Cookware that’s only used in an oven is called ovenware and includes metal baking trays, cake tins and roasting pans as well as heatproof ceramic or glass casserole dishes, pie dishes and other ovenproof cooking dishes.

Common kitchen utensils found in most homes include a set of very sharp kitchen knives, some wooden stirring spoons, a spatula, a grater, a soup ladle, a vegetable peeler and a pair of kitchen tongs. Other items found in kitchens include chopping boards, measuring cups, mixing bowls, colanders, cooking timers, oven mitts or gloves, tea towels or dishtowels, and so on.

Kitchen Vocabulary Expressions with Pictures

2. Wear safe clothing.

3. Avoid burns.

4. Don’t forget to wash your hands.

5. Use different chopping boards for raw meat, fruits, and vegetables.

6. Handle hot dishes with care

7. Have a fire extinguisher and know how to use it.

Cooking with kids in the kitchen

A great way to bond and have some fun with the kids, it is important to keep a few things in mind.

Make sure their hair is tied back if it is long to avoid it catching on anything or blocking their view.

Teach them the importance of washing their hands and how to avoid cross-contamination when handling raw and cooked foods.

Instruct them that all pots and pans should have the handles facing away from them to avoid any accidental knocks and accidents.

How to Cook Safely With Oils

Oil is commonly used when cooking meat and vegetables. To avoid injury, make sure to heat oils gradually to avoid it splashing out and causing minor burns.

Always keep an eye on any food in the oven or on the stove to prevent burning, and if something smells of and appears to be burning, turn it off and wait a few minutes before checking the food.

And before cleaning your pots and pans, wait for them to cool completely before attempting to wash and clean the down. Many people use oils when cooking meat, poultry, and veggies. To prevent injury.

Store Your Food Properly

How you store and manage your food ultimately determines how fresh and safe the food you end up eating is, and is an integral part of kitchen safety.

It is best to refrigerate food within one to two hours, depending on room temperature.

Wrap meat or contain it securely so that it is completely isolated from other food.

Keep ingredients stored separately, as some foods expire more quickly than others, and storing them together can speed up the oxidization process.

Temperature-sensitive foodlike raw meat, fish, and certain dairy products need to be quickly put away before they go off, or contaminate other ingredients

appetizer (noun): food served before the main course – For our appetizers we’ll have spring rolls and fish cakes, please.

aroma (noun): a nice smell, especially from food, wine, coffee, etc. – I love the aroma of freshly-baked bread.

bake (verb): to cook in an oven – Have you ever tried baking a cake?

bland (adjective): having little taste; tasteless – Most people think British food is bland.

course (noun): one part of a meal – French meals usually have three courses; the hors d’oeuvre, the entrée and the dessert.

cuisine (noun): a country or region’s style of cooking – There’s more to Italian cuisine than pizza and pasta.

cutlery (also silverware) (noun): knives, forks, and spoons used for eating – We only use our best cutlery on special occasions.

dairy product (noun): a food made from milk, like butter, cheese, yoghurt, etc. – Dairy products are becoming more popular in Asia.

delicious (adjective): tasting very good – The food in this restaurant is really delicious.

dessert (noun): sweet food eaten at the end of a meal – Have you ever tried Middle-eastern desserts like baklava?

diet (noun): all the foods a person or animal usually eats – My doctor said a vegetarian diet rich in protein is best.

dish (noun): 1. a deep plate for cooking or serving food – I baked the pie in a special pie dish. 2. food prepared and cooked in a particular way – What’s your favourite French dish?

entrée (noun): 1. the main course of a meal 2. a course before the main course (Br English) – What did you order for your entrée?

fast food (noun): quickly served food like burgers, French fries, fried chicken, etc. – I only get fast food if I don’t have time to cook.

flavour (or flavor in US spelling) (noun): the taste of food or drink – Japanese people think how food looks is as important as the flavour.

fry (verb): to cook something in hot oil or fat – Heat oil in a pan and fry the chopped onions for five minutes.

grain (noun): seeds used as food like wheat, rice, lentils, etc. – Grains like wheat and rye are used to make different kinds of bread.

grill (verb): to cook something just above or below a heat source – Grilling a fish is better than frying it.

heart disease (noun): disease caused by damage to the heart or nearby blood vessels – Eating fatty food increases your risk of developing heart disease.

ingredients (noun): all the foods used to make a dish or meal – What ingredients do we need to make spaghetti sauce?

junk food (noun): foods and food products that are unhealthy because of all the fat, salt or sugar they contain – People who love junk food soon get fat and unhealthy.

kitchenware (noun): things used for preparing food like knives, spoons, pots, dishes, etc. – Our kitchen cupboards are full of kitchenware we hardly ever use.

menu (noun): the list of foods and drinks served in a restaurant, café, pub, etc. – Let’s check the menu before deciding whether to eat here.

nutritious (adjective): having nourishing substances we need in order to be healthy – Thai food’s nutritious as well as being delicious.

obesity (noun): the unhealthy condition of being very fat or overweight – Obesity wasn’t a serious problem here until Western companies opened fast food outlets.

poultry (noun): Birds that people eat, like chickens, ducks, geese, etc – Factory farms keep poultry in tiny cages and the birds never see the outside world.

recipe (noun): instructions for cooking a dish or a meal – My mum has a great recipe for chocolate pudding.

seafood (noun): anything from the sea that can be eaten – If you eat vegetarian food plus fish and seafood, but not meat or poultry, you’re a pescatarian/pescetarian.

tableware (noun): things used for serving or eating a meal such as knives, forks, plates, glasses, etc. – Most of our wedding gifts were tableware of one sort or another.

tasteless (adjective): having very little flavour – Vegetarian food can be a bit tasteless, but it can also be really delicious.

tasty (adjective): having a good taste; delicious – Bob thinks Indian food is tastier than Chinese food.

