PCA Food & Beverage Encyclopedia
 
 
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  • Waffle - Pancake batter cooked in a special hinged cooking utensil called a "waffle iron" which cooks both sides at once and gives waffles their honeycombed syrup-catching surface. Belgian waffles are often heaped with fruits and whipped cream.
  • Waggle dance is a golden honey beer brewed by Ward's of Sheffield for Vaux.
  • Wakami - A dried seaweed. Wakami is soaked in cold water before it is served. It is often served with cucumbers, miso, and vinegar. Also used in soups. Popular in Japanese cooking.
  • Waldorf Salad: A salad made with apples, celery, nuts, whip cream, and mayonnaise on a bed of lettuce.
  • Wallop is a fresh, fruity, light bitter with a hoppy finish, from the Whitby brewery, North Yorkshire.
  • Walnut Oil - This expensive oil is pressed from walnuts and has a distinctive nutty flavor and fragrance. Used in salad dressings, sauces, baked goods, and for sautéing.
  • Ward's mild is a malty cask ale brewed by Ward's, a traditional Sheffield brewery.
  • Wasabi - A Japanese horseradish that is dried, powdered, and made into a pale green paste with a sharp, pungent, extremely potent flavor. Often mixed with soy sauce and served as a condiment to sushi, sashimi, and other Japanese specialties.
  • Wassail is a full-bodied draught and bottled beer from Ballard's, Sussex.
    Wassail is a spiced beverage prepared from roasted apples, sugar, toast, nutmeg and other spices and old ale. During the Anglo-Saxon and early English period wassail played an important part on all great festive occassions, such as Wassails.
  • Wat Tyler is a dark brown coloured, hoppy, strong real ale from the Itchen Brewery in Hampshire.
  • Water Buffalo - A buffalo native to the Old World tropics with large flattened horns. Also called "water ox."
  • Water Chestnut - The nut-like kernel of a water plant that grows in southeast Asia. The flesh is white, crisp, and juicy and has a bland, somewhat sweet nutty flavor. Their crunchy texture makes them popular in stir-fried dishes.
  • Water Convulvolus - A perennial herb of the arum family. Its thick leaf stalk is used in salads after it has been boiled in two or more changes of water. Also known as "swamp cabbage."
  • Watercress - A member of the mustard family that grows in running water. Watercress has small, crisp, green leaves and a pungent flavor with a slightly bitter peppery flavor. Use in salads, in cream soups, and to garnish vegetables.
  • Watermelon - Originally from Africa, this melon has a sweet, moist red flesh. Asians roast the seeds, and pickled watermelon rind is popular in some parts of the world. If slapping the watermelon returns a resounding hollow thump, it is ripe.
  • Watermelon - Originally from Africa, this melon has a sweet, moist red flesh. Asians roast the seeds, and pickled watermelon rind is popular in some parts of the world. If slapping the watermelon returns a resounding hollow thump, it is ripe.
  • Water-souchy is a dish of fish (usually perch) boiled and served in its own liquor.
  • Wax Bean - A pale yellow variety of the green bean that is eaten with its pod. Also called the "butter bean."
  • Welsh Onion - A species of onion with a bunching, leek-like interleaved bulb and tubular leaves. It is a perennial evergreen with a delicate flavor that can be used by breaking off leaves as the plant matures. Also called the "everlasting onion."
  • Welsh Rabbit is a popular savoury of melted cheese on a slice of toast. It is often, erroneously, referred to as 'rare-bit'.
  • Wheat - There are over 30,000 varieties of this ubiquitous grain. Cultivated for over 6,000 years, wheat is second only to rice as a grain staple. Wheat contains more gluten than other cereals, making it an excellent choice for bread making.
  • Wheat Bran - The rough outer covering of the wheat kernel. Wheat bran is low in nutritional value but high in fiber. Wheat bran is sold separately and is used to add flavor and fiber to baked goods.
  • Wheat Cake - A pancake made of wheat flour.
  • Wheat Flour - A flour produced by milling the endosperm portion of the wheat kernel. "Whole wheat flour," which is more nutritious, is made by milling the entire kernel, including the outer covering, or "bran."
