Tips to get the best of this Blog?
- Schedule intentional time for the email, videos and cooking
- Print out the materials and hang them on your fridge
- Practice (schedule in that cooking during times that work for you)
- Ask questions & be fearless!
Searing
is the true way to fast & flavorful food, THAT’S HEALTHY!
It yields delicious flavor by browning and caramelizing your ingredients, be it veggies or protein.
Searing is also the key to getting through the week without a meal plan.
If you know how to sear, you can make a variety of dishes without a recipe and with whatever you have in your fridge.
The trick is that searing tasks bravery!
Searing often pushing our boundaries of what’s comfortable and “right” in the kitchen, which is why so many people don’t execute it properly.
What is Searing?
Using high heat to brown your food and create an outer layer on caramelization.
Brown = Flavor
When you sear your meat or vegetables, you are caramelizing the natural sugars in the product.
This can be done two ways:
- Grilling: over open flame; intense heat and slotted grill
- Sauté: shallow fry; pan fry (very little oil)
*Both have essentially the same principles
Don't forget to print your Searing Notes to hang on your fridge!
It may seem like a small step, but this will make the difference in you actually working on the rubs this month.
The Method of Searing
Like many techniques in cooking, there are a few key rules to ensure that you get the most flavor out of this method.
Hot Pan
Your pan should be smoking hot.
When you sear an ingredient, your goal is brown food. You cannot caramelize your food without this high heat.
Without a hot pan, your food will stick. Oil helps in preventing sticking, but a hot pan is the real key. Once it’s seared we can lower the temperature if necessary.
A Little Oil
You want just enough oil to coat the pan. With a hot pan, your oil should be literally smoking.
Using plain old olive oil is ideal. Extra virgin has a lower burning point and may give your food a bitter flavor.
Your product will absorb some oil as it’s cooking, so if you are sautéing a lot of product you can always add a little oil if the pan becomes dry.
Don’t crowd the pan
When we put too many ingredients in a pan, it creates steam and prohibits browning.
Make sure there is space in your pan and cook in batches if you need to.
Don’t Touch!
This is the biggest mistake everyone makes. When you are constantly moving your food, your are interrupting that contact between your ingredient and the bottom of the pan.
That contact is ESSENTIAL in browning.
Don’t touch until you see the bottom edges of your ingredient beginning to brown.
Don't forget to print your Searing Notes to hang on your fridge!
It may seem like a small step, but this will make the difference in you actually working on the rubs this month.
Browned meat isn’t enough…. it’s important to learn to balance browning the outside and keeping the inside juicy & moist.
Different meats cook at different rates (i.e. chicken breast vs chicken thigh)
- Leaner cuts of meat cook faster than fattier cuts
- Bone out cooks faster than bone in
Cooking steak (red meat)
Once your red meat is seared on each side and has a nice char, you can use the following guidelines to get to the desired temperature.
Rare +2 minutes
Medium rare +4 minutes
Medium +6 minutes
Medium well +8 minutes
Pro Tips:
Let your meat get to room temperature before cooking. This will allow it to cook more evenly.
Rest your meat at least 5 min to allow the juices to settle.
You can cover with foil to keep warm.
**Remember: When your meat rests it will continue to cook. Red meat always carries over 1 temperature.
Cooking With Your Kids:
This cooking method may feel a bit too much if you are not used to having your child in the kitchen.
Whenever our clients do not yet feel comfortable bringing their kiddos in the kitchen, I always recommend engaging in other ways.
- Allow your child to watch from a safe distance with their eye level even to yours. (stools and kitchen chairs will help bring their gaze to a safe level to watch the food cook)
- Talk your child through what you’re doing and tell food-centric stories
- Allow your child to prep other elements of the meal
crushing garlic
picking herbs
cutting soft ingredients with a kid safe knife
Don’t forget to print your Searing Notes to hang on your fridge!
It may seem like a small step, but this will make the difference in you actually working on the rubs this month.