Do learn how to use knives.

Spoons For All Seasons and Reasons

A dull knife is more likely to slip and cut you than a sharp one. Keeping your knives sharpened is one of the easiest ways to keep them safe. A simple fix is to use a knife sharpener to maintain a keen-edged blade. Also choose the best knife for the task at hand. In other words, using a meat cleaver to slice strawberries isn’t the best idea.

Most Essential Herbs and Spices

Although whole spices last 4 years, ground spices 2-3 years, and dried herbs about a year, they do start to lose their potency after six months. At six months old, you may need to add a bit more of your spices to get the same effect in your recipes. To test your spices, rub a little bit of them in your palm. They should have an immediate, pungent scent. If they don’t, you probably need to replace them.You may want to purchase smaller quantities of spices you don’t use often to cut down on waste.

Don’t use the same cutting board for raw meat, fruits and vegetables.

We all want to avoid washing extra dishes, but this is one area in which you shouldn’t take shortcuts. Using the same cutting board for meats, fruits and vegetables is a surefire way to risk getting salmonella. To avoid cross-contamination, the USDA advises you use two cutting boards: one for raw meat, poultry and seafood, and another for fresh fruits and vegetables and bread. If you must use the same board, it’s safest to chop fruits and vegetables first, wash your cutting board thoroughly with soap and hot water, and then prep your meats. Here’s everything you need to know about cutting board care.

Do wash your hands.

You would think this is a given, but people forget. Don’t forget. It’s important to wash your hands in hot, soapy water before and after cooking. And to further avoid spreading food-borne illnesses, be sure to clean all your surfaces (including the sink!) where any raw meats or eggs may have touched.

Don’t go barefoot.

Always wear closed-toe footwear while you cook. Not only will shoes protect you from a fallen sharp object, they’ll also keep your feet safe from other kitchen mishaps such as broken glass and hot water or oil spills.

Do know how to put out a fire.

According to the National Fire Protection Association, there are roughly 172,000 residential cooking fires in the United States each year. In fact, cooking is the leading cause of fires and injuries that occur in our homes. Be sure to always have a fire extinguisher in your kitchen and know how to use it so you can act fast.

Learn how to deal with different types of fires such as grease and electric fires. Never put them out with water. Instead, extinguish them using baking soda or a pan cover. A fire inside your oven is best put out with an extinguisher, and a microwave fire can be extinguished just by turning off the appliance and keeping the door closed.

Don’t wear floppy sleeves.

Long, baggy sleeves can get in the way—not a good thing when you’re dealing with an open flame or hot liquid. In general, tops with fitted sleeves or no sleeves work best.

Do mind your pans.

When cooking, make sure that pot and pan handles are turned toward the center of the stovetop. That way, it’s hard to bump them and send hot liquid flying. Always have dry potholders or oven mitts close by when handling anything from the stovetop or oven. Wet or damp ones transmit heat more easily.

Things You Should Never Do In A Kitchen

Never try to catch a falling knife.

Don’t add dry flour or cornstarch to hot liquid. It’ll cause hard-to-whisk-out clumps. Instead, add dry ingredients such as those to cool liquid first to make a slurry and whisk that into the hot liquid

Never use wet oven mitts to handle hot pots or pans. Heat tranfers a lot faster through wet cloth than dry ones

Never serve a dish before you taste it. It will almost always need more salt.

Don’t confuse baking soda for baking powder. Things won’t work out as you hope. While both are leaveners they work in entirely different ways.

Never scrape your knife against a cutting board to move food off of it. It’ll dull the blade faster than you can say whoops.

Don’t use metal utensils on a non-stick pan. It’ll ruin the coating on the pan.

Never mix water and hot oil. Bad things will happen and you could get seriously burned.

Don’t use a dull knife. It’s far more dangerous than the sharpest blade in the world.

Don’t ignore what salt can do. Salt is what makes food taste good. Learn how and when to use it

Don’t forget: hot glass looks like cold glass. But they both feel very different.

Do not cut steaks right off the heat. Give them time to rest so they can retain their juices.

What are the things you need to remember when working in the kitchen?

Using the correct utensils for cooking ensures that you get the right taste for the dishes you are preparing. Understand that different dishes usually have different tastes.

Why are cooking vocabulary words important for the one who is working in the kitchen?

The vocabulary that’s thrown around the kitchen has a purpose, and that’s to speed things up and make sure everyone stays safe. This comprehensive culinary dictionary will test your cooking mettle. Chefs, restaurateurs, and even servers should know these cooking terms and adapt to using them.

Knife Safety Rules

Now that we’ve covered the basic kitchen safety rules, here are a few quick rules to playing it safe when it comes to knives.

Keep your knives sharp by sharpening occasionally.
Dull knives can slip and put you at risk of losing control and cutting yourself. you to exert extra force and dull knives cut

Always slice away from your hands and watch your fingertips.
If you slip or miss when cutting, you don’t want your hand to catch the knife.

When mincing, always keep the tip of the knife on the chopping board.
When chopping, curl your fingers under and hold the food with your fingertips, while using your knuckles to guide the blade.

