Cooking & Recipes Glossary: P

pancetta: An unsmoked Italian bacon that’s salted and spiced, then rolled up into a log that looks like salami.

pan-fry: Cooking food in a pan that contains a substantial amount of some type of cooking oil.

pantry: A section of shelving or a separate cabinet where you store your basic cooking staples, as well as other dry goods.

parboil: To partially cook foods, such as rice or dense vegetables like carrots and potatoes, by plunging them briefly into boiling water.

parchment paper: A sturdy, silicone-treated paper that’s burn resistant; used to prevent foods from sticking to a baking sheet in the oven. Available in sheets or rolls.

pareve: Foods that are considered neutral, from a kosher standpoint, containing neither dairy nor meat.

parfait: A layered frozen dessert made of ice cream and ribboned with syrups, sauces, or fruit and nut fillings.

paring knife: A knife with a blade from 2 to 4 inches long that’s used for delicate jobs, such as peeling fruit and trimming garlic.

Passover: The Jewish festival that commemorates the exodus of the Hebrew slaves from ancient Egypt. Leavened bread is replaced by unleavened breads, such as matzo.

pastry bag: A cone-shaped bag with a pierced tip at the narrow end used for decorating desserts and pressing out dough into shapes.

pastry board: A marble board that you use to roll out pastry dough.

pastry brush: Wooden-handled brushes with tight bristles (natural bristles are preferred) that you use to apply butter and other fats to all sorts of pastries.

Pavlova: A meringue dessert created in Australia to honor a visit by the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova.

pectin: A natural water-based substance that’s present in ripe fruit which is essential for thickening fruit preserves. You can find it in liquid and powder form.

pepsin: An enzyme from pigs’ stomachs, used with rennet to make cheese.

pesto: A sauce made of an aromatic blend of minced fresh basil, olive oil, garlic, and other ingredients.

pickle: To preserve food in a salty brine or vinegar solution.

pilot light: A small gas burner that is kept burning to light a main burner when needed.

pin bone: A small, fine bone in the middle of fish fillets.

piroshki: A Russian Jewish yeast-risen pastry

pita: A flat, round bread from the Middle East that's hollow. Slice it in half and fill the pocket with ingredients.

pith: The white spongy tissue between outer skin and the pulp of citrus.

pizza stone: A clay or ceramic disk used for cooking pizza. The stone is heated to a high temperature, and the pizza is placed directly on top of the stone.

poach: To cook foods in a simmering, not boiling, liquid.

polenta: The Italian version of grits or cornmeal mush.

potholder: A small pad or piece of thick cloth used for holding and handling hot pots and pans.

potsticker: A Chinese dumpling that’s steamed and then pan fried until the bottom is crispy and caramelized.

poultry: Domesticated birds that are kept for both their eggs and their meat (including chickens, turkeys, and ducks).

pressure can: To preserve foods by using a large kettle that produces steam in a locked compartment (called a pressure cooker), taking the filled jars in the kettle to an internal temperature of 240 degrees under a specific pressure. Used to preserve low-acid foods.

pressure cooker: A pot with heat-resistant plastic handles and a cover that seals, allowing you to cook food inside the pot by heating it and creating pressure.

pressure-regulator valve: A valve on a pressure cooker that allows you to control the amount of pressure inside the closed pot.

prosciutto: Salted and air-cured ham from Italy.

purée: To mash or grind food into a paste by forcing through a food mill or sieve or by whirling in a food processor or blender. Finely mashed food also is called a purée.