FOOD GLOSSARY - Papaya to Paste

PAPAYA:  Also spelled papaw and paw-paw. Refers to two different fruits. One is a tree of the custard apple family, growing in the central and southern United States and having an oblong, yellowish, edible fruit. May be eaten raw or cooked. The tree grows wild in the central states. The other is a large melon-like fruit that grows from the trunk of a tropical tree of America, Hawaii, and the Phillipines, resembling a palm, having a bunch of large leaves at the top. The fruit may be eaten raw or cooked and also is valued for its juice. The papaya is much used in preparing meat tenderizers. See Meat Tenderizers.

PAPILLOTE, EN (French):  Cooked in a paper bag, as pompano en papillote.

PARBOIL:  To cook food in a boiling liquid until partially done. This is usually a preliminary step to further cooking. Beans and ham, for instance, are parboiled, later baked.

PARCH:  To expose to heat so as to dry or roast slightly, applied to corn, peas, etc.

PARE:  To cut or trim away the skin or covering, as potatoes, apples, etc.

PARFAIT:  A dessert of ice cream, fruit, and whipped cream, or a frozen mixture of egg whites or yolks cooked with hot syrup and combined with whipped cream.

PARISIAN SWEET:  A confection made by grinding together a mixture of dried fruits and nuts.

PARKER HOUSE ROLLS:  Named after a famous Boston hotel, they are yeast-raised rolls.

PARMENTIER (French):  The name of the man who introduced the potato into France and the inventor of many ways to cook potatoes. Dishes bearing this name denote the use of potatoes in the dish, as Potage Parmentier: cream of potato soup.

PARMIGIANA (Italian):  Parmesan cheese. It frequently appears on menus as "alia parmigiana." It is a style of cooking in which sauteed veal or eggplant is baked with tomato sauce and cheese.

PARTRIDGE:  Game birds (often called partridge) shot in the United States are not partridge at all, but ruffed grouse, or one of several varieties of quail. Varieties of true partridge, imported from England and various Continental European countries, are sometimes available in markets and are bred commercially in this country.

Partridge, grouse, and quail can be treated alike in cookery. Expert cooks like it to hang for at least four days to allow its delicate, fragile flavor to develop.

PASSION FRUIT:  See Granadilla.

PASTA (Italian):  The macaroni products. See Macaroni.

PASTE :  This term is used in various ways.

Pastes for culinary purposes include: (1) A foodstuff, pounded or ground until fine and made creamy, etc.; examples are almond paste, fish and meat pastes; (2) a jelly-like candy; (3) a mixture of flour or starch, water, i. e., the Italian pastes (pastas).