Steak knives are extremely sharp and are meant for cutting meat. Always pay extra caution.
Don’t be tempted to lick off any spreads or cream cheese off the knife. It really can cut your tongue.

Choose the right knife for the task at hand. Using a meat cleaver to peel an apple is not a great idea.
Make sure your chopping board is secure. If it doesn’t have grip, put a damp towel underneath when cutting.
Never slice anything freehand over the sink.
If you do happen to cut yourself, quickly wash the cut, apply pressure, raise the cut above your head until the bleeding stops, and then apply antibiotic cream and wrap over with a bandage.

Do lift and stir away from you.

When your covered pot has been simmering away, hot condensation will form on the lid. To avoid getting dripped on, angle the lid away from you when you lift it. The same goes for stirring. Make sure you always stir away from your body so you don’t get splashed by bubbling sauces.

Staying safe requires paying attention, having a plan when in the kitchen, and having the right tools for the job.

Stay safe and get the right tools for the job as recommended by the professionals.

Kitchens and Kitchenware Vocabulary

Foods like fruit, nuts and certain shellfish can be eaten raw, but most of the food we eat is cooked. It can be cooked outdoors over a campfire or on a barbecue, but most food is cooked indoors in a room called a kitchen. Kitchens have their own specially-designed fixtures and electric appliances as well as many smaller items of kitchenware for preparing and cooking food and making drinks.

Flavor, relish, savor, smack, zest, tanginess, piquancy, nip, all those words can be written in place of tang. Bland or dull food is just the opposite. Tart sharp, sharp-tasting that is, bitter, acid or acidic, harsh, sour taste, just like a lemon. Sweet, honeyed and the like words are the opposite.

Five Dish Elements Every Chef Should Know and Master

Seared Fish and Meat. Pan-searing fish and meat is an essential skill for just about any chef (regardless of where you end up working).
Roast Chicken. Everyone should know how to roast a chicken.
Pasta Al Dente.
Salad Dressing.
Fresh Bread.

Kitchen fixtures and furniture

Kitchen fixtures include sinks for rinsing food and washing the dishes, benches on which food is prepared, and drawers in which kitchen utensils and eating utensils are kept. Kitchens can also have shelves and cupboards for storing cooking pots and pans and other kitchenware along with tableware like dinner plates, soup bowls, coffee cups and wine glasses. They might also have special furniture such as a kitchen table and chairs at which quick meals can be prepared and eaten.

5 Food Safety Rules In The Kitchen

Rule 1: Wash hands between steps.
Rule 2: Sanitize work surfaces.
Rule 3: Use separate cutting boards for raw meats, vegetables and produce, and cooked foods.
Rule 4: Cook foods to safe temperatures.
Rule 5: Keep hot foods hot and cold foods cold.

Food Measurement-Ultimate-Kitchen-Guide

How to cook pasta ‘al dente’ ?

Cooking pasta is really simple, but like a lot of simple cooking, timing is crucial. Most dried pasta cooks in about 10 mins – a few minutes less and it will be chalky and tough, a few minutes more and you’ll end up with a slimy mush.

The trick is to test it and stop cooking when it’s perfectly ‘al dente’ – which translates from Italian as ‘to the tooth’ but simply means you should need to use your teeth to chew it.

Pick up, table two

“Pick up, table two” is an indication that the food is ready for the servers to take it to the guests.

Don’t use metal utensils on nonstick pans.

When you use the right utensils, nonstick pans are safe to cook with. However, metal utensils can flake or chip the nonstick coating. This can, in turn, mix toxic compounds called PFAs into your food. A better solution: use wooden or plastic spoons.

This type of pan isn’t designed to last forever. Know when to replace a nonstick pan.

Monitor food temperature.

Keep an eye on your two primary cooking devices: your oven and your refrigerator. Cook meats and seafood at temperatures higher than 325 degrees Fahrenheit in the oven. Maintain 40 degrees or below inside your refrigerator at all times and measure it using both an interior and exterior thermometer.

What is the difference between sausage and salami?

Sausage is any food that is made from ground meat formed in a casing. Salami is a cured sausage that is fermented and air-dried. It is typically made from beef or pork

Four Steps to Food Safety: Clean, Separate, Cook, Chill. Following four simple steps at home—Clean, Separate, Cook, and Chill—can help protect you and your loved ones from food poisoning.

Food preparation workers chop vegetables, cut meat, and perform many other tasks with sharp knives. They must have the ability to work quickly and safely with sharp objects. Listening skills. Food preparation workers must understand customers’ orders and follow directions from cooks, chefs, or food service managers.

Wash your hands.

Keep worktops clean.

Separate raw food from ready-to-eat food.

Check the label.

Use by dates.

Best before dates.

Avoid cross-contamination.

Have separate cutting boards and utensils raw food, cooked food, and fresh produce. Thoroughly wash all cutting boards and utensils with hot, soapy water before and after you deal with any animal products. Also, change gloves when switching between these categories.

Use your signature dish.

Stand out from the crowd by using a signature dish or specialty cuisine in your catering menus whenever possible as this will become your calling card for future catering gigs. Since more than 50% of your future business will likely come through word of mouth, plan to receive calls for opportunities from past attendees who are dreaming of that one particular menu item you made.

Pick a theme.

Select your theme based on the event type, your client’s goals, and the venue itself. Go with casual themes such as a BBQ or Luau for casual or private events during warmer months. Or, if you know the demographics of the event attendees, explore these interesting catering ideas for every generation. If you’re still not sure what theme to choose, start with one feature menu item and build the rest of your selection around that.

