Dredge

To dredge is to coat food lightly with a dry ingredient—commonly flour, cornstarch, breadcrumbs or a seasoned dry mixture—before cooking. The coating can help develop colour, create a light crust, absorb surface moisture or provide a base for a further coating.

How to dredge correctly

1. Prepare and dry the food as required by the recipe.
2. Place the dry coating in a shallow tray.
3. Turn the food to coat all intended surfaces.
4. Lift it out and shake or tap away excess coating.
5. Cook promptly when the recipe requires a dry coating.

Examples

• Sole meunière: lightly dredge the fish in flour before pan-frying.
• Stews: some recipes dredge meat in flour before browning to help build body in the cooking liquid.
• Fried chicken: flour may be used as part of a seasoned coating or a multi-stage breading process.

Dredging versus breading

Dredging usually means a light coating in one dry ingredient. Breading is a more structured process that commonly uses flour, egg and breadcrumbs. For the classical three-stage method, see standard breading procedure.

Chef’s tip: Dredge delicate food just before cooking. If it sits too long, moisture can make the flour gummy and prevent an even crust.