Cooking 101: Cooking Methods

There are so many different ways to cook and many different proteins. If you're a novice in the kitchen, how do you decide what method to use? Here's a helpful guide to get you started.

Saute: to cook in a shallow pan with a small amount of oil or fat over relatively high heat. This method is best for thinner foods, like steak or pork chops or chicken cutlets.. Since you're using high heat, you're able to get a nice sear on your protein. The key is to have a uniform thickness not much more than an inch. Any more than that and you tend to have a burnt exterior by the time the center of your meat is done.

Roast: to cook using dry heat such as in an oven. This method is typically done with larger cuts of meat and whole birds. When you have a steak, for example, over an inch thick, you would do well to use a mixture of cooking methods such as sauteing first to sear the surface and then finish off by roasting in the oven. (See recipe for How To Cook a Perfect Chicken Breast for an example of this method)

Poach: to cook foods in liquid that is well below the boiling point. There are no bubbles breaking the surface of the liquid. This method is a gentle cooking method for delicate proteins such as eggs and fish.

Simmer: to cook foods in liquid at or just below boiling, but higher than poaching temperature. 

Braise: to cook with a combination of moist and dry heat; to cook by sauteing first, then adding liquid and simmering. Braising is ideal for larger, tough cuts of meat that need prolonged cooking times to become tender. The key to this method is low and slow. The tough connective tissue needs time to break down into gelatin to make it tender but in order for you to have good texture, it needs to be seared first. Otherwise you'll end up with boiled meat. (See recipe for Braised Short Ribs Beef Stew for an example of this method)

Stew: to cook as in braising, except with small chunks of food instead of whole roasts.