Save money.

Help service clients who are on a budget with some simple catering hacks. Opt for an entire menu of bite-sized foods over full meals to fill guests up without overspending. Consider meals such as soups or roasts that are easy to make in bulk to cut down on unnecessary ingredients.

Choose veggie-forward recipes whenever possible and don’t be afraid to haggle for fresh produce at local farmer’s markets. Or, slice meat thinly so guests can refill as needed and eliminate as much food waste as possible.

Prepare like a professional

Practice proper food safety and save yourself some time with these practical catering prep suggestions every beginner should know.

Make some dishes ahead of time.

Plan to spend the two days before your event shopping and one day before your event cleaning, cooking, and packing. Cut vegetables such as potatoes and carrots and store them in an airtight container. Prep any cold meals that don’t involve meat, seafood, eggs, or dressing so you can easily unseal and put the finishing touches on them at the event space. Freeze fresh-cut dough for crusts, cookies, and bread to save time on shaping and molding. And stick some chopped herbs in there too while you’re at it!

Best Latvian Dishes To Try Out!

Beetroot Soup/ Aukstā Zupa

Grey Peas and Bacon/ Pelēkie Zirņi Ar Speķi

Latvian Smoked Fish/ Kūpinātas zivis

Rye Bread/ Rupjmaize

Latvian Dumplings/ Pelmeni

Pearl Barley Risotto/ Pērļu miežu risotto

Riga Black Balsam (traditional Latvian herbal liqueur)

Kvass (Beverage)

Latvian Potato Pancakes/ Kartupeļu Pankūkas

Minced Meat Patty/ Kotletes

Blood Sausage/ Putraimdesas

Invest in beautiful serving tools.

Gorgeous serving spoons, forks, tongs, bowls, plates, and platters can elevate the look and feel of even the simplest dishes. Choose a quality set of gold or silver serving tools to bring with you as backup just in case the host or venue needs extra. Pack an extra couple large white serving bowls too while you’re at it. Use them to store extra ice and bottles at the bar, flip them over and use them platter stands to add height to a tablescape, or simply fill them with extra portions of food that is overflowing on the table.

Halal food is that which adheres to Islamic law, as defined in the Koran. The Islamic form of slaughtering animals or poultry, dhabiha, involves killing through a cut to the jugular vein, carotid artery and windpipe. Animals must be alive and healthy at the time of slaughter and all blood is drained from the carcass

Impress clients and guests

Create memorable dining experiences for attendees with these lovely presentation details that will make your clients think you’re a seasoned professional.

Kosher rules

Land animals must have cloven (split) hooves and must chew the cud, meaning that they must eat grass.
Seafood must have fins and scales. …
It is forbidden to eat birds of prey. …
Meat and dairy cannot be eaten together, as it says in the Torah : do not boil a kid in its mother’s milk (Exodus 23:19) .

Plate food beautifully.

Add unexpected pops of color on to otherwise plain dishes, such as rosemary sprigs in a bowl of mashed potatoes. Consider your color palette when you create your menu too – the more variety the better! Have plenty of spices, fresh herb sprigs, flowers, chopped nuts, and sprinkles on hand to decorate plates with. Layer plate items rather than place them side by side and drizzle sauces with a cleaned out spout bottle for a more professional effect.

What is Jhatka Meat?

Jhatka, or Jhataka or chatka (jhàṭkā IPA: [tʃə̀ʈkɑ]), is the meat from an animal killed instantaneously, such as by a single strike of a sword or axe to sever the head within the Sikh religion.

Food and Wine Pairing Tips Everyone Should Know

Pairing Methods

There are various ways to approach wine and food pairings, but every pairing falls within two categories. The first are congruent pairings and the second are complementary pairings.

Congruent Pairings

In a congruent pairing the food and wine chosen will share several compounds or flavors. This can be a sweet wine paired with a sweet dish, a red wine with a buttery after taste paired with a buttery pasta dish. The important tip when creating congruent pairings is to ensure that the wine is not overwhelmed by the flavors of the food.

When this occurs it can make the taste of the wine become bland. The benefits of a congruent pairing is to allow the wine and the food to enhance the flavor of the other. Red wines are a great go to when looking to create congruent pairings. With aromas and flavors ranging from cherry to smoky, red wines are very diverse and easy to match with like food pairings. Take a glass of a Syrah wine that is a full bodied and it will have a similar flavor profile of some of your favorite grilled meats, making it a great congruent pairing.

Complementary Pairings

On the other hand complementary pairings are based on food and wine combinations that share no compounds or flavors, but instead complement each other. The flavors in each are balanced by their contrasting elements.

Rosé ,White ,and Sparkling wine make excellent choices for contrasting pairings. A sweet white wine paired with a spicy dish will allow the sugar in the wine to cool down and balance out the spiciness in the dish.

Another common complementary pairing is white wine with salty dishes. The saltiness from the food actually decreases the sweetness of the wine and brings out the wines fruity taste and aromas. A glass of Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio will pair perfectly with salty popcorn and specially well with fried dishes.

The Wine Breakdown

White Wine, Red Wine, and Sparkling Wine all have very diverse and complex flavor profiles. That means there are hundreds if not thousands of different ways to explore the different pairing possibilities of dry white wines to bold red wines. Here we will explore the various tips and tricks when creating pairings for specific kinds of wine.

