Render (cooking)
Etymology
From Latin "reddere" (to give back), via Old French "rendre." The kitchen sense — coaxing fat to give itself up from the tissue — sits alongside its many cousins: to render a verdict, render aid, or render an image, all built on that idea of giving forth.
verb · /REN-der/
To melt the fat out of meat or tissue with gentle heat so it separates from the solids.
What it names
The crucial step that turns flabby bacon crisp, makes duck skin shatter, and yields clean fat for frying.
Example
Start the bacon in a cold pan so the fat has time to render before the meat burns.
Related idea
Related to sear: rendering happens low and slow to release fat, whereas searing happens fast and hot to brown a surface — sometimes on the same piece of meat.
verb · /REN-der/
To cause something to be in a particular state or condition.
What it names
making something become so
Example
The injury rendered him unable to work.
Related idea
Compare mitigate and exacerbate, which likewise describe changing a condition.
verb · /REN-der/
To give, provide, or formally deliver something, such as aid, a service, or a verdict.
What it names
the giving or delivering of something due
Example
The jury rendered its verdict after two days.
Related idea
Compare triage, where aid is rendered first to those who need it most.
verb · /REN-der/
To represent or produce something visually, especially to generate a finished image from a computer model.
What it names
visual representation or image generation
Example
The studio took hours to render each frame of the animation.
Related idea
An artist’s or a computer’s rendering makes a scene appear. Compare delineate and foreground.