In what dishes is it better to cook meat?
There are many ways to cook. And in order to choose the most suitable one, it is necessary to decide which processing method preserves all the valuable elements of the products. Today we decided to figure out which cooking method is the most optimal and tell which cookware is the best to cook meat, since the taste of the finished dish largely depends on the shape of the utensil and the material used in its manufacture.
to contents ↑Cook, fry, steam or bake?
To choose the most suitable way of cooking meat, you need to know what we can gain or what we risk losing. There are not so many ways to cook meat, however, these options represent a whole field of possibilities. In addition, there are countless recipes, and each has a ton of variations. For the preparation of each meat dish you need your own dishes.
Basic methods of cooking meat:
- Frying in a pan. This is the fastest and most suitable cooking method for thick and tender pieces of meat. A frying pan acts as a heating surface, which can be either with a flat bottom or with special ribs for steaks.
Important! In a separate article, see a selection of interesting recipes, how best to fry pork.
- Grill. This is the general name for cooking meat on charcoal or appliances with a heating element. Cooking is due to direct heat coming from coal, as well as from heat reflected from the walls and lid of the grill. The temperature inside the grill can exceed 300 degrees, which leads to a quick clogging of the pores of the food. Due to this property, cooked dishes become more tender.
Important! Under the influence of high temperatures there is a rapid melting of fat. This helps make food less oily.
- Roasting. The oven is a great invention of mankind. Today it is in every kitchen. Food cooked in the oven becomes much more healthy than any other, because it is cooked without direct contact with fire or a heating surface. In terms of uniformity of heat treatment, the oven is an unrivaled leader. Oven baking is recommended for large pieces of meat.
Important! To choose the appropriate mode and method, the processing time of the products, based on which dish you want to receive, use our detailed tips from the post “Setting the temperature in the oven”.
- Stewing is a long-term processing of meat in containers with thick walls and a lid. During stewing, pieces of meat are cooked in their own juice, so this is the most useful way to prepare a product that is suitable for not very large pieces of meat.
to contents ↑Important! Stew can be served as a separate dish with a vegetable side dish, and immediately stew with mushrooms or vegetables.
In which dishes is it better to stew meat?
Each housewife has her own “signature” recipe and her own “highlight”, but the dishes in which the dish is prepared also affect the taste of stew. Modern industry produces a huge assortment of kitchen utensils made from various materials. What to choose, in which dish is it better to cook meat? We suggest that you familiarize yourself with the traditional options for stewing meat.
Duckweed or goose
Thick, oblong-shaped pans are ideal for stewing whole birds.Duck, goose, chicken and turkey are completely placed in such dishes and evenly fried.
The main advantage of the ducklings is the uniform distribution of heat. The design of the dishes allows you to cook not only a bird, but also roast, stew, hodgepodge. Products in the gooseneck do not burn, but a tight-fitting lid allows you to save all their valuable elements.
Important! Any dish cooked in gooseberries is juicy, aromatic and very tasty.
Stewpan
This cookware is a cross between a pan and a pan. However, unlike these types of utensils, the stewpan is not intended for cooking and frying, but for stewing meat and vegetable dishes, as well as for preparing a variety of sauces.
The range of this ware is wide enough. If you prefer to stew meat in a saucepan, then prefer dishes with thickened walls and the bottom. This design will not allow food to burn, and the lid will help maintain a high temperature and prevent the evaporation of liquid.
Important! The stewpan is ideal for cooking meat stew, mushrooms, stewing vegetables. In this dish, you can fry food, and then, adding to the sauce or broth, continue to stew. Thanks to the high walls, meat and any other products are stewed evenly, they do not need to be mixed often, and the dishes are juicy.
When buying a stewpan, pay attention to the lid. A good cover should fit snugly and have a small hole for steam to escape. Without such a hole, with high heating, the lid will jump, which means that it will have to be shifted periodically, which is not convenient.
Cauldron
A traditional cauldron is a cast-iron pot with thick walls and a semicircular bottom. A cauldron is used for cooking meat, pilaf over an open fire.
