1. The skill, practice or tradition of preparing food
   "Indian cooking"; "he took cooking classes";
   - cookery
    
2. The act of preparing something (as food) by the application of heat
   "cooking can be a great art";
   - cookery, preparation

1. In progress, happening or planned
   "The project took a few days to gain momentum, but by the end of the week, things were really cooking"

1. (of food) combine or process (e.g. heat) to make ready for eating
   "Cook me dinner, please";
   - fix [informal], ready, make, prepare
    
2. Transform and make suitable for consumption by heating
   "These potatoes have to cook for 20 minutes"
    
3. Transform by heating
   "The apothecary cooked the medicinal mixture in a big iron kettle"
    
4. [informal] Tamper, with the purpose of deception
   "cook the books";
   - fudge, manipulate, fake, falsify, wangle [informal], misrepresent, spoof [informal]

Derived forms: cookings

Type of: alter, change, change integrity, change of state, cheat, chisel [informal], make from scratch, modify

Encyclopedia: Cooking, high altitude