Home chefs like to fancy themselves knowledgeable about cooking, but no matter how much you love meat and devote yourself to cooking it, it’s likely that Brisbanes best butcher knows a thing or two more than you do about how to get meat just right every time. You could ask your butcher for tips directly, or you could take a look at this handy Top 10 list to find out a few helpful ways to make your meat better than ever before the next time you head to the kitchen.
- Select The Right Kind Of Meat
Different cuts of meat will have varying levels of juiciness and tenderness. For example, ribeye steak is going to be juicier than a tenderloin steak. If juicy and tender is what you’re going for, you want to look for more marbling on cuts of meat, and you want to make sure that you’ve found out in general just what the juiciest kinds of meat will be.
- Look For Bright Red Coloring
If you’re shopping in a grocery store, chances are that they’re not aging their meat in the proper way, so you want to look for cuts of meat that are bright red and shining out at you from the freezer. If you get darker colors, it’s likely that the meat is older and definitely not aged in a way that would make it tastier.
- Evenly Cook Your Meat
If you want a juicier, more tender piece of meat, you also want a more consistent piece of meat. Let your meat at least come to room temperature before you toss it on the grill or in the frying pan or oven. Why? Well, evenly cooking your meat can contribute to just how juicy and good it is all over.
- Let Cooked Meat Settle
After cooking a piece of meat you’re looking forward to, it’s sometimes hard to be patient before eating it, but if you want the juices to really settle and be great out of the oven or off the grill, you want to make sure that you let the meat sit for at least 5 minutes. All those juices and flavors will be waiting for you once the time is up.
- Keep Meat Moist With Marinade
Some folks swear by marinades to keep meat from becoming dry. These marinades keep things juicy and moist so that the meat doesn’t become dry once it hits the pan and begins to cook. Many people also use marinades before they cook the meat and let them sit overnight.
- Brine Meat