Red Wines and Red Meat. One of the most basic tips that is easy to remember and will help you make quick recommendations. The reason that red wine pairs well with red meats, such as steak, is because of its ability to soften the proteins in the meat and help enhances the flavors of the fat. The softening of the meat occurs because of the tannin, a chemical compound found, found in red wine.
White Wine and Light Meat ( Fish and Chicken). White wines pair well with fish because the acids in the wine enhance the taste of the fish, making it taste fresher. Similar to how lemon is squeezed over fish to enhance the taste, white wine can have the same impact because of it acidity.
If the same adjective can be used to describe the food and wine it is likely a pairing that will work. For instance, sweet wines go great with sweet food. A great example is fruit based desserts or tarts and sweet wines. There are a few exceptions and we discuss them in detail below.

Some times it can be tricky to pair wines with meats or fishes that have a heavy sauce. The best way to approach a dish like this is to pair the wine with the sauce and not the meat. This allows for a better experience because some sauces can have bad interactions with wine. For instance you want to avoid pairing bitter sauces with bitter taste because of the bitterness will build, creating an unfavorable taste.
Ultimately drink what you enjoy, but also don’t miss out on the ability to explore.

Food Flavor Profiles

Another popular method to pair wine and food is by placing them into one of 6 food flavor profiles. This includes salt, acid, fat, bitter, sweet, and spicy. Below we breakdown each flavor and the important aspects to consider when pairing them with wine.

What are the main types of beer?

Ale

Ale is a general category of beer: You’ll find sub-categories like brown ales or pale ales. This is the oldest style of beer, which dates back to antiquity. What distinguishes an ale – and also makes this category of beer accessible for home brewers – is a warm-temperature fermentation for a relatively short period of time. In the brewing process, brewers introduce top-fermenting yeasts which, as the name suggests, ferment on the top of the brew. The fermentation process turns what would otherwise be a barley and malt tea into a boozy beverage.

Lager

Lagers are a newer style of beer with two key differences from ales. Lagers ferment for a long time at a low temperature, and they rely on bottom-fermenting yeasts, which sink to the bottom of the fermenting tank to do their magic.

Lagers are common among European countries, including Czechia, Germany, and the Netherlands, as well as in Canada, where they make up more than half of all beer sales.

Porter

A type of ale, porter beers are known for their dark black color and roasted malt aroma and notes. Porters may be fruity or dry in flavor, which is determined by the variety of roasted malt used in the brewing process.

Stout

Like porters, stouts are dark, roasted ales. Stouts taste less sweet than porters and often feature a bitter coffee taste, which comes from unmalted roasted barley that is added to the wort. They are characterized by a thick, creamy head. Ireland’s Guinness may be one of the world’s best-known stouts.

Blonde Ale

This easy drinking ale is a summer favorite, thanks to its light malt sweetness and trace of hops, which add aroma. As the name suggests, blonde ales have a pale color and a clear body. They tend to be crisp and dry, with few traces of bitterness, rather than hop-heavy or dank.

Invest in beautiful serving tools.

Don’t set a hot glass dish on a wet or cold surface.

There’s actually a lot of science behind this tip. Glass expands when it gets warm and shrinks when it cools down, which causes stress, resulting in a combustion of glass. That’s why you need to be careful when putting Pyrex in the oven.

Be careful with glass pot lids, too. The best place to set a glass lid is on a trivet, cutting board or potholder. Avoid setting it on a stovetop, especially a glass one.

What is the vocabulary of kitchen?

It’s The Guide To A Chefs Language In the Kitchen

5 Out: When a chef yells out “5 out!” they are trying to tell the other cooks that the dish they are working on will be ready for plating in 5 minutes.

86: This is a common term you’ll have heard multiple times if you’ve worked in the restaurant industry long enough. “86” is used when a restaurant is unable to prepare a certain dish, whether that be because they have some external constraint or simply run out of the ingredients required.

A

A La Carte: A la carte is the opposite of a set restaurant menu and refers to when a customer orders an individual dish from the menu.

A La Mode: A dish served with ice cream.

Adam and Eve on a Raft: Even if you’ve worked in the restaurant industry for years, this one might be a term you’ve never heard of, and that’s because it’s primarily used in the states. Adam and Eve on a raft refers to when a customer orders two eggs (poached or scrambled) on a piece of toast.

All Day: The term “All Day” refers to the total number of items that needs to be sent out from the kitchen. The term is usually slapped on the end of a long sentence. “I need eight scrambled eggs, five soup of the days, three cups of coffee, five pancakes with butter on the side all day”

B

Back of House (BOH): The back of the house refers to everything in the restaurant behind the dining room. This usually includes the kitchen, storage rooms, offices, and any prep rooms. The back end of the restaurant, typically the kitchen, prep, and storage areas.

Bartender: A bartender is someone employed at a restaurant, usually behind a bar, to prepare and serve alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages. Bartenders are referred to by many different names, which include barkeep, barman, bar chef, mixologist, and barmaid.

Bev Nap: Bev naps are the small square paper napkins that are used in lieu of a coaster. Customers can use this for wiping their hands or table, but conventionally these are meant to be placed under a beverage.

Blue-Plate Special: A blue plate special is a type of dish almost exclusive to the United States and Canada, other countries serve a variation of this concept, but don’t refer to them as ‘blue plate specials’. This dish refers to a low cost menu item that changes everyday and is typically served at diners and cafes.

Camper: A camper is a busy restaurant’s least favorite kind of customer. The term refers to someone that has already paid for and finished their meal but will not leave their table. Campers lead to longer wait times when a restaurant is packed and on a waitlist.

Can’t cook their way out of a paper bag: This is usually said about someone that is terrible at cooking but is in denial about it.

