How To Simmer Your Meat and Vegetables
Have you ever wondered on how to simmer food?
If your answer is ‘yes’ then you’re lucky as the topic of this article is specially designed for you. This article will explain to you the most common methods of cooking and one of them is simmering. It will also guide you in choosing healthy recipes. After reading this article you’ll certainly be able to grasp the art of cooking healthy food with minimum effort.
Ways to cook food
There are different ways to cook food in terms of its temperature. You can boil, simmer and steam. Boiling food is quite old method of cooking but is now considered as old school cooking. You can still find recipes that use boiled food but most likely they would be healthier meals than boiled food.
The only reason why I’m adding to the controversy is because of the health benefits of boiling your food. People used to believe that by boiling their food, it would lose its nutrients and therefore won’t be healthy. But recently people have been trying to create home-cooked meals that are easy to cook and at the same time tasty and healthy. So, let us get started. You can always go for steaming instead of boiling when you want to learn how to simmer food.
First, you must know what is the difference between cooking and simmering. Steaming is the process of heating food in water or other liquids, such as broth. Boiling is a more old method of cooking that involves boiling water over a high temperature. To me, cooking and simmering are not the same. And here’s why.
When cooking, you boil the food in liquid so that the nutrients in the food are released gradually. When simmering, on the other hand, water is heated to a boiling point and the food is simmered. The process of cooking and steaming are very different. When cooking, you use a lower temperature to cook food. As you continue to simmer, the food becomes tender, moist and absorbs flavors well. So, the process of cooking and simmering are different.
To me, the whole concept behind steaming is to release the nutrients in the food. This is why Chinese people tend to prefer Chinese cuisine (no pun intended) over western cuisines for its rich nutrient content. But this doesn’t mean that all foods should be cooked in this manner. Vegetables and fruits can be steamed, as well as meats and fish. Just keep in mind that they will retain most of their vitamins and minerals when they are cooked.
How to simmer?
You’ll need a heavy pan, a wire rack and some sharp cooking knives to practice this cooking method. You can use different size of pots and utensils to accommodate different amounts of food. You also need to use enough amount of liquid (water) to cover the food you are cooking. For example, if you are cooking a pound of beef, use about 2 cups of water. Then, add the beef and gently simmer it for approximately four hours.
After the simmering, use a thickener if you wish to add flavor to the beef. If you don’t do this, the meat might end up having an unappetizing taste. In fact, this cooking technique is very easy. All you have to do is follow the steps mentioned above. Soon, you will be able to learn how to simmer in the kitchen!
This cooking method is ideal for meat like beef and pork. However, it can also be used for poultry, fish and other meats. Of course, there are no special techniques or secrets to making this cooking technique work for your recipes. It’s just about knowing how to simmer. So, let’s get started. Place some salt on the meat while it’s cooking so that the flavor will remain.
Add a medium-size onion to the water and sprinkle it with pepper. Then, place the beef and onion mixture into the pot and bring it to a simmer. Add enough water so that there will be no room for the meat to dry out. Once you see that the meat is almost fully submerged in the water, turn the burner on low.
Reduce the heat and cover the pot tightly. Let it sit and simmer for approximately twenty minutes. At the end of the simmering time, remove the lid and fluff up your beef with a fork. Put it into the pan and let it cook until it is done. Once it’s cooked, remove it from the pot and add it to your dinner plate.
