deglaze - dissolve the browned bits stuck to a pan into a sauce

deglaze --with LIQUID PAN

deglaze --with wine --reduce-by half PAN

After you sear meat or vegetables, the bottom of the pan is coated with browned bits called fond. They are concentrated flavor. Pour in a liquid, scrape with a wooden spoon, and they dissolve into the start of a sauce.

The basic pan sauce: take out the meat, pour off all but a spoonful of fat, cook a chopped shallot for a minute, deglaze with about 120 ml (1/2 cup) of wine or stock, and boil it down by half. Off the heat, swirl in a tablespoon or two of cold butter. Season with salt and a little acid. The whole thing takes about as long as the meat needs to rest.

--with wine

Dry white or red. Boil until it no longer smells sharply of alcohol. The old rule about cooking only with wine you would drink means do not use wine that has gone off. It does not mean expensive.

--with stock

Chicken or vegetable. Use low-sodium, because it will reduce and concentrate.

--with water

Works. Less body, but the fond carries plenty of flavor on its own.

--reduce-by FRACTION

Simmer until the volume drops by that much. Reducing concentrates flavor and salt, so season after reducing, never before.

maillard(7), butter(1), acid(1), rest(1)

If the fond is black rather than brown, it is not fond. Deglazing it produces burnt sauce. Wipe the pan and start fresh.

Nonstick pans produce very little fond. That is the point of them.