Writing Recipes for the Modern Un-Cook

A rather fascinating article about the writing dilemmas facing today's recipe authors, inasmuch as many Americans who haven't spent much time in the kitchen growing up no longer know the meanings of words such as "braise," "saute," "cream," or "fold." These writers face a balancing act between encouraging cooking and completely giving up on using normal cooking "vocabulary."

I like the compromise arrived at in the forthcoming 75th Anniversary Edition of JOY OF COOKING: an extensive glossary. I confess I didn't know the meaning of "braise" myself until I started on a quest to expand my very basic cooking skills a year or so ago. Part of the fun of learning is to become familiar with terminology and gain competence in a new area, rather than having everything "dumbed down." I've found illustrated guides to be a great help unlocking the mysteries of dicing and deglazing.

As the JOY editor says: "When you learn to drive, you learn terms like 'brake' and 'parallel park.' Why is it okay to be stupid when you cook?" :)