Menus these days can be confusing for those of us unfamiliar with fancy and foreign terms for basic ingredients such as butter and pork fat. Here are a few terms that confused us and their definitions.
Airline Chicken: a chicken breast with drumstick attached, otherwise boneless
Beurre Blanc: “white butter” in French, this sauce is a combination of butter, white wine or vinegar, and shallots
Bolognese: a meat sauce
Chicken Saltimbocca: chicken topped with prosciutto and sage.
Confit: food that has been immersed in oil or sugar water prior to cooking or serving
Crostino: toasted bread
Fleur de Sel: a fine, hand-harvested sea salt
Lardon: small chunk of pork fat
Pomme Frites: basically French fries
Potato Dauphinois: potatoes in a butter and cream sauce
Ragout: when a stew is served as a main dish
Sabayon: a foamy, egg-yolk mixture.
Semifreddo: a half-frozen dessert, usually consisting of equal parts whipped cream and ice cream
Tapenade: an hors d’oeuvre common to southern France, usually consisting of finely chopped olives, capers, and anchovies
Veloute: a buttery sauce made with a light stock (in this case, black truffle — a type of French fungus)