  • Wheat Germ - The tiny nucleus of the endosperm (the inner part of the wheat kernel without the outer bran). Wheat germ has a nutty flavor and is a concentrated source of oil, vitamins, minerals and protein. Used to add nutrients to various foods.
  • Wheat Gluten - The protein remaining after wheat flour has been washed to remove starch. Gluten helps hold in the gas bubbles produced by leavening agents. This is why bread flours contain high levels of gluten and cake flours contain low levels.
  • Wheat Pilaf - A pilaf made from either the wheat berries (whole unprocessed kernels) or cracked wheat (the whole berries broken into coarse, medium, and fine parts).
  • Wheat, Parboiled - A nutritious staple in the Middle East, made of wheat kernels that have been steamed, dried, and crushed. It has a tender, chewy texture and can be made into a pilaf. Also called "bulghur."
  • Whelk - A large marine snail that belongs to the mollusk family. The flavorful foot-like muscle is rather tough and must be tenderized by pounding. Look for whelk in Chinese or Italian markets or specialty food stores.
  • Whey - The liquid part of milk that remains after the curd is removed. Most whey is further separated with the fattier parts used in making butter. Some whey is used to make "whey cheese" or "Ricotta cheese."
  • Whiskey - A liquor produced from the fermented mash of grains such as barley, corn, and rye. Popular varieties of whiskey (spelled "whisky" in Canada and Scotland) include bourbon, Canadian whisky, Irish whiskey, rye, and scotch.
  • Whiskey Sour - An alcoholic beverage made from whiskey, lemon juice, and a small amount of sugar. Sours can also be made with bourbon, gin, or rum, but the whiskey sour is the most popular.
  • Whisky is an alcoholic beverage made from malted barley.
  • Whistle belly vengeance is a malty reddish ale from Summerskills of South Devon.
  • White Bean - A rather generic term that refers to any of several dried beans, including "marrow beans," "great northern beans," "navy beans," and "pea beans."
  • White Chocolate - Not a true chocolate at all. It is, rather, a blend of sugar, cocoa butter, milk solids, lecithin and vanilla. If a product does not contain cocoa butter, it isn't "white chocolate."
  • White dolphin is a fruity wheat beer from the Hoskins & Oldfield brewery in Leicester.
  • White Pepper - White peppercorn is somewhat less pungent than the black variety. After ripening, its skin is removed and the berry is dried. White pepper is used in light-colored sauces and dishes where black speckles could be unaesthetic.
  • White Rice - Rice that has had the husk, bran, and germ removed. White rice is sometimes called "polished rice."
  • White Russian - An alcoholic beverage made by combining vodka, Kahlua (or other coffee liqueur), and cream. A Black Russian is similar, but contains no cream.
  • White Sauce - A term for light white or blond sauces. In its simplest form, white sauce is cream or milk mixed into a white roux (a combination of butter and flour which isn't browned). This basic French sauce is called "béchamel."
  • Whitefish - A high-fat, mild-flavored member of the salmon family with a firm white flesh. The whitefish can be poached, baked, broiled, grilled, pan fried, or stuffed. Its roe (eggs) can be cooked or made into caviar by adding salt.
  • White-Flowered Gourd - A common variety of hard-shelled gourd, also called "bottle gourd" and "Calabash gourd." This gourd is used in the West Indies to produce a very popular syrup. Its shell is often used to create bowls and other utensils.
  • White-Flowered Gourd - A common variety of hard-shelled gourd, also called "bottle gourd" and "Calabash gourd." This gourd is used in the West Indies to produce a very popular syrup. Its shell is often used to create bowls and other utensils.
  • Whiting - A small gray and white saltwater fish sometimes called the "silver hake." This low-fat fish, which is related to both the "cod" and the "hake," has a tender white fine-textured flesh and a flaky, delicate flavor.
  • ·         "WHITE" SUGARS

    Baker's Special— An extremely fine-grained sugar with several uses:

    • Imparts a delicate texture and high volume in cake products, by developing a uniform cell structure.
    • Retains moisture and improves shelf life of cakes.
    • In dry mixes, disperses more evenly and with less stratification, than larger-grained white sugars.
    • Dissolves faster than EFG, especially in cold beverages like iced tea and bar drinks.

