Chinois

A conical fine-mesh strainer used in French kitchens to finish sauces and stocks.

What it means in a kitchen

The chinois (named for its resemblance to a Chinese hat) is the restaurant standard for the final texture pass on a sauce. The cone shape concentrates the liquid into a thin stream while a wooden pestle presses solids against the mesh. In a home kitchen, a hemispherical fine-mesh strainer covers most of the same work.