Charcuterie: This term refers to a specific kind of cooking that is focused primarily on the preparation of meats such as sausage, ham, and bacon.

Check Back: This refers to when a server checks on how the customer’s meal went while also dropping the check at the same time, as opposed to having them be two separate events.

Chef: A chef is someone that is trained professionally in the art of food preparation and cooking. Most trained chefs will focus on one specific cuisine, but it is not unheard of for a chef to be proficient in multiple cuisines.

Chef de Partie: More commonly referred to as a line cook, a Chef de Partie refers to a chef that is usually at the beginning of their career and can fit into multiple chef roles. The next role for a Chef de Partie is usually as a Sous Chef once they get promoted.

Chef’s Table: A Chef’s Table experience is probably one of the most luxurious ways you can dine at a restaurant. With its location right in the kitchen, Chef’s Tables are reserved for special guests only and provide them with a custom curated dinner that they would otherwise not get in the normal dining room.

Combination Meal: A combination meal, sometimes referred to as a “combo” is a meal type that includes everything one needs for a complete meal. You will mostly see these kinds of dishes at fast food chains, but they are not uncommon to fast casual and fine dining restaurants. A combo meal will usually include a main course, a side, and a beverage.

Commis: A commis usually refers to a beginner chef that works right below the Chef de Partie. Similar to an internship or apprenticeship, their main goal is to learn as much as they can about their kitchen responsibilities.

Comp: “Comping” something means giving something away for free to your customer. Usually this is to smooth things over with a disgruntled customer who has had some part of their meal go wrong.

Cooked to Order: This is a type of dish that is cooked to a customers specific instructions. Not something that is pre-prepared.

Counter Meal: A counter meal is very similar to a “Blue Plate Special” except for the fact that counter meals are more popular at bars and pubs in Australia. These are usually set meals that are changed daily and are eaten at the countertop.

Cover: A cover refers to a single paying customer. A reservation for 5 people translates to 5 covers.

Cut: A slice of meat.

Dead Plate: A dead plate is a dish that can in no way be served to customers. This can be for a number of reasons but includes poor appearance, incorrect temperature, taking too long to serve the dish, or wrong ingredients.

Deuce: A table that can only seat two customers.

Dine and Dash: This term is not too foreign, and people that don’t even work in the restaurant industry will know what it means. To dine and dash means a customer finishes their meal and sneaks out before having to pay the bill.

Double: Having to work two shifts in a row.

Douse It: When a customer requests to have their dish covered in extra sauce.

Drop: To start cooking an accessory item; e.g. “The burger is almost done grilling, drop the fries into the fryer.”

Drop the Check: Bringing the guest their bill to their table.

Dupe: A dupe is the information that gets passed to the kitchen from the front of house staff so the chefs know what to prepare for the customers.

Early Bird Dinner: An early bird dinner usually takes place earlier than peak dinner times and is primarily aimed at elderly couples and tourists that are looking to eat as much as they can for as little as possible. A very common offering for buffets.

Expeditor: The employee responsible for arranging food from the kitchen and sending it out to the dining room for the servers.

Family Meal: A family meal, sometimes referred to as a staff meal, is a daily meal that the restaurant serves its employees, usually outside peak hours. Sometimes these meals will be prepared using leftover or unused ingredients, and often times a chef will use family meals as an opportunity to test new recipes.

Fire: Orders given by the head of the kitchen to start preparing a certain dish.

Flash: When a particular meat is undercooked, a chef might “flash it” in an oven to raise the temperature slightly and cook it the remainder of the way.

Foodie: A foodie is someone that believes they know everything they need to know about food and cooking.

Free Lunch: A free lunch is a strategy restaurants use with the aim of bringing in customers and increasing revenue generated. By promising a free lunch with the purchase of a drink, restaurant owners are hoping that customers will order more than one drink or become loyal long time customers.

Front of House (FOH): The front of house of a restaurant is everything that your customers can see. This includes the dining room and bar.

Garde Manger: The garde manger is the part of the kitchen where chef prepare cold menu items such as salads, desserts, and cold appetizers.

Ghost Restaurant: A ghost restaurant is a restaurant that is usually empty and generates almost all of its revenue through food delivery.

Gueridon Service: This term usually refers to tableside food preparation. This requires that a gueridon (trolley) is used to transport ingredients to a guest table where a dish is prepared live for the customer.

Happy Hour: Happy hours are ways for restaurants to drive more traffic into their restaurant during their off peak hours. Most of the time happy hour offers include free drinks, a free dish, discounts, or even a free meal.

Hockey Puck: A reference to a well cooked hamburger patty.

In the Weeds: In the weeds is a term that refers to both the front and back of house staff and it is used to describe a situation where the kitchen staff is pressed for time and required to do a huge task such as dropping the check to 12 tables at once.

Jumpin: A colloquial term to describe a very popular and busy restaurant.

Kid’s Meal: A kid’s meal is a meal that is catered to and targeted to children. They usually include a fun toy or something to entertain a child.

Kill It: To overcook something, usually by the customer’s request.

Line Cook: Line cooks are tasked with preparing ingredients and assembling dishes according the the restaurant recipes. Line cooks are essential to the basic functioning of a busy restaurant kitchen.

Main Course: The main course section of a menu displays dishes that are the main focus of a meal. Usually follows an appetizer.

Maitre d’Hotel: A Maitre d’Hotel is usually something exclusive to high end restaurants, and is someone that welcomes guests, assigns their tables, takes reservations, and just makes sure that the guest has a generally good time.