    Bottler’s—Similar to EFG, and meets all standards of the National Soft Drink Association, with respect to:
    • Clarity, color, odor and taste
    • Ash and sediment content
    • Comparative absence of floc-forming substances
    • Microbiological activity

    Coarse — Intermediate grain size sugar designed for easy handling and storage in bulk conveying operations.

    Compacting — see Tableting

    Compressible — see Tableting

    Confectioners — see Powdered

    Con AA & Con A — Extremely pure, extra-large grain sugars with the following attributes:

    • Exceptionally white, clear and brilliant
    • Very low ash, color, turbidity and metallic ion contents
    • Nearly 100% sucrose in purity (99.9+%)
    Uses for Con AA & A include:
    • Boiled syrups, boiled-type icings
    • "Sparkle" topping similar to sanding sugar, but larger crystal size
    • Candies (especially mints) and fondants where clarity whiteness, and brilliance are desirable
    • Crystallized syrups
    • Cordials and liqueurs where absolute water whiteness is desired.
    • Cotton candy

    Cordial Sugar — see Con AA

    Demerara Sugar — Similar to Turbinado

    Drivert® — The finest-grain of all powdered sugars, used to produce fondants, icings and frostings with no trace of grain or grittiness. ® C& H Sugar Co.

    EFG — see Granulated

    FG — see Granulated

    Fondant & Icing — Very fine-grain grain sugar (particles 1/100th the size of regular powdered sugar) that easily mixes with water and produces smooth, creamy icings and frostings with high gloss and little or no grittiness. May contain small amount of invert or maltodextrin.

    Fruit Granulated — similar to EFG, and meets all specifications of the National Canners Association for sugar.

    Gelatin — see "Gel Grain"

    Gel Grain — Sugar of smaller, exceptionally uniform grain size (60 to 80 mesh), with few "fines." Used in gelatins, cookie doughs, cake mixes, quick-dissolving hot and cold beverage mixes, and other dry mixes.

    Granulated — Table sugar, commonly called "Fine Granulated" (FG) and "Extra Fine Granulated" (EFG), depending on the refiner’s designation.

    LCMT Sugar — see Con AA

    Liqueur Sugar — see Con AA

    Manufacturers — Intermediate-grain, agglomerate sugar; resists packing and clumping when dissolved. Usually available in bulk only, used by bakers, preservers, freezers, canners and syrup manufacturers.

    Powdered — Finely-ground granulated sugar to which a small amount (3%) corn starch has been added to prevent caking. The fineness to which the granulated sugar is ground determines the familiar "X" factor: 14X is finer than 12X, and so on down through 10X, 8X, 6X (the most commonly used) and 4X, the coarsest powdered sugar.

    Raw Sugar — The semi-refined product of plantation mills processing sugar cane; sugar extracted from cane juice without any further refining in which each crystal is coated with a heavy film of low purity molasses.

    Sanding — Very pure, clear, large-grained sugar:

    • Adds "sparkle" when sprinkled on candies (gum/jelly goods), cookies, pies, turnovers.
    • In boiled syrups and boiled-type icings, it dissolves uniformly, with minimal foaming or discoloring.

    Superfine — see Bakers Special

    Table — see Granulated

    Tableting — A directly compressible, granulated sugar or agglomerated powder, used to make tablets and flakes. It consists of mostly sucrose, with a small amount of maltodextrin or invert sugar. Tableting sugar is used by pharmaceutical makers as an excipient, and by confectioners.

