The Kitchen Basics Quiz

The idea of whipping egg whites is to get as much air in them as possible. This makes whatever you are combining them with light and fluffy.

You can’t boil pasta properly if there isn’t enough room in the pot. So you need a big, deep pot, called a stockpot.

Roux is used as a thickening agent for gravy, sauces, soups and stews. Flour is added to any type of fat, including butter, bacon drippings, oil and shortening.

After you use this broad, flat, blunt bladed instrument for scraping the sides of the bowl, use it to spread the batter evenly in a baking pan.

This is with a stock pot, not an instant pot! When it comes to intensifying the flavor of your chicken stock, the longer the better, but no longer than 10 hours.

Unless the recipe calls for it, there is no reason to add oil and salt to pasta water, which only adds unnecessary sodium and fat. Pasta cooks perfectly in boiling water alone.

Although baking pans or sheets are perfect for baking cookies, they can also be used to bake vegetables and other foods. And, if you cover the pan in parchment paper prior to baking, clean up will be a breeze.

Use a colander to strain pasta, clean produce like berries, or rinse canned beans. It's a "must-have" in any kitchen.

Mincing is to cut up, or grind, food into very small pieces, typically in a food processor or with a sharp knife.

Although immersion blender is correct, you can also use a regular blender, or food processor, to puree soups and make smoothies.

You're roasting a chicken. To truss the bird, cross the legs and tie them together with kitchen twine. Then lift the wing tips up and tuck them under the bird.

According to food&wine.com, season steaks and pork roasts right before searing. However you should season lamb shanks the day before they are braised.

Whether you're serving salad or rearranging meat on the grill, use tongs to keep a good grip on the food.

This is all you need to make poached eggs. Once the water is boiled, it takes less than 3 minutes to make. Remember to stir the water to create a gentle whirlpool which helps the egg white wrap around the yolk.

Break open an egg into two halves, and pass the yolk several times between the halves, letting the white drop down into a bowl underneath.

When you cook a steak medium, it will feel firm and springy to the touch. Whereas a rare steak will feel soft and spongy with slight resistance.

Gratin is a widespread culinary technique in which an ingredient is topped with a browned crust.

When you brown your meat, you cook it quickly over high heat, causing the surface of the food to turn brown. This sears in the moisture or keeps the interior from drying out.

If not watched carefully, simmers can easily become rolling boils. Adjusting the heat and stirring helps keeps the temperature just below a boil.

The chuck roast contains connective tissue made of collagen and can be a little tough, but provides great flavor when cooked over a long period of time.

A cooked steak should rest at room temperature for at least five minutes and ideally around half the cooking time – it will stay warm for up to 10 minutes.

It’s a good idea to always wash lettuce and other leafy greens before you eat them. Soaking lettuce in water does not wash away any nutrients but could wash away a food-borne illness.

A zester has tiny cutting holes on one end that creates threadlike strips of peel when pulled over the surface of a lemon lime or orange.

When you stir-fry you quickly fry small pieces of food in a large pan over very high heat while stirring.

Dredging is when you lightly coat a food with flour, cornmeal, or breadcrumbs before frying or baking.

An egg wash is an egg yolk or egg white mixed with a small amount of water or milk. It's brushed over baked goods before baking to give them gloss and color.

"Au jus" is French phrase describing meat that is served with its own natural cooking juices.

To caramelize, you heat sugar until it liquefies and becomes a clear syrup ranging in color from golden to dark brown.

Using a sharp knife will make your food taste better. Precisely cut food will cook at an even rate for a delicious final dish.

Blackened is a cooking method in which meat or fish is rubbed with Cajun spices and cooked in a very hot cast-iron skillet.

By using a sharp knife you'll release less of the enzymes into the air that bother your eyes and make them water. The same thing will happen when you cut onions in cold water. Or cut the root last—it has a higher concentration of enzymes.

Julienned carrots are cut thinly into ⅛-inch thick strips, creating uniform matchsticks. This allows for uniform and quicker cooking than when cooking a whole carrot.

Give it a knock with your knuckles. A muffled hollow thud means it's sweet, and a higher-pitched ringing sound means it is unripe.

Besides adding flavor from the salt, it draws out juices, which, particularly for older eggplants, can be bitter. It also tightens and firms up the flesh, making the eggplant less likely to soak up as much oil.

Do NOT cook an egg in its shell in the microwave. It will explode.