Meat and Three: This type of restaurant offering is exclusive to the Southern United States and refers to a set menu where your customer can choose one meat and three side dishes for a special price.

Menu: A menu at a restaurant is a list of everything that your establishment can serve to your customers. This usually includes pictures and descriptions of each dish to entice your customers to make an order.

Mise en Place: This is a french term which refers to “putting everything in place” and is most commonly referenced when kitchen staff are required to follow a certain procedure before being able to start cooking.

Monkey Dish: A small dish that is used to serve condiments or nuts. It can also be used to dispose of bones when eating meat.

No-Show: A guest that makes a reservation at your restaurant and then doesn’t show up.

Nuke it: When kitchen staff microwave a dish to heat it up or cook it.

Omakase: Coming from the Japanese term which means “Leave it up to you”, Omakase refers to when customers let the chef choose the course of their meal as opposed to ordering each dish a la carte.

On the Fly: Something that needs to be done urgently.

One Bowl with Two Pieces: This term is primarily used in China and refers to ordering a pot of tea along with two dim sum.

Online Food Delivery: Ordering food from a restaurant online, whether that be from a restaurant website or restaurant aggregator app.

Overhead: Overhead refers to any additional factors that go into calculating food cost at your restaurant. This includes the electricity that is required to prepare a dish, the cost of labor, and even shipping costs.

Party: A reference to the size of a group dining at your restaurant.

Pick Up: This is when one server takes over another server’s tables.

Pump it Out: Preparing food quickly.

Push It: Selling a particular item. Actively trying to get rid of stock of one particular dish.

Quote: When a restaurant is busy, a quote time is the time that a member of restaurant staff tells a customer they will need to wait before being able to get a table.

Rollup: Dining utensils that are rolled up in napkins.

Runner: A person whose job is not to be assigned to certain tables such as servers, but rather to just run back and forth between the kitchen and dining room delivering dishes.

Sacked: Fired.

Saucier: A chef de partie that is responsible for any item that is sautéed.

Serving Cart: A serving cart is a small cart that is used to help transport dishes to a table. Sometimes a serving cart is even used to display certain items.

Server: Refers to a waiter or waitress.

Shelf Life: How long a particular ingredient can sit on the shelf before losing quality or expiring.

Shorting: When a supplier charges a restaurant a larger amount than the cost of the products they’ve received.

Sidework: Busy work that is done by the front of house staff that is required to keep the restaurant operational. Includes drying and polishing silverware, refilling salt and pepper shakers, refilling toothpicks and napkins.

Signature Dish: A signature dish is a menu item that is a specialty of the restaurant or particular chef.

Sizzle Platter: A heavy duty metal plate that is used to serve sizzling dishes such as fajitas or nachos. Really good at maintaining heat.

Sommelier: An employee whose speciality is wine. Usually the one to make recommendations to customers about which wine pairs best with their dish of choice.

SOS: An abbreviation for “sauce on the side”.

Sous-Chef: The second in command at your kitchen. The sous chef will be in charge when your main chef is off.

Starch: Starch refers to starchy sides such as rice, potatoes and pasta as alternatives to vegetables.

Station: A set number of tables that a server is assigned.

Stiffed: When a customer leaves without leaving a tip.

Still Mooing: Usually used to refer to a steak that is ordered rare.

Stretch It: Something that is done when a restaurant is running low on a certain ingredient, and they do whatever they can to “stretch” whatever is left to last them the entire night.

Table d’Hôte: A multi course set menu that is offered at a fix price.

Table reservation: A table reservation refers to when a customer calls or makes a booking online in advance to guarantee that a table will be available to them when they arrive.

Table Service: Table service is when a restaurant serves food right to the customer’s table rather than having them pick up it up from the counter such as with fast food restaurants.

Table Sharing: Table sharing is when a restaurant will seat multiple parties at the same or adjoined tables.

Table Turns: Table turns refers to the number of times that a specific table has gone through the entire meal process (from being seated to paying) each shift.

Take-Out: When a customer orders food from your restaurant with the intention of eating it somewhere else.

Tare: The weight of the container that a product is delivered in, this number should be subtracted from the total weight of the product as to pay for an accurate weight.

The Boogie Man: A health inspector.

Three Martini Lunch: A special restaurant offering that usually takes place around noon in the United States and is primarily catered towards business people and lawyers.

Top: The number of customers in a party. A seven top refers to a dining party of seven people.

Toss: When a food vendor alters the appearance of a product to make it look like the box is full when it is in fact not.

Tourne: When a vegetable is cut in the shape of a small tapered cork.

Turn and Burn: To turn tables very quickly, usually a result of a busy restaurant with a long waiting list.

Two Second Rule: An unspoken rule in the restaurant industry where dropped ingredients are okay as long as they’ve only touched the floor for no more than two seconds.

Upsell: When an employee tries to sell a guest something that is more expensive than what they have requested.

Value meal: A value meal is a combination of restaurant items that are bundled and offered together for a very low price. This is usually done to increase revenue at a restaurant by increasing the number of items ordered.

Veg: Any veggies that accompany a main course.

VIP: A customer that is very important such as a food blogger, critic, relative of the restaurant owner, or a celebrity.

Walk-In: A walk- in can refer to two things at a restaurant.

A walk in freezer where meats and perishable items are stored.
A customer that walks into your restaurant looking for a table without making a reservation.

Walked: Very similar to “dine and dash”, refers to a customer that leaves without paying. Can also refer to an employee that has left half way through their shift.

