gratinn.
/ˈɡratã/, /ˈɡrataŋ/, U.S. /ˈɡrætn/ Cookery.
1. A manner of preparing viands by treating them with raspings of bread and cooking them between two fires so as to produce a light crust; hence, the dish so cooked; spec. the light crust on the surface of such dishes, now usually formed by a sprinkling of breadcrumbs or grated cheese browned in the oven or under the grill. (See also quots. 18461, 1877, where the meaning given may be the result of some error.) Hence au gratin /o ɡratæ̃/: cooked in this way; also as n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > food manufacture and preparation > preparation for table or cooking > garnishing > [noun] > covering with crumbs
gratin1806
breadcrumbing1854
the world > food and drink > food > food manufacture and preparation > preparation for table or cooking > garnishing > [adverb] > garnished in specific way
au gratin1806
à la Hollandaise1841
à la mode1893
1806 J. Simpson Compl. Syst. Cookery 139 Crayfish au gratin.
1844 W. M. Thackeray in New Monthly Mag. July 418 Eels, salmon, lobsters, either au gratin or in cutlets.
1846 C. E. Francatelli Mod. Cook p. xii Gratins, a term applied to consolidated soups and sauces; also to certain dishes of high character, consisting of game, poultry, fish, vegetables, or maccaroni, &c., improved by great care and finish, through the use of concentrated sauces or gravies.
1846 C. E. Francatelli Mod. Cook 56 Farce of fat livers for gratins.
1846 A. Soyer Gastron. Regenerator 112 Sole au gratin. Note, In France we have silver dishes on purpose for au gratins, in which they are dressed and served to table, the gratin adhering to the bottom of the dish.
1877 Cassell's Dict. Cookery Gratin is a French forcemeat. It may be made either of the lean part of veal or the breast and wings of a fowl.
1889 A. B. Marshall Cookery Bk. 219 Maccaroni au Gratin.
1897 Nansen in Daily News 9 Feb. 8/4 A fish gratin made of powdered fish and Indian meal and train oil.
1901 C. H. Senn New Cent. Cookery Bk. 445 Vegetable Marrow au Gratin.
a1936 R. Kipling Something of Myself (1937) v. 144 The diamond's tip bubbled like cauliflower au gratin.
1964 Good Housek. New Cooking v. 57 Egg and Spinach Au Gratin... Sprinkle on the remaining cheese and grill until golden.
2. transferred. The ‘upper crust’ of society.
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > social class > nobility > aristocracy or upper class > [noun]
optimacy1579
aristocracy1651
great world1699
peerage1725
well-connected1788
governing class1795
patriciate1795
well-connected1831
caste1842
(the) salt of the earth1842
the leisured class(es1848
japonicadom1851
countyocracy1859
masterclass1861
proprietariat1872
four hundred1888
the Establishment1923
gratin1934
power élite1942
U1954
upper1955
topside1958
1934 E. F. Thomas Portrait of Widow iii. 28 Did you chance to know the Duchesse de Mallincourt in Paris? She always received the gratin of the American colony.
1959 Sunday Times 17 May 15/4 She belonged to the Edwardo-Georgian gratin.
1967 S. Pakenham Sixty Miles from Eng. xiv. 185 Madeleine Lemaire had one of the most famous Paris salons, where all but the very highest gratin of the French nobility congregated.
Compounds
General attributive.
ΚΠ
1889 A. B. Marshall Cookery Bk. 17 Gratin Sauce (for Fish).
1901 C. H. Senn New Cent. Cookery Bk. 599 Butter a silver-plated gratin-dish.
1902 Daily Chron. 15 Feb. 8/4 Drain and turn into a gratin dish,..cover with fine breadcrumbs.
1965 House & Garden Dec. 84/3 A gratin dish often does contain cheese, but it is not a vital ingredient.
Derivatives
ˈgratinate v. [after French gratiner : see -ate suffix3] to cook (food) au gratin.
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1902 in Webster's Internat. Dict. Eng. Lang. Suppl.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1900; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1806