mise en place

Or mise-en-place

[mee zahn plos]

noun

French.

1. the gathering and preliminary preparation of the ingredients and equipment to be used in cooking or serving food.

   The chef started the mise en place for the curry: chopping tomatoes, cutting onions, and measuring spices.

2. the ingredients and equipment gathered and prepared before cooking.

   The dish is the perfect size for minced herbs and other mise-en-place you need within easy reach of the stove.

mise en place

/ miz ɑ̃ plas /

noun

1. (in a restaurant kitchen) the preparation of equipment and food before service begins

Word History and Origins

Origin of mise en place¹

First recorded in 1860–65; French: literally, “a putting in place”

Example Sentences

Then I just get at it: one big mise en place, one big protein cook-off, one big baked goods batch.

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TikTok serves up step-by-step mise en place with soft jazz and fingernail clacks; mukbang creators rake in millions by eating crab legs in front of a ring light.

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Without proper mise en place — ingredients prepped, broth warmed, tools within reach — you risk a gummy, stodgy disappointment.

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In place of complicated recipes requiring a full afternoon of mise en place, she offers shortcuts designed to reduce anxiety and, crucially, the risk of giving up altogether.

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The myth that all of the ingredients need to be prepared before any cooking starts comes to us from restaurant kitchens, where the concept of “mise en place,” French for put in place, is fundamental.

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