Brush up on your kitchen French and start cooking (and speaking) like a chef!
A proper French meal, even school lunch, tends to be made up of four courses. A meal for invités may also involve appetizers. Courses are served in the following order: starter, main, cheese then dessert.
Hors d'oeuvres (pl,m) - appetizers
Un amuse-bouche - an appetizer
L'entrée - the starter
Le plat principal - the main dish
Le fromage - the cheese course
Le dessert - the dessert
Here's some vocabulary to help you find your way around a French kitchen:
La cuisine - the kitchen
Un réfrigérateur / un frigo - a refrigerator / fridge
Un congélateur - a freezer
Un placard - a cupboard
Une étagère - a shelf
Un tiroir - a drawer
Un four - an oven
Une cuisinière (à gaz) - a (gas) stovetop
Une plaque de cuisson (vitrocéramique) - a (vitro-ceramic) hob
Un micro-ondes - a microwave
Un grille-pain - a toaster
Une bouilloire - a kettle
And there's more...
Une planche à découper - a chopping board
Un plan de travail - a worktop
La balance - the scales
Un fouet - a whisk
Une louche - a ladle
Un plateau - a tray
Un tire-bouchon - a corkscrew
Une casserole - a pan
Une poêle - a frying pan
Une passoire - a sieve
Time to get cooking!
Cuire / cuisiner - to cook
Réchauffer - to reheat
Découper - to cut up
Couper - to chop
En petits morceaux / lamelles - in small pieces / slices
Laver - to wash
Rincer - to rinse
Peser - to weigh
Remuer - to toss, stir
Mélanger - to mix, blend
Fouetter - to whisk
Battre - to beat
Râper - to grate
Éplucher - to peel
Faire fondre - to melt
Étaler - to roll out
Casser - to break
Verser - to pour
Renverser (par terre) - to spill (on the floor)
Faire tomber - to drop, to make something fall
Faire sauter - to sauté
Frire - to fry
Mijoter - to slow cook
Bouillir - to boil
Rôtir - to roast
Cuire à la vapeur - to steam cook
Brûler - to burn, to overcook
Se brûler - to burn oneself
Se couper - to cut oneself
Se blesser - to injure oneself
See more French Residential's articles with recipe videos in French
Tous à table ! The French have a great appreciation of l'art de la table, or how the table is laid. This is the scenery in which the theatre of the meal will play out, after all. Great conversation and excellent food are about to "tread the boards"!
Une nappe - a table cloth
Une serviette - a napkin
Un set de table - a place mat
Une bougie - a candle
Un chandelier - a candlestick
Une salière - a salt shaker
Une poivrière - a pepper mill
Un couvert - a place setting
Un couteau - a knife
Une fourchette - a fork
Une cuillère (a café) - a (tea) spoon
Une assiette - a plate
Un bol - a bowl
Un verre - a glass
Une coupe / une flûte - a champagne glass
Un verre à pied - a wine glass
And when the meal is over... It is unlikely your French host will expect you to help with clearing up. They may even get offended if you offer! But that goes both ways: if you are the host you will be expected to make all the mess disappear - remember, this is a performance as much as a meal!
Débarrasser (la table) - to clear (the table)
Ranger - to put things away, to put in order
Nettoyer - to clean
Essuyer - to wipe / To dry (dishes)
Un torchon - a tea towel
Souffler les bougies - to blow out the candles
Faire la vaisselle - to do the dishes
Un lave-vaisselle - a dishwasher
Une éponge - a sponge
Un balai - a broom
Balayer - to sweep