cooking with meat
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How to Cook a Tender Juicy Steak
You invest a lot of time and money into the steaks for a special occasion and when dinner time comes, they are tough. What happened? How can you cook steaks as tender as your favorite restaurant? The first step to cooking a good steak is to choose the right grade of steak. The top quality beef is graded USDA Prime and commands top prices. USDA Prime grade meats are sold to the restaurant industry and specialty markets and are not as likely to be found at your local grocery chain. The next grade of beef is USDA Choice. USDA Choice is tender, flavorful and only slightly lower in quality than USDA Prime. The meat is well marbled with fat and will be tender and juicy when properly prepared. USDA Choice makes up about 70% of all graded beef and is readily available in your supermarket. USDA… Read more -
Braising 101
The results of braising are comforting, healthy dishes that retain the nutrients of the ingredients and require little fat. For braising, foods are slowly cooked in a relatively small amount of liquid in a covered pot on top of a stove or in an oven. This is closely related to stewing, although with less liquid and bigger pieces of food, usually. Large saucepans are ideal for braising. The versatile Dutch oven is my favorite and can be used on top of the stove or in the oven. Contrary to the general rule that healthful foods should be prepared as close to mealtime as possible, braised dishes are often times better when prepared the day before. This waiting period allows the flavors to meld. In addition, when these dishes are refridgerated, any fat forms on the surface allowing easier… Read more -
Indian Tandoori
Traditionally, tandoori dishes are cooked in a tandoor, an oval shaped clay oven with a small fire in the bottom. The heat rises gradually but ultimately reaches a much higher temperature than a barbeque. A tandoor is normally used to cook naan bread, meats and kebabs (meat or paneer). The bread is stuck to the sides, the kebabs stood vertically and whole chickens rested on a grid over the fire. For domestic cooking, a tandoor is not really convenient but the meat dishes can be reproduced on a barbeque or in the oven. The bright red appearance of tandoori meats which you may see in Indian restaurants is produced by a food dye which really isn’t necessary to enhance the look of your tandoori dishes. I have a great fondness for tandoori style food. It has flavour, without being… Read more
