CCA Vegetable & Starch Preparation Flashcards

What are the correct three preparatory steps when working with dried legumes before cooking?

Answer: Sort, soak, cook

Dried legumes should be sorted to remove debris or damaged beans, soaked to reduce cooking time and improve digestibility, then cooked until tender.

The 'tournée' vegetable cut produces a piece shaped like a:

Answer: Seven-sided football or barrel

Tournée is a hand-crafted cut that creates a seven-sided oblong shape resembling a small football, used for elegant presentations.

Which compound released when cutting onions causes eye irritation and tearing?

Answer: Syn-propanethial-S-oxide

When onion cells are ruptured, enzymatic reactions produce syn-propanethial-S-oxide, a volatile sulfur compound that irritates the eyes.

What oven temperature range is most appropriate for roasting root vegetables to achieve caramelization and tenderness?

Answer: 375–425°F (190–218°C)

A temperature range of 375–425°F allows root vegetables to caramelize on the outside while cooking through to tenderness without burning.

Which thickening agent, derived from a tropical plant root, produces a clear, glossy sauce and is best used at lower temperatures?

Answer: Arrowroot

Arrowroot thickens at lower temperatures than cornstarch and produces a clear, glossy finish, though it breaks down if overheated or held too long.

When cooking green vegetables, which technique best preserves their bright green chlorophyll color?

Answer: Cook uncovered in well-salted rapidly boiling water

Cooking green vegetables uncovered allows volatile acids to escape with steam, protecting chlorophyll from degrading, while well-salted water seasons and sets the color.

Why do overworked mashed potatoes become gluey and paste-like?

Answer: Over-processing ruptures starch granules, releasing sticky amylose

Mechanical over-processing breaks potato starch granules and releases amylose, a long-chain starch molecule that creates a sticky, gluey texture.