Denise Vivaldo - How to Start a Home-Based Personal Chef Business

Denise Vivaldo, whose Globe Pequot Press book How to Start a Home-Based Catering Business is in its fifth edition, worked as a personal chef while writing that book. In the cooking classes she teaches across the country, she meets students at every level and has seen a marked increase in interest in the personal chef field. She is an experienced chef and caterer with a degree from the California Culinary Institute. Her catering seminars are featured at UCLA Extension, the California Culinary Academy, and Westland Culinary Institute. Denise is the founder of Food Fanatics and lives in Los Angeles.

I include this to help you understand culinary terminology and write better recipes to dazzle your clients.

Aioli: A mayonnaise primarily flavored with garlic and popular with fish, meats, and vegetables. It originates from the Provence region of southern France.

A la carte: Menu terminology that means that each item is priced individually.

Al Dente: In Italian, this phrase translates as to the tooth, which means to cook not soft or overdone. This usually refers to pasta and vegetables that are cooked until slightly crunchy and not completely tender.

Amaranth: A nourishing high-protein food that is slightly sweet in flavor; it can be used in salads and regular cooking. The nutritious amaranth seed can either be used for cereal or ground into flour for bread.

Ancho chili: This rich and slightly fruit-flavored chili is the dried version of a fresh green poblano chili. It is deep red and brown in color and ranges in hotness and flavor from mild to strong.

Andouille sausage: A traditional Cajun smoked sausage typically used in jambalaya and gumbo. It is heavy in spice and made from pork chitterlings and tripe.

Anise: The anise leaf and seed is used in both baking and cooking and imparts a distinct, sweet licorice flavor. It is a member of the parsley family.

Arborio rice: A high-starch grain grown in Italy that is traditionally used for risotto because of the creamy texture it creates as it cooks.

Aromatic: Any type of herb, spice, or plant that lends flavor and fragrance to food and drinks.

Aspic: A clear or opaque savory jelly composed of gelatin and clarified meat, fish, or vegetable stock.

Au jus: A phrase commonly used with beef, which translates as meat served with its own natural juices.

Baguette: A long, narrow French loaf of bread with a crisp brown crust and a light, chewy inside.

Baking powder: A leavener that when mixed with liquid releases carbon dioxide gas bubbles that enable bread or cake to rise. It is composed of baking soda, an acid, and a moisture absorber. For a longer shelf life, keep it in a cool, dry place.

Baking soda: A leavener that when mixed with an acid, such as yogurt or buttermilk, produces carbon dioxide gas bubbles that enable a dough or batter to rise. Always mix with dry ingredients first before adding liquid because it reacts immediately when moistened.

Basil: A member of the mint family, basil is most often leafy and green but can also be purple. Basil has a combination licorice and clove flavor. It is the primary ingredient in Italian pesto.

Basmati rice: A long-grained, fine-textured rice that has a fragrant, nutlike flavor and aroma. It is aged to decrease its moisture content.

Baste: To continuously spoon or brush food with liquid such as stock, meat juice, wine, melted butter, or fat while it is cooking to ensure maximum color, flavor, and moisture.

Bay leaf: An aromatic herb that comes from the evergreen bay laurel tree used to flavor stews, soups, vegetables, and meats. Dry leaves are more available than fresh leaves and impart less flavor to a dish. Too many bay leaves may give a bitter flavor. Remove before serving.

Barnaise sauce: A traditional French sauce that accompanies meat, fish, eggs, and vegetables. It is composed of egg yolks, butter, wine, a vinegar reduction, tarragon, and shallots.

Bchamel sauce: A basic French white sauce that is made by adding milk into a roux of butter and flour. The proportion of the roux to the milk determines the thickness of the sauce.

Beurre blanc: A classic French sauce that pairs well with poultry, seafood, vegetables, and eggs. Literally meaning white butter, it is composed of a wine, vinegar, and shallot reduction that has chunks of cold butter gradually whisked into it until desired thickness and taste is reached.

Bind: To thicken something by stirring a variety of ingredients, such as dairy or flour, into a hot liquid.

Bisque: A hearty, rich soup composed of cream and pureed seafood or sometimes fowl or vegetables.

Blackened: A style of Cajun cooking that typically consists of a piece of meat or fish rubbed in Cajun spices and cooked in a flaming hot cast-iron skillet to allow for an extra crisp, dark, and flavorful crust.

Blanch: A cooking technique of briefly adding food, most often vegetables and fruit, to boiling water and immediately shocking them in cold water to stop them from further cooking. This allows for maximum color and flavor, firm texture, and loose skin.

Boil: To bring liquid to a temperature of 212F or until bubbles break the liquid surface.

Bolognese: A dish consisting of a hearty, thick meat and vegetable sauce intensified with wine and milk or cream for desired flavor and thickness.

Bordelaise sauce: A classic French sauce most often served with broiled meats. It is composed of red or white wine, brown stock, bone marrow, shallots, parsley, and herbs.

Bouillon: The liquid that is strained off after cooking vegetables, poultry, meat, or fish in water, which can be used for the base of soups and sauces.

Bouquet garni: The classic trio of parsley, thyme, and bay leaf either tied together or wrapped in cheesecloth and used to flavor stews, soups, and broths.

Braise: A long, slow cooking method that requires meat or vegetables to first be browned in fat, then cooked, tightly covered in a small amount of liquid at low heat for a long period of time, either on the stove top or in the oven. This allows the food to become more flavorful as well as tender by breaking down its fibers.

Broil: To cook food in an oven directly under the gas or electric heat source or to cook food on a barbecue grill directly over the charcoal or other heat source.

Cajun seasoning: A bold seasoning blend characteristic of Cajun cooking that generally includes garlic, onion, chilies, black pepper, mustard, and celery. Spicier versions may include cayenne pepper.

Caraway seed: An aromatic seed that comes from the parsley family and has a nutty, slight anise flavor. It can be used in both savory and sweet cooking.

Cardamom: An aromatic spice that is a member of the ginger family and consists of a seed within a pod. Whether used whole, ground, or just the seed alone, the flavor is warm, spicy-sweet, and very pungent.

Cayenne pepper: Also called red pepper, it is a hot, pungent powder made from various tropical chilies that include the bright red, extremely hot cayenne pepper.

Cheesecloth: A natural fine or coarse woven cotton cloth that has various jobs in the kitchen, including straining liquids and forming bags for herbs and spices (like the bouquet garni that are used in soups, stews, and stocks).

Chervil: An aromatic herb that is a member of the parsley family; it has the delicate, light flavor of anise. Chervil has curly, dark leaves and tends to lose its flavor when dried or boiled.