In this article I give you a list of all my favourite techniques to cook chicken meat, but this is not only for chicken meat, almost all of these instructions can be used to cook other type of poultry meat :)
My main meat preparation and cooking tips :
Bring meat to room temperature before cooking. Meat to be roasted, pan-grilled or barbecued should be left out of the fridge for a period of time (30 minutes to 1½ hours) to reach room temperature. This reduces the core temperature and the overall cooking time of the meat.
Rest grilled or roasted meat after cooking. When raw meat hits the pan or oven, it
begins to contract, and as it cooks and contracts, the juices (blood) are forced to the
centre of the meat. If you cut into it immediately it is cooked, the juices will still be
concentrated in the centre. Allowing the meat to rest and cool a little, relaxes the meat
fibres and lets the juices redistribute evenly throughout the meat. The more juices, the more
flavour and tenderness. The larger the cut of meat, the longer the resting time required.
Rest the average steak in a warm place for 5–10 minutes, and a large roast for up to 1 hour
covered in foil. (Braised or stewed meats do not need to be rested.)
Frying or grilling
Remember ‘hot’ when exposing meat to a pan or grill top; a continual sizzling sound should
always be present. Brown the meat on both sides in a hot pan then adjust the heat to finish,
but be careful not to drop the heat so much that the meat starts to stew. It is sometimes
recommended that thick-cut steaks be finished in a hot oven. This practice helps those who
are in the habit of turning their meat 50 times to stop it from burning before it is cooked,
but is really only suitable for those who enjoy cremating their food.
Sealing meat to lock in the juices
New research shows that it is in fact a fallacy that moisture is retained by sealing meat
(see also Braising). However, browning the meat before finishing the cooking enhances its
flavour and texture: it adds a delicious crust that contrasts satisfyingly with a rare
centre.
to salt or not to salt?
When anything with a water content, whether meat, fruit or vegetables, comes into contact
with salt, the salt will begin to draw out the water. The amount of salt and the time the
food is exposed to it will determine the extraction rate of moisture. So a steak that is
salted and left to sit while the pan heats up will lose valuable juices, while a steak that
is salted after it is cooked misses the point, as the meat has already been sealed. The best
option is to season the meat with salt just before it hits the pan, ready to be sealed.
This way the salt cooks onto the meat, enhancing the flavour of the cut, without drawing out
valuable juices. Watch as crystal salt flakes caramelise on the surface of the meat when
exposed to a hot pan.
with salt, the salt will begin to draw out the water. The amount of salt and the time the
food is exposed to it will determine the extraction rate of moisture. So a steak that is
salted and left to sit while the pan heats up will lose valuable juices, while a steak that
is salted after it is cooked misses the point, as the meat has already been sealed. The best
option is to season the meat with salt just before it hits the pan, ready to be sealed.
This way the salt cooks onto the meat, enhancing the flavour of the cut, without drawing out
valuable juices. Watch as crystal salt flakes caramelise on the surface of the meat when
exposed to a hot pan.
Roasting
Having the meat boned then netted or trussed by the butcher is recommended to hold plain or filled roast cuts in an even shape while roasting, portioning and carving. Season the joint
with salt and pepper, spice rubs or pastes or chopped herbs.Seal or brown very lean cuts of meat (beef, veal or lamb) before roasting.
Pre-sealing a roast in a hot pan improves colour and flavour, particularly when using small, very lean beef or lamb cuts that need only a short amount of cooking.
Sealing a joint before moving it to the oven forms a crust and cooks on the seasonings,
and allows the oven to be kept on a lower temperature (160°C).
A digital meat thermometer (probe) is a wise investment if you roast a lot of red meat.
Insert the thermometer into the thickest part of the meat, away from any fat or bones (which
have a higher temperature reading while cooking), as it goes into the oven and leave it
there the entire time the meat is roasted. Depending on how you like your meat cooked, the
core temperature will let you know when to remove the roast. This is as close to foolproof
as you can get. Core temperatures for doneness are: 45°C = rare; 55°C = medium-rare; 65°C = medium; 75–80°C = well to very well done. Also take into account that while the meat is resting, it is in fact still cooking and the core temperature can rise by another 2°C for a
small roast to 8°C for a large joint of meat.
