blanched

[blancht]

adjective

1. made white; whitened or bleached.

   The threads used for the lace were once made of hemp, but are now of raw or blanched linen.

   The museum’s blanched interior is penetrated at the core by a large black staircase linking the lobby to the main gallery.

2. Cooking.,  scalded or parboiled briefly and then drained, as to facilitate removal of skins, get rid of odor or bitterness, shorten cooking by other means, etc..

   I use blanched almonds, as they already have the papery, slightly bitter skins removed.

   Stir in the blanched cauliflower and frozen peas and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes longer.

3. made pale, as by sickness or fear.

   His trembling hands and the look on his blanched face suggested he’d been hurt or badly scared.

4. Horticulture.,  (of the stems or leaves of plants, as celery or leeks) whitened or prevented from becoming green by excluding light.

   Dense sowing and immature harvesting yield tall seedlings with tender, blanched stems and bright, well-developed leaves.

5. Metallurgy.

   1. (of metals) given a white luster, as by means of acids.

      Platinum has an appearance similar to blanched gold.

   2. (of sheet metal) coated with tin.

      Scowling, he watched the fly as it sat brazenly on the rim of his blanched metal camp mug.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of blanch.

Other Word Forms

• unblanched adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of blanched¹

First recorded in 1375–1425; blanch ¹ ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses; blanch ¹ ( def. ) + -ed ¹ ( def. ) for the verb sense

Example Sentences

“My advice is to buy them fresh. If that’s too time-consuming, you can buy frozen fava beans — they already come peeled, shelled and blanched.”

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At first, Hallow didn't seem so bad, even though I blanched when it immediately gamified the spiritual experience by congratulating me for maintaining my "streak" of daily usage.

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Frank Rich, writing in the New York Times, praised “Grownups” as Feiffer’s “most moving and provocative work” but blanched at its painful content.

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“When Issa came up with the guitar scene, I initially blanched, thinking that if this guy was creative he probably wouldn’t be the person he is,” the actor says.

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Larger veggies, like blanched green beans or cauliflower florets, make for a great pickle-y snack.

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