We asked self-proclaimed non-foodies what some fancy food terms mean. Here's what they guessed!
1. Frenched
Chris: I did that this weekend.
Clark: When you glaze the tip of the food, like a French manicure.
Kim: Is it when you put those fancy little chef hats on the ends of the turkey legs?
Actual definition: "to trim the meat from the end of the bone of (as a chop)"
2. Sous Vide
Clark: Is it like an assistant cook?
Ben: It's like soup, right? Like really soft soup?
Eileen: This is French for "with life," so this is where you breathe heavily on your food for three minutes.
Actual definition: "relating to or denoting a method of cooking food slowly in a vacuum-sealed pouch at a low temperature so as to retain most of the juice and aroma"
3. Baste
Jen: Covering something in a sauce. Example sentence: Gonna get so basted this weekend.
Eileen: Meat enema.
Clark: When you stuff a turkey's butt.
Ben: It's that thing you use to moisten a giant's eye.
Actual definition: "to moisten (as meat) at intervals with a liquid (as melted butter, fat, or pan drippings) especially during cooking"
4. Mirepoix
Eileen: The name a pretentious friend gives to their teacup-sized dog.
Clark: When you poke your meat really quickly, you yell that word. "Mirepoix! Take that!"
Actual definition: "a sautéed mixture of diced vegetables (as carrots, celery, and onions), herbs, and sometimes ham or bacon used especially as a basis for soups, stews, and sauces"
5. Pistou
Chris: That's French for "detective."
Ben: Or it's when a magician leaves a room.
Actual definition: "a vegetable soup served with a puree of garlic, herbs, oil, and cheese and often tomatoes"
6. Umami
Tara: It's like a "your-mom joke" when the food is bad. Like who cooked this garbage? U-mami?
Andrew: That's how I say Miami when I am drunk.
Actual definition: "a taste sensation that is meaty or savory and is produced by several amino acids and nucleotides (as glutamate and aspartate)"
*Foods with natural umami: shellfish, soy, mushrooms, etc.
7. Blanching
Jen: When you channel your inner Golden Girl.
Eileen: When a Southern matriarch sighs disapprovingly at your meal.
Clark: Is that the thing you do when you blowtorch your food?
Actual definition: "to put (food items) in boiling water or steam for a short time"
8. Butterfly
Eileen: When your meal has disastrous effects on the future.
Channtal: This is when you draw on your cake to make it pretty.
Ben: When your cheese is left in the fridge too long it gets really moldy and, like, grows a cocoon.
Actual definition: "to cut (food) into two pieces that are joined along one edge so that it can be spread apart for cooking"
9. Confit
Chris: A serving style that requires eating with bare feet.
Kim: Oh! Ducks do this.
Ben: It means "with feet" — so it's when you cook the duck with its feet still on.
Actual definition: "meat (as goose, duck, or pork) that has been cooked and preserved in its own fat"
10. Flambéed
Kim: Oh, this is in Beauty and the Beast.
Casey: When the bae is on fire.
Eileen: An essential word for doing Julia Child impressions.
Ben: Definitely something to do with fire and bees.
Actual definition: "dressed or served covered with flaming liquor — usually used postpositively"
11. Au Jus
Chris: It's when at the end of a really nice meal someone offers you a juice box.
Actual definition: "served in the juice obtained from roasting"
12. Chiffonade
Jen: A sports drink for fancy people.
Chris: When life gives you chiffs, make chiffonade.
Actual definition: "shredded or finely cut vegetables or herbs used especially as a garnish"
13. Gremolata
Ben: When you pour a piña colada on a gremlin.
Actual definition: "a seasoning mixture consisting usually of grated lemon zest, minced garlic, and minced parsley that is used especially with osso buco"
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Definitions from Merriam-Webster.com.