Andrew Graerne - The basic basics how to cook from A-Z

Some fruits and vegetables (such as apples or celeriac) discolour when they are cut. To prevent this, they should be dropped immediately into acidulated water cold water which has some lemon juice or vinegar added to it. To each litre (2 pts) of water, add 2 tablespoons lemon juice or vinegar.

This is the process of precooking the pastry-case for a flan or open pie. After rolling out the pastry and placing it in the tin, lay a piece of greaseproof paper on top of the pastry and fill the dish with dried beans or peas (keep a jarful for this purpose) or special ceramic beans, before baking for the time stated in the recipe.

Cooking food out of doors, over hot coals of charcoal, or ceramic bricks when the barbecue is heated by gas or electricity. The general effect is the same as grilling, but you can add smokey flavours to the food by adding special wood chips or herbs to the coals. If you barbecue frequently, it is worth buying wire containers to hold meat or fish.

Adding a layer of fat to dry cuts of meat to prevent their drying out during cooking. This is often done with beef sirloin or veal roasting joints, and you can either ask the butcher to do it for you, or lay some slices of streaky bacon over the meat yourself. An alternative method of barding is to make little slits in the meat and push slivers of fat into them.

Pouring fat or marinade over meat while it is roasting, to coat the surface with flavours.

The process of subjecting fruit or vegetables to a short burst in boiling water, then cooling them rapidly by plunging into very cold water. The purpose is to loosen skins for easy removal (as with tomatoes or peaches) or to set the colour and flavour (often done before freezing). Where instructions specify a time for blanching, start timing when the items go into the boiling water. Do not confuse this process with the gardeners process of blanching vegetables such as asparagus or endive by covering them to exclude light.

Liquids are boiling when the surface is constantly agitated by the heat rising from below. Most foods do not need to be cooked at a constant boil (one exception is pasta) and the heat can be turned down to simmer when boiling point has been achieved.

Cooking meat in the oven in an open roasting tin, starting with a small amount of liquid in the tin. This liquid evaporates during cooking, creating steam which tenderises the meat in the process.

Cooking meat slowly in the oven in a closed pot, with vegetables and plenty of liquid the original one-pot meal. Traditionally, this is a method of cooking cheaper cuts of meat, as the long slow cooking process tenderises it.

Using a knife to cut food into uniformly sized pieces with a series of quick movements. A knife with a triangular shaped blade is best for chopping. Place the food to be chopped on a chopping board, hold the tip of the knife on the board with the fingers of one hand, and use the other hand to move the knife up and down as you chop the food.

Rough chopping means large uneven pieces, fine chopping means very small pieces. With large vegetables, it is best to halve the item to give a flat surface on the board, then slice most of the way through it in two directions before chopping in the third direction.

The process of mixing, then beating, butter and sugar together until it resembles a smooth cream, used in the early stages of cake-making.

Some vegetables, such as cucumber, have excess water which you get rid of in the process of de-gorging. Slice the vegetable and lay the slices in a colander, sprinkling salt generously over each layer. Leave them for 30 minutes, during which time the salt will have drawn the moisture out. Rinse well, then dry before cooking.