bain-marie

[ beyn-muh-ree; French ban-ma-ree ]

noun

, plural bains-ma·rie [beyn, -m, uh, -, ree, ba, n, -m, a, -, ree].

1. (in cooking) a receptacle containing hot or boiling water into which other containers are placed to warm or cook the food in them.
2. British. a double boiler.

bain-marie

/ bɛ̃mari /

noun

1. a vessel for holding hot water, in which sauces and other dishes are gently cooked or kept warm

Word History and Origins

Origin of bain-marie¹

1815–25; < French, Middle French, translation of Medieval Latin balneum Mariae literally, bath of Mary, reputed to be a Jewish alchemist who devised such a heating technique, and sometimes identified with Moses' sister Miriam

Word History and Origins

Origin of bain-marie¹

C19: from French, from Medieval Latin balneum Mariae , literally: bath of Mary, inaccurate translation of Medieval Greek kaminos Marios , literally: furnace of Miriam , alleged author of a treatise on alchemy

Example Sentences

Safety tip: wear oven mitts or use potholders when you remove the bowl from the microwave or bain-marie, as it will be super hot.

From Salon

Yes, you really have to whip the eggs for 5 minutes; you really have to use a bain-marie; and you really have to cover it in foil and then remove the foil.

From Salon

This made perfect sense, playing to the microwave’s strength as what the New Yorker writer Helen Rosner so astutely described as “a brute-force bain-marie.”

From New York Times

It was, quite simply, the first pressure cooker, a sealed bain-marie.

From Literature

The solution: fill a large shaker tin or bowl halfway with boiling water and then place a smaller shaker tin or metal bowl inside it, creating a kind of bain-marie.

From Salon