Deglazing

Those brown bits stuck to the bottom of your pan after searing meat? That's fond — concentrated, caramelized flavor gold. Deglazing means adding liquid (wine, stock, vinegar) to a hot pan to dissolve that fond into a sauce. It takes 30 seconds and transforms a dry chicken breast into a dish with a restaurant-quality pan sauce. Most home cooks wash the fond down the drain, literally throwing away the best part of the dish.