There are certainly some cooking methods that you have heard of, but do not know very well what they mean. Ten Techniques You Surely Use When Cooking!Research shows that certain methods can transform our food in a way that may even harm our health.
Broiling, probably the earliest known process of cooking meat, consisted in exposing the surface to direct heat, so that the outside of the meat was well browned, and the inside rendered tender and juicy. The primitive method of broiling meat was by burying it in hot ashes. The meat is turned during broiling by a pair of tongs, as a fork would cause the juices to escape. Small birds, such as quails, may be excellently broiled in about 10 min.; white meat as a rule requires longer cooking than red.
Grilling is used for foods such as steak, cutlets, bacon, fish, etc., which can be cooked in a few minutes under a gas or electric griller.
Roasting is really the application of the principles of broiling to larger joints of meat, for which it is an economical process and one producing excellent results. As in broiling, exposure to the greatest heat should come at the beginning of the cooking, so that the meat juices are sealed in and the joint, when cut, exudes a rich, reddish gravy. The interior of the joint should then be allowed to cook in a rather gentler heat, by means of which the fibres are loosened, the connective tissue is changed into gelatin, the fibrin and albumen arc oxidised, and the fat cells broken. The fat and tissues on the surface of the meat become caramelised and browned, and acquire a distinctive odour and flavour.
The joint should be frequently basted with melted fat in order to prevent evaporation of the watery portion of the meat juice. The time required for roasting is from 15 to 20 min. for each pound of meat, white meat taking longer than red. Meat can be roasted in a thick saucepan by melting sufficient fat to cover the bottom, and when hot putting in the meat, browning it on all sides, covering with a lid, and continuing to cook over a low heat.
How To Cook Healthier With These Cooking Methods
Baking is now the usual way of roasting meat in an oven. It is placed in an open tin and heat applied all round at once, instead of to one side at a time. Baking is also applied to other kinds of food besides meat, e.g. fish is more appetising when baked. It can either be wrapped entirely in greased paper or foil, so retaining all the flavour, or laid in a greased casserole, with dabs of fat placed on top. Pies containing either meat or fruit are usually baked, and a meat pie possesses many advantages over plain baked meat, since the surface is protected from charring by the crust, and the meat practically stews in its own juices. All forms of pastry are baked, and require a hot oven. Special care should be taken to close the oven door gently during the early stages of cake baking, or the risen mixture may collapse. Cakes require a wide range of temp. Plain cakes and scones are baked at a high temp.; rich cake mixture and gingerbreads are baked at a lower temp.
Stewing is the slow cooking of food in a little liquid in a closed vessel. It is the method recommended for tough fibrous meat; various other ingredients, such as root vegetables and herbs, may be added to the meat and cooked together with it. Since none of the constituents of the materials used can escape, stewing is a most economical method of cooking, and is rendered doubly so by the fact that coarse and tough meat may be made palatable, tender and digestible by its means. In many ways it is the ideal method of cooking meat, but success depends on keeping the temp. below about 180° F. Lean meat is best for stewing; it should be cut into small pieces and slightly browned by frying in fat before being placed in the stewpan.
It should then be covered . It should then be covered with water or stock, and set to cook for 3 to 5 hrs, particular care being taken to prevent boiling, so that the albumen does not harden, and the meat cooks in its own gradually extracted juices. Vegetables, flavourings and thickening matter may be added as desired. The principle of stewing is also employed in the making of broth, and of soup or beef tea.
Meat and bones for the making of soup should be placed in cold water and gradually raised to boiling-point, so that the escape of meat juices into the liquid is not hindered by hardening of the albumen. Since, however, the solid constituents are not eaten, bone stock is boiled slowly for sev. hours in order to extract the gelatinous matter. It is this gelatine which causes soup to form a jelly when cold, but contrary to belief it has no great food value.
By the addition, however, of vegetables, and starches or nitrogenous matter such as cheese, macaroni, beans or lentils, thick or cream soups are nourishing, as well as stimulating. Vegetable water or vegetable stock also makes a good basis for soups. Stewing is also a common method of cooking fruit, by making a syrup of sugar dissolved in warm water, and adding the fruit, which is cooked gently, but not boiled.
Braising is a combination of stewing and baking, or pot roasting. It is an excellent method of cooking meat, because the cheaper cuts or tougher joints become tender after being treated this way. The meat is fried, after removing the surplus fat, in a small quantity of hot fat for a few minutes until the outer covering is sealed and browned all over, and then it is removed from the pan. A liberal quantity of sliced root vegetables is lightly fried in the fat, and then placed in a saucepan or casserole, with water or stock half covering them; seasoning and a bouquet garni being added. The meat is then placed on top of the vegetables, and the saucepan or casserole covered with a lid; the contents being cooked over a low heat or in a slow oven for 2 to 3 hrs. Poultry, game and root vegetables may also be cooked this way.
vegetables may also be cooked this way. Boiling, or cooking by immersion in boiling water. Coagulation of proteins, as in the case of the egg, takes place in a temp. of about 180° F., and an egg cooked in this temp. for 10 to 15 min. is more easily digested than one kept at boiling point. The usual method of cooking eggs by boiling for 4 min. is far from ideal, as it allows the albuminous white to become overcooked while leaving the yolk underdone. A much better plan is to place the eggs in boiling water (half a pint to each egg) and leave them in gradually cooling water for about 20 min. This method can also be applied to fish, but to retain the flavor steaming or baking is preferable. Certain semi-liquid foods, such as milk puddings, jams and jellies, are cooked by boiling the substance itself, constant stirring being necessary in such cases to prevent burning.
Allied to boiling is steaming, for which the food is placed n a covered vessel having a perforated bottom which fits tightly over a saucepan of boiling water. Steaming takes rather longer than boiling, but is preferable in many ways, giving a finer flavor, and preventing the surface of puddings from becoming sodden through con-tact with water.
Vegetables should not be cooked too long, or at too high a temp., otherwise valuable vitamins and salts are lost. They can be steamed; cooked conservatively, i.e. in a little water; or braised. Most vegetables when grated can be eaten raw with salad and they are very nutritious taken this way. Green vegetables should be fresh; washed thoroughly, care being taken not to bruise the leaves; and they should not be left in water for more than a few minutes. Root vegetables should be scrubbed, and if necessary peeled very thinly.