    Turbinado — A semi-refined, off-color sugar containing a higher percentage of sucrose than raw sugar, but less than refined sugar.

    Unigran® — Pure, uniform, larger-grained sugar containing few "fines." Primarily for use in hot drink dispensing machines. ®Trademark of California and Hawaiian Sugar Co.

    USP — Sugar that meets the quality and purity standards and specifications of the United States Pharmacopoeia (an authoritative book containing a list and description of drugs and medicinal products together with the standards established under law for their production, dispensation and use.) NF refers to National Formulary, a similar book.

    Washed Raw — Similar to Turbinado Sugar
  • Wild Rice - A plant from the same family as rice, but with a gray and brown grain that is about twice the length of ordinary rice grains. Wild rice has a unique, almost nutty flavor. Used to stuff game or poultry and served as a side dish.
  • Willie Warmer is a fruity cask beer produced by Crouch Vale brewery, Essex.
  • Wilmot's premium is a strong ale brewed by the Butcombe brewery near Bristol.
  • Wiltshire traditional bitter is a dry, malty, hoppy bitter produced by the Gibbs Mews brewery in Salisbury, Wiltshire.
  • Wine - An alcoholic beverage produced through the fermentation of grape juice. Other fruit and vegetable juices, such as dandelion and elderberry are also occasionally used in winemaking, an art the goes back at least 12,000 years.
  • Wine is the fermented juice of fruits, vegetables or flowers. The more important wines are fermented from grapes.
  • Winged Bean - A fast-growing, high-protein legume. Also called the "goa bean." This bean is entirely edible, including the shoots, flower, roots, leaves, pods, and seeds. Tastes somewhat like a cross between the cranberry bean and the green bean.
  • Winter Radish - A large plant thought to be of Oriental origin. These plants are grown chiefly for their pungent peppery root, which can get up to 2 pounds or more. This radish is popular in Germany and in the East. Also called "black radish."
  • Winter Royal is Wethered's famous rich, fruity brew now brewed by Whitbread at Castle Eden, County Durham.
  • Winter Warmer is a red-brown seasonal ale with a rich fruit and malt flavour and a sweetish aftertaste, produced by Young's in London.
  • Witloof Chickory - The largest and most popular variety of "chicory," a vegetable with long silvery-white leaves. Used in salads and as a seasoning.
  • Wobbly Bob is a robust cask beer from the Phoenix brewery, Heywood, near Manchester.
  • Wolf Fish - A firm, white-fleshed saltwater fish with a large head, strong jaws, and sharp canine teeth and molars that can grind clams, whelks, and other mollusks. Sometimes sold in the U.S. under the confusing name of "ocean catfish."
  • Won Ton Skin - Paper-thin round or square sheets of dough made from flour, eggs, and salt. Used as wrappers to make "won tons" and egg rolls. Won tons are small dumplings of thin dough around a minced mixture of meat, seafood, and/or vegetables.
  • Worcestershire Sauce - This thin, dark sauce is made from garlic, soy sauce, tamarind, onion, molasses, lime, anchovies, vinegar and seasonings. Used to season meats, gravies, soups, and vegetables. It was first bottled in Worcester, England
  • Worthington white shield is a bottle-conditioned, pale ale with a delicate, yeasty, hoppy, malt flavour. It is now brewed at Mitchells and Butlers in Binningham. For years White Shield was the only widely available bottled pale ale which retained a sediment of yeast. This meant it was a living beer - a brewery in a bottle. It developed a complex character and required careful handling. Bar staff had to pour the ale steadily into the glass without disturbing the sediment - but some drinkers preferred their glass cloudy and added the yeast anyway. It was not just a beer but a ritual.
  • Wye valley bitter is a bitter, hoppy cask bitter from the Wye brewery in Hereford.
  • Wykehams Glory is a brown coloured, malty real ale from the Itchen Brewery in Hampshire.