Cooking & Recipes Glossary: S

sake: Japanese rice wine. Although primarily consumed as a beverage, it’s also used in cooking.

salad spinner: A two-part device made up of a plastic basket inside a large plastic bowl. Place washed greens inside the basket and spin it (using whatever method your spinner offers). Centrifugal force removes the water from the greens.

salsa: A hot condiment, usually made with tomatoes and chiles.

sambuca: A clear cordial that has a very strong, sweet licorice flavor.

sangria: A drink made of wine, fruit juice, and marinated fruits.

sansho: The dried and ground pods of the prickly ash tree, which make a fragrant, finely ground pale spice. Also called Japanese pepper.

saturated fat: A fat (usually firm at room temperature) that stimulates your body to produce too much cholesterol.

sauce: A liquid or soft mixture served with food to add flavor or enhance the food’s general appeal.

sauté: To cook food quickly in a small amount of fat, usually butter or oil, over very high heat.

sauteuse evasée: A slope-sided saucepan that’s 8 to 9 inches in diameter and has a volume of about 3 quarts.

scald: To heat milk to just below the boiling point when making custards and dessert sauces to shorten the cooking time and add flavor.

scallion: Any of a group of onionlike plants, such as the shallot, green onion, and leek.

screw band: A metal band made specifically for home-canning jars that holds the lid in place during the processing period and secures the lid in place when storing an opened jar in the refrigerator.

sear: To brown quickly in a pan, under the broiler, or in a very hot oven.

season: To prepare a new pan or wok with an oil coating that creates a resistant cooking surface.

seitan: A chewy food made from wheat gluten; often used in Chinese cuisine.

semolina: A type of wheat meal that’s a byproduct in the making fine flour; used in making pastas.

serrated knife: A knife that usually has an 8- to 10-inch blade which features evenly spaced teeth. Used for cutting bread, angel food cake, tomatoes, eggplant, and other food that have a tough "skin" and soft insides.

Shabbat: In Judaism, the weekly Sabbath or day of rest. Begins at sunset on Fridays.

shallot: A small onionlike plant whose clustered bulbs, like garlic but milder, are used for flavoring.

shank: A cut of meat from the leg of an animal.

shellfish: Any edible aquatic animal with a shell, such as clams and lobsters.

sherry: A fortified wine that varies in color from light yellow to dark brown and in flavor from very dry to sweet.

shichimi togarashi: A Japanese seven-spice chili seasoning that includes fresh chili flakes, black and white sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sansho, nori, and Mandarin orange peel.

shiso leaves: A small, notch-leafed herb that’s fragrant and full of flavor. Used in Japanese cuisine.

shred: To cut into long, thin strips.

sieve: A utensil that has many small meshed or perforated openings; used to strain solids from liquids.

sift: To shake dry ingredients, such as flour or confectioners’ sugar, through a fine mesh sifter to incorporate air and make them lighter.

simmer: To bring water or other liquid to a temperature just below boiling; the surface of the liquid is covered with tiny bubbles when simmering.

skim: To remove fat or bits of food that rise to the surface of soup, stock, or stew while it cooks.

skirt steak: A very lean and moist cut of beef that comes from the pad of muscle that runs from the rib cage toward the loin.

sliver: To cut food (usually garlic cloves) into long, thin pieces.

slow cooker: An appliance in which a pot (or crock) is placed inside a metal casing that has wrap-around heating elements, providing slow and even heating of the pot’s contents.

snow pea: A vegetable of peas in a pod that has a bright green color, sweet taste, and crisp-tender texture.

sopressata salami: A type of Italian dry-cured salami, which includes coarsely ground meat and spices.

sorbet: A frozen mixture made of fruit juice, water, and sugar.

sorghum: Gluten-free insoluble fiber with a bland flavor and light color; also known as milo.

soufflé: A baked dessert containing a flavored egg yolk base blended with whipped egg whites that cause it to puff up while cooking.

soy: A legume used in many products, including soymilk, soy flour, and tofu.

spatula: A utensil with a broad, flat, flexible blade used for spreading or blending substances; comes in a variety of shapes and materials.

spice: A vegetable substance with a distinctive flavor and aroma that’s used to season food. Derived from the fruit, seed, root, berries, or bark of a plant — anything except for the leaves, which are herbs.

springform pan: A baking pan with a hinged-release, detachable bottom. Used to easily unmold cheesecakes and tarts.

star anise: Star-shaped fruit from a shrub native to East Asia; used as a spice in desserts and cooking for its licorice flavor.

stearic acid: Tallow (solid animal fat), and other animal fats and oils.

steel: A kitchen tool used to keep knives sharp by running the blades along the steel.

steep: To soak food, usually in a hot liquid, in order to soften and/or extract flavors.

stew: 1 (verb) To simmer food for a long time in a tightly covered pot with just enough liquid to cover. 2. (noun) A dish cooked by stewing.

stir-fry: The Asian cooking technique of quickly frying small pieces of food in a wok with a small amount of fat over very high heat while constantly tossing and stirring the ingredients. The term stir-fry also can refer to a dish prepared this way.

stock: The strained, flavorful liquid that is produced by cooking meat, fish, poultry, vegetables, seasonings, or other ingredients in water.

stovetop hood: A metal hood that’s placed above a stovetop. Usually includes a venting system for cooking-related smoke and may include a light.

strain: To separate liquids from solids by passing a mixture through a sieve.

strand pasta: A group of pastas that come in long, thin shapes.

stuffed pasta: Pasta filled with meat, cheese, fish, or vegetables.

surimi: Imitation shellfish.

sushi: Japanese for “vinegared rice.” A style of food preparation that uses freshly cooked rice tossed with a rice vinegar dressing and pressed with fresh ingredients.

sushi mold: Molds, often made of plastic, used to shape sushi.

sushi paddle: A thin, smooth, flat wooden utensil used to separate the hot, cooked rice from the cooking pot and to cut through the cooked rice while it cools in the sushi tub.

sushi tub: A wooden container that looks much like a short barrel in which you place sushi rice to cool it and remove moisture.

sweet potato: A fleshy, brownish, tuberlike plant root used as a vegetable.