What does “deglaze a pan” mean?

The cornerstone of sauces and gravies, the term “deglaze” comes from the French word “déglacer”. It is a very common culinary technique used to create magnificent sauces for meats.

After cooking a cut of meat (roast, steak, cutlet …), this must be removed from the pan where it was cooked and set aside. All cooking residues will remain in the cooking pan: proteins, fats, browed sugars. While the pan is still hot and over medium high heat, add the liquid solvent that you have chosen to deglaze as a broth, water or wine into the pan.

The choice of the liquid to be used for deglaze depends exclusively on your personal taste. However, it is important to choose a liquid that is low or fat free. The presence of excess fat, already present also in the cooking base, could make de-glazing more difficult and complicated. After adding the chosen solvent liquid, scrape the bottom of the pan and mix until the desired thickness is reached. There is no need to use a lot of liquid to perfectly deglaze the cooking base.

The sauce can be sieved to make it smoother. In most French restaurants, butter is added to thicken the sauce and make it creamier.