A modern cauldron can be used to stew meat on a gas stove. The meat in it heats evenly and does not burn. In addition, due to its design, the cauldron allows the use of less oil.
Important! Cauldrons are very popular, they can cook not only traditional pilaf, but also any other meat and vegetable dishes. The main thing is to observe the cleanliness of such dishes. And you can easily do this if you bookmark our selection of ways, how to clean a cauldron.
Latka
Latka is a dish with thick walls and a flat bottom. Cookware for stewing meat, poultry, fish and vegetables. The flat bottom of the patches is evenly heated and retains heat for a long time. Characteristic features of this cookware are:
- Oval or round shape.
- Low side (5-7 cm).
- Shallow groove for draining fluid and grease.
- Tight-fitting lid.
Important! Modern latches are made of ceramics, cast iron, heat-resistant glass, aluminum alloy. Latka allows you to stew meat in its own juice, which allows you to save all the useful substances of the product.
Casserol
Casserole is a thick-walled ceramic or glass pan (pot) designed for long-term standing in the oven. In this dish, it is good to cook meat in sauce, stew vegetables, poultry and seafood. Thanks to the design and the sealed lid, dishes prepared in casserole have a very delicate, juicy and aromatic taste.
Important! The extinguishing process in this container may take from 45 minutes to 3 hours.
Brazier
The roaster is a pan with two handles, a wide bottom and a flat lid. This design allows heat to spread evenly and act on food. Inside the frypot during cooking with a closed lid, the correct air circulation is created, which allows you to evenly distribute heat to the products.
Important! A roasting pan is a cookware that is ideal for cooking meat. All meat dishes cooked in the brazier have a rich aroma and taste that is incomparable with anything. Most often, braziers are made of cast iron or aluminum.
Cast iron
A cast-iron pot is very popular in villages.Of course, now there are no Russian stoves and grips, but so far the cast irons have not disappeared anywhere, they are still popular. Now you can use the iron for long stewing in the oven. It is in the cast iron that the dishes are especially aromatic and tasty, perhaps this is because the food in this dish comes to readiness when the fire is off.
Important! The cast iron is perfect for stewing meat, cooking stews, pilaf and other dishes that require a long exposure to heat.
Ceramic pot
Clay dishes have been used for many centuries. It is environmentally friendly and gives the dishes a unique rich taste. Dishes prepared in clay pots retain all their useful elements, as they are stewed in their own juice with the addition of sour cream or broth. You can forget about extra fat, as it is simply not needed for stewing in a pot. In addition, ceramic dishes retain heat for a long time - serving the dish on the table, you can not worry about the fact that the food cools quickly.
Important! When laying products in a pot, consider the time of their preparation in order to get a mouth-watering and aesthetically beautiful dish at the output. The meat needs much more time to get ready than the potato, so that the output does not turn out to be a porridge-like dish, bring some products to a half-cooked state, for example, lightly fry the meat, stew a little in a saucepan, and then place it in a pot of vegetables.
Meat, fish and vegetable dishes are best prepared in portioned pots with a volume of 250-500 ml.
Pan
For stewing meat, you can use a variety of pans with a thick bottom. By the way, far from everything has been invented in the pan business, and recently a lot of interesting novelties have appeared.
to contents ↑The dishes are good and different
So that the dishes not only help the preparation of dishes, but also serve for a long time, it is necessary to choose the right material for its manufacture.
Aluminum
More recently, aluminum pans were the most common. This is the cheapest and unpretentious dishes. It is indispensable for boiling water, milk, suitable for cooking potatoes, non-acidic vegetables and cereals.
However, in aluminum utensils it is strictly forbidden to cook:
- spicy and sour dishes;
- meat in sweet and sour sauce.
Acid can react with the metal and produce harmful compounds.
In operation, aluminum cookware is short-lived, and over time dark spots appear on it. The food easily burns to the bottom, but it is difficult to wash it off, since it is impossible to scrape aluminum with a brush or metal washcloth. All of the above applies to aluminum pans. They can fry potatoes or sauté vegetables, but only a wooden or plastic spoon needs to be mixed.
Important! Aluminum dishes are not suitable for the preparation of baby food and dietary dishes.
