verb
parboil
PAR-boyl/ˈpɑːrbɔɪl/
To cook partly by boiling briefly.
I parboil the potatoes before roasting them for a crisp crust.
Etymology
The pieces originally meant “boil thoroughly,” not partly. The surviving English meaning arose when the first component was mistakenly associated with “part,” turning thorough cooking into partial cooking.
In context
for crispy roast potatoes you can depend on my tip is to parboil them leave them to steam dry then sprinkle them with semolina or flour
More examples
- She parboils the carrots before adding them to the stir-fry.
- We parboiled the rice, then finished cooking it in broth.
- Parboiling the ribs reduces their cooking time on the grill.
Forms
parboil · parboils · parboiled · parboiling
Similar words
- blanch
- Briefly scalds food, often followed by immediate cooling.
- precook
- Cooks food beforehand, partly or fully, by any method.