Here at Cook Local, we’re not professional chefs. We’ve learned a lot by trial and error. Not all recipes (even ours) are that easy to follow. So every Thursday, we’ll bring you a quick definition and a couple of pointers on a different cooking technique.
Today’s technique is blanching.
Blanch: To submerge a food (usually a fruit or vegetable) in boiling water, then, after a predefined length of time, submerging that same food into ice water to stop the cooking process immediately. Blanching is often a preparatory process for canning and can be used to enhance the color and/or flavor of fruits and vegetables.
We often use blanching to brighten the color and flavor of green vegetables before adding them to risotto. Tonight we’ll be using blanching to remove the stinging properties of nettles.