Enamelware
The utensils are made of cast iron or iron and covered in 2-3 layers with glassy enamel. Such a coating can protect metal from corrosion. In addition to good appearance and cheapness, enameled dishes have no special advantages. Food in such dishes burns quickly, especially milk and meat. But for the preparation of all kinds of pickles and various preparations for the winter, enameled dishes are ideal.
Important! As for durability, the strength of such dishes is unenviable. Any hit with a spoon leads to chips and damage to the coating.
Stainless steel
This dish has replaced the “aluminum” and to this day remains the most popular. Stainless steel dishes delight the eye with their brilliance, each time after washing it looks like new. In addition, stainless steel does not react with any products even at very high temperatures, preserves all their useful elements.
Important! To make it easier for you to choose really high-quality kitchenware, check out our rating of stainless steel cookware manufacturers.
You can cook meat in such dishes, but you need to do it clearly according to recipes, it is good to pre-heat the container and monitor for possible burning.
Important! Such dishes serve for a long time, and it’s easy to care for them. If the food is burnt, you can simply fill the pan or pan with a soap (soda) solution and allow time to soak.
When cleaning, it is better to avoid hard washcloths so as not to damage the shiny surface. And what exactly to use - see in our article "Cleaning dishes from stainless steel".
Cast iron
Cast iron cookware is called eternal, because it does not deform, is not afraid of scratches and does not fade. Cast irons and gooseberries are good for dishes that require long cooking, as the food practically does not burn.
The dishes are ideal for cooking stews, poultry and pilaf, and cast-iron pans are indispensable for cooking pancakes and fritters. Cast iron slowly heats up and also cools very slowly, so the food in such dishes remains hot for a long time.
Important! The only drawback of cast iron is its tendency to rust from water, so the dishes must be dried immediately after washing.
Ceramics
Refractory ceramics are among the exquisite kitchen utensils and such dishes are great for cooking meat. Food prepared in such a dish acquires a special taste, which lasts much longer than in any other dish. Using this dish, you can not be afraid of any chemical reactions, in addition, all the useful substances and properties completely remain on the products.
Very elegant, beautiful glass ceramic or refractory porcelain dishes. It is durable, indispensable for microwave ovens.
Important! Disadvantages of ceramics: poorly conducts heat compared to metals, fragility. Ceramic dishes can easily be broken.
Refractory glass
This is the last cry of pan fashion, although they are made of glass and teapots:
- Refractory glass is completely inert, therefore, does not react with any food.
- Heat-resistant glass absorbs heat well, does not lend itself to scale formation, and is easy to clean.
- Due to its low thermal conductivity, food cools slowly in heat-resistant glassware.
- Food prepared in a glass dish looks beautiful, aesthetically pleasing.
- Food in such dishes does not burn, and since the glass form is transparent, the hostess can always assess the degree of readiness of the dish.
Important! Despite all the advantages, when handling such dishes, you must adhere to safety measures: avoid collisions with heavy metal objects, sudden changes in temperature, do not use for cooking on the stove.
Teflon coated cookware
Teflon-coated kitchen utensils began in the 1950s. Very soon she conquered the whole world, and if you think in what kind of dishes it is better to cook meat so as not to use extra fats and get a well-cooked or stewed dish, then it is quite suitable for this purpose.
Teflon coated dishes are very diverse:
- Teflon-coated dishes are aluminum, steel, enameled on the outside.
- The inner surface is smooth, corrugated, cellular. These patterns are designed for more uniform heating. Smooth life teflon pans - 3-4 years, with a cellular coating - 5-6 years, and pots, pans with a rough, thickened coating will last up to 10 years.
to contents ↑Important! The thicker the walls and bottom, the longer the dishes will last. Please note that stirring food in such dishes is necessary with a wooden or teflon spatula so as not to damage the surface.
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The kitchen is a place where a woman makes real colonels from ordinary men and decides the fate of the state. And let only the best household items surround a woman on this important site. We hope that our tips will help you choose the best type of dishes, in which dishes will be not only healthy, but also aesthetically beautiful.