Basic Mise en Place

Mise en place is a French term which literally means “put in place.” In practice, the terms refer to all of the components of your dish, from chopped onions to par-cooked bacon, once they’ve been fully prepped and are ready for their application in the final moment of cooking or plating. In restaurant kitchens, cooks spend the hours leading up to service preparing and assembling all of their “mise” so that it’s on hand when they need it; you can do something similar at home by stocking up on some basic prepared ingredients that are versatile and durable. Sometimes prepping mise is as simple as saving your leftovers. (However, if, like me, you save weeks of pan drippings and then try to bring quarts of duck fat and gravy on a plane the day before Thanksgiving, you may find yourself at the mercy of your TSA agent’s holiday spirit.)