So I have a recipe that ended with “tent with aluminum foil and let rest for 5 minutes.” I never heard this phrase before, so I looked it up. There were multiple lengthy articles (for example) and it all comes down to: cover your food in aluminum foil to keep moisture from evaporating.

😡

That’s 5 minutes I will never get back.

~One article went so far as to suggest using broom handles or sticks. That one was kinda funny. 😂~

  • MountingSuspicion@reddthat.comEnglish
    131·
    2 days ago

    Funny that your most recent comment is suggesting someone else doesn’t cook much.

    I have seen it in a few recipes over the years, though I feel like it really depends on the kind of meals you’re making. To a certain extent I understand it feeling like unnecessary jargon, but now that you’ve seen it, it’s part of your cooking vocabulary forever. I think it’s fine for online recipes to use that kind of language, especially since the answer to what it means is pretty easy to find.

    • Madzielle@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
      11·
      2 days ago

      Once in a blue moon my partner gets the big frozen lasanga for supper. It says to tent the foil cover over it at some point in the intructions.

      I thought it a common phrase tbh

      • HubertManne@piefed.socialEnglish
        8·
        2 days ago

        as did I. I also see it as pretty obvious. Like I don’t recall having to figure out what tent with aluminum foil meant. Im prettys sure I assumed it meant cover without touching.

      • MountingSuspicion@reddthat.comEnglish
        4·
        2 days ago

        I do somewhat agree, but I can also see that if you’re making mostly one kind of dish, tenting may not be used at all. I don’t make a lot of Chinese food so maybe it’s a bad example, but I’ve never seen a Chinese recipe suggest tenting for example, so I am happy to give room for a variety of cooking preferences. I have seen cooking shows where they talk about foaming things or whatnot and if I saw that in a recipe you bet I’d have to look up how to do it. Maybe someone who makes a lot of food with sauces or something would think it’s weird I don’t know what foaming is. Sometimes it’s easy to assume our framework is the default one, regardless of the topic. Though in my experience I would have to agree that it’s not uncommon.