38
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What are some good ways to treat frozen vegetables such that they behave like fresh vegetables when stir frying them?
The first thing is to do is thaw them properly before you cook them, half frozen vegetables will cool your pan too much. I often thaw frozen vegetables by soaking them in hot tap water, this is pretty ...
- 75.4k
26
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Keeping meat dry after salting it
Serious Eats published a great article on how to cook, sear, and season their perfect steak!
TL;DR Salt your steak and rest it on a wire-rack for 40+ minutes (ideally in a fridge overnight) before ...
- 540
21
votes
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How do you properly and consistently pan-sear shrimp?
There are a few things you can do to help your shrimp get a nice sear.
First, make sure they're as dry as possible before adding them to the pan. Use paper towels and pat dry. Especially if you're ...
- 774
20
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For smash burger patties, are you supposed to wait until the meat releases from the pan before you flip it?
don't put any oil in the pan because I read that you don't need oil if you're using 80/20 ground beef
This is your problem. Stainless steel is one of the stickiest kinds of pan there are. You always ...
- 137k
19
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Why not to cut into the meat when scoring duck breasts?
The little bit (about 4 - 5 grams after cooking) of fat in the breast itself will render out faster, and you could end up with a dryer over-crispy duck breast by the time it's done in the center. A ...
- 4,084
18
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Cooking a nice pan seared steak for picky eaters
The method you describe should work, timing wise you have it about right, except it will need longer if you are aiming for well done. Salting and oiling before cooking works well, as does letting the ...
- 75.4k
11
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How do you minimize the heat loss from adding meat to a hot pan?
Yes, you need to place the meat in a system which can keep more heat. This means 1) more mass, and 2) less conduction.
This is generally done with cast iron pans, because they are great for that ...
- 137k
10
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For smash burger patties, are you supposed to wait until the meat releases from the pan before you flip it?
To add to @rumtscho's answer, some sticking will occur regardless of the oil or material used - unless you use non-stick pans, which while difficult, can still make acceptable smash burgers. In ...
- 5,381
9
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How do you prevent chicken from sticking when searing?
Use a heavy bottomed pan. Heat pan medium high. Add oil. Place chicken skin side down. Don't move the chicken. Once you see browning, gently see if the chicken releases. If it does not, leave it. ...
- 73.8k
9
votes
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What are the secrets to a good fond?
Avoid non-stick pans. Heat the pan before you place the meat or fat in the pan. Use medium to medium high heat. Add fat (oil, butter, for example). Add the meat (pat dry), but don't crowd the pan. ...
- 73.8k
8
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How do you properly and consistently pan-sear shrimp?
Supplementary answer:
It does depend on the type of shrimp somewhat. Inexpensive shrimp are often treated with sodium triphosphate or similar chemicals. This makes the shrimp plumper and better-...
- 61.4k
7
votes
Accepted
How to make a pepper crusted steak
Most recipes I am aware of simply press crushed pepper onto the steak. It is true that some will fall off, but these recipes apply pepper generously with that in mind. I have not come across the egg ...
- 73.8k
7
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Rub Roast Before or After Searing?
I think there is a place for both. Without being aware of the particulars of this received wisdom/commandments from on high, it is a little hard to say. Seasoning of meat is often performed before ...
- 14k
7
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Keeping meat dry after salting it
You have two options:
salt the meat either long enough in advance (this will depend strongly on the cut of meat, but I have seen recommendations for salting up to two days ahead). This way, the salt ...
- 4,881
7
votes
What does it mean for a dish to be called poêlé?
"Une poêle" (pronounced "pwal") is a frying pan, so we have the verb "poêler"(pronounced "pwale") which means to cook in the pan. So we use the word "...
- 491
7
votes
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Pre pan-fry marinaded meat before oven roasting?
The concept that a "crust" on meat is protection for moisture loss is a myth. So, searing meat before roasting or braising is not a step to prevent drying. You may, however, want to sear ...
- 73.8k
7
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How do you properly and consistently pan-sear shrimp?
You are fairly close on technique. I would recommend beginning the process by using a paper or cloth towel to dry your shrimp as much as possible. Use the heaviest pan you can, cast iron is good, ...
- 73.8k
6
votes
Accepted
Preventing oil burn when searing steak
If you are asking how to prevent the oil from smoking while making a good steak: you can't. The pan for proper searing of steak has to go hotter than the smoking point of any cooking oil. So, if you ...
- 137k
6
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Preventing oil burn when searing steak
I always do my steak in cast iron, but instead of oil I use salt. Yes, you read that right, no oil in the pan. At all. The salt provides seasoning and prevents the steak from 'sticking' to the skillet....
- 1,391
6
votes
Accepted
Should I lightly boil or steam meat (eg, beef) before searing?
Yes, but I don't know if there's an official name for it. We do this a lot in pressure cooking, to get the appealing mallard reactions (caramelization). Typically, after cooking you can put the meat ...
- 594
5
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How do you minimize the heat loss from adding meat to a hot pan?
One additional factor: moisture. The more there is on the exterior of your chicken, the more energy is lost turning that moisture into steam. Try patting your chicken dry with paper towels or just a ...
- 1,903
5
votes
Rub Roast Before or After Searing?
So, I'm an "I've heard it both ways" kind of a girl and I'm also crazy OCD about my cooking so I work at learning new techniques until I find ones I am crazy about. In this situation, my favorite is ...
5
votes
Maillard Reaction at Higher Pressures
Interesting question.
It seems that the short answer is yes and no, there is some Maillard reaction that goes on at high pressure (400 MPa or more; normal air pressure is 0.1 MPa). However, this has ...
- 14k
4
votes
Accepted
How do you properly sear a sausage?
If you are frying sausages on a hot pan then it's very hard to brown them on all sides for a couple of reasons:
the curved shape will cause it to flop along the curve, they are hard to stand up
if ...
- 75.4k
4
votes
Cutting seared tuna
Practice, practice, practice.
More specifically: The searing will make the piece a bit flakier and less cohesive around the edges, so it requires a more delicate touch than raw tuna. So...
if you ...
- 3,063
4
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How do you minimize the heat loss from adding meat to a hot pan?
That seems like a big drop. Some temperature drop is expected.
The temperature and mass of the chicken is a factor. Don't use frozen chicken. You could pull the chicken from the fridge a few ...
- 6,410
4
votes
Accepted
No Butter Sous Vide: What did they mean by this?
The (alleged) problem with extra fat during SV is that, flavor molecules will dissolve in fat and subsequently be discarded.
The claim is that, this causes the loss of flavor.
For searing it’s fine ...
- 4,286
4
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What are some good ways to treat frozen vegetables such that they behave like fresh vegetables when stir frying them?
If you don't feel like waiting for them to thaw, you can submerge the bag in hot water like @GdD mentioned.
I prefer steaming frozen vegetables however. The trick is properly steaming them though.
...
- 199
4
votes
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Ok to sear beef short ribs from frozen?
Searing frozen meat is fine, and is a useful way to get a good sear without overcooking the inside (since you can sear for longer, and at a lower temperature). There are no food safety issues I can ...
- 27.2k
4
votes
Browning food too large for a frying pan
Grill, oven, or broiler can all work. Specific temperatures for the oven are not necessary, because ovens vary wildly and are rarely that precise. You can just think in terms of low (200 - 300F/93 - ...
- 73.8k
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