If a thermometer is not available then the old ‘time by weight’ method will do just
fine. Allow 30 minutes for every 500 g. For example, 1½ hours for a leg of lamb that weighs
1.5 kg.
Sealing a joint before moving it to the oven forms a crust and cooks on the seasonings,
and allows the oven to be kept on a lower temperature (160°C).
A digital meat thermometer (probe) is a wise investment if you roast a lot of red meat.
Insert the thermometer into the thickest part of the meat, away from any fat or bones (which
have a higher temperature reading while cooking), as it goes into the oven and leave it
there the entire time the meat is roasted. Depending on how you like your meat cooked, the
core temperature will let you know when to remove the roast. This is as close to foolproof
as you can get. Core temperatures for doneness are: 45°C = rare; 55°C = medium-rare; 65°C = medium; 75–80°C = well to very well done. Also take into account that while the meat is resting, it is in fact still cooking and the core temperature can rise by another 2°C for a
small roast to 8°C for a large joint of meat.
If a thermometer is not available then the old ‘time by weight’ method will do just
fine. Allow 30 minutes for every 500 g. For example, 1½ hours for a leg of lamb that weighs
1.5 kg.
Crumbing or breading
Never add salt to meat before crumbing. It will draw out the moisture and make the crumbs
turn soggy. Instead, season the egg mixture and the flour with salt and pepper.
To add flavour to the meat, you can stuff it or marinate it (remember to pat dry with
paper towel before crumbing). To add flavour to bread crumbs, rub in freshly crushed garlic
(2 teaspoons crushed garlic for every 500 g bread crumbs will get you started) or add
freshly ground black pepper and torn or roughly shredded flat-leaf parsley. Your homemade
parmigiana will never taste the same again.
Braising
For most braised dishes, the cut of meat is first dredged in flour then pan-fried. The flour
acts as a thickening agent as well as adding colour to the sauce. The purpose of this is not
to lock in the juices, as braising meat may take several hours in which time any juices that
were ‘locked in’ have well and truly escaped into the braising liquor. Never assume that the
longer meat braises the better off it will be. Meat can overbraise to the point where it
falls off the bone or turns into mush. Depending on the type, size and cut of meat, stick to
the requested time limit, check for done-ness, then give or take time after checking.
Pot roasting
Resist adding too much liquid or the pot roast will become a stew.
Problem solving
* Steak curls as it cooks? Some cuts have a tough membrane attached to the meat that when exposed to heat causes the cut of meat to curl or twist, making the opposite side near
impossible to brown evenly. Simply place small incisions at intervals in the membrane,
making sure the cut goes through to the meat.
* Is the steak done? When pressed with a finger, a cooked steak will feel different (softer,
firmer, springier) depending on how well it is done. The professional cook learns by
experience to tell a rare from a medium-rare steak, but for domestic cooks who don’t cook
hundreds of steaks a year, telling the difference can be difficult. A good way to learn is to make a small incision in one side of the steak and look to see how done it is. (Remember to
serve with the cut side down.) Of course, the sealed surface area has now been cut, allowing
valuable juices to escape. So once the incision has been made, also press the meat with a
finger and remember what that pressure feels like. Soon you will be able to tell what a rare
steak feels like without having to cut into it.
* Undercooked one person’s steak? Slice it in two (lengthways) and place back in the pan
for another minute or so; now you have two steaks.
* Undercooked roast? As you usually don’t discover it’s undercooked until you’ve started
carving, placing it back in the oven is not an option. The best thing to do is slice the
meat a bit thicker and finish cooking each piece as a steak.
* Burnt a casserole, stew or soup? Don’t stir it! Plonk the pot immediately into a sink of
cold water to stop the cooking. This is an important step. Then lift out the ingredients
without disturbing the bottom of the pot, and place in a fresh pot or dish. Taste the food
to assess whether the burnt flavour has permeated the liquid and if so, by how much. If it’s
really bad, the bin is the only option. If it tastes only slightly burnt, try masking the
flavour with a sauce such as Worcestershire sauce, barbecue sauce or tomato paste, or with
other strong flavours such as garlic, chilli or onion (sautéed first in a separate pan) or
spices (dry-roasted first).
I hope you will cook perfect chicken meat, beef or any meat thanks to these little tips. Please share a review or your personal cooking tips by commenting this article.
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