Well Drinks: Alcoholic drinks that are made from cheap house liquors.

Window: A heated shelf where a prepared dish is placed to keep it warm while it waits for a server to take it to the customer.

Brainstorming strengths and weaknesses

Start by assessing all the strong points of your restaurant. What makes people choose YOU over others?

Is it the exquisite tapas lined up by your staff? The creative seating arrangement? Your weekend special? Things that make your restaurant stand out from others qualify as your strengths.

Other strengths might include how the menu is crafted, the variety of cuisines you offer, and your ability to attract a crowd with experiential marketing during those slow times.

The next step is to see what areas of your restaurant are in need of improvement.

If you’re serving a dessert that isn’t getting great feedback or your chef isn’t very effective at managing his/her time, these are areas that need your attention. Employee turnover also has the potential to stunt a restaurant’s expansion.

Zeroing in on your negatives isn’t going to be a pleasant experience (no one likes to acknowledge their flaws), but getting those weak points out in the open is the only way to accept and overcome them.

Recognizing opportunities and threat

The opportunities part is where you think about all the external factors that can increase your sales revenue.

Maybe it’s high time you introduced a separate menu for patrons who’ve adopted a vegetarian lifestyle or participate in a culinary event to reach new audiences.

Another thing you can do is think of ways to expand or grow your existing presence. This could be something as simple as being active on Instagram or offering a deal or two during happy hours. These could be some opportunities you can capitalize on early to increase foot traffic to your restaurant.

Finally, yet importantly, in the SWOT you need the identify all possible threats to your restaurant.

An example might be that new cuisine scheduled to be introduced by a restaurant in your neighborhood.

Even if you’re catering to the taste of a specific group of diners, this restaurant threatens your sales by giving everyone a new option come lunchtime.

There can be other potential threats as well, such as an increase in the price of the ingredients you regularly source, or an increase in the social media following of your closest competitor.

The more you stay vigilant about what could dampen your restaurant’s profitability, the better equipped you will be to put out the fire before it catches you off guard.

Types of Fast Food

Hamburger

Cheeseburger

Sandwich

Milk shake

Muffin

Burrito

Biscuit (U.K) – Cookie (U.S)

Taco

Hot dog

Fried chicken

Donuts

Baguette

Soft drink

Pizza

Onion ring

Sausage

Pretzel

Pancake

Bacon

Chip (U.S) – Fry (U.K)

Noodle

Top Healthy Salad Toppings

Chopped Raw Vegetables

Nuts and Seeds

Dried Fruit

Whole Grains

Beans and Legumes

Fresh Fruit

Baked Tortilla or Pita Chips

Shredded Hard Cheese

Roasted Vegetables

Hard-Boiled Eggs

Fresh Herbs

Leftover Meat

Seafood

Corn and Salsa

Tofu and Edamame

Oil-and-Vinegar Dressings

Catering tips for beginners

Explore the answers to these most frequently asked questions about catering tips for beginners to surpass the learning curve and become more successful faster.

What are the qualities of a good caterer?

The qualities of a good caterer include flexibility, staying calm under pressure, and creativity.

How do I prepare for a catering event?

Prepare for a catering event by prepping your grocery shopping, food, and catering van or car ahead of time. Create a basic packing list that includes clean pots, pans, utensils, dish clothes, gloves, and safety products such as a first aid kit and gloves.

What do I wear to a catering job?

Wear a clean, pressed chef’s jacket and non-slip black shoes with any comfortable yet neat black pant or jean, depending on the formality of the event you are catering.

What are the different types of caterers?

The three different types of caterers are front-facing caterers, catering chefs, and catering managers. Front-facing caterers often help with setup and guest relations, catering chefs stick to the kitchen, and catering managers oversee the entire catering team of servers and cooks.

Classification of Sauces or Types of Sauces

Béchamel Sauce or White Sauce:
Espagnole Sauce or Brown Sauce: This sauce starts with a dark brown roux, veal stock, beef, bones, vegetables and seasonings.
Veloute Sauce or Blond Sauce
Tomato Sauce.
Demi-Glace Sauce.
Mayonnaise.
Hollandaise Sauce
Hot Butter Sauce

Mayonnaise, Hollandaise, Tomato, Curry, Cranberry, Apple, Bread, butter Sauce, Espanola or Brown Sauce, Veloute, Bechamel or White Sauce.

Sauces

Barbecue Sauce. A thick tomato-based sauce containing a variety of spices and flavorings.
Cocktail Sauce. A sauce similar to ketchup.
Horseradish Sauce.
Hot Sauce.
Taco Sauce.
Soy Sauce.
Tartar Sauce.

Béchamel (milk based) example Alfredo sauce, espagnole (brown stock based) example Mushroom sauce, veloute (white stock based)

TYPES OF SAUSAGE

Cooked Sausage: Made with fresh meats and then fully cooked. It is either eaten immediately after cooking or must be refrigerated and is usually reheated before eating.
Fresh Sausage. Made from meats that have not been previously cured.
Dry Sausage: Made from a selection of meats.

Different Types of Soup

Thin Soups	Clear
	Broth/ Bouillon
	Consommé
	Chunky
Thick Soup	Cream soup
	Condensed
	Velouté
	Puree
	Chowder
	Potage
	Bisque
Cold Soup	Gazpacho
Cold Soup	Vichyssoise
National Soups	Bouillabaisse
	New England Clam Chowder
	Cullen Skink
	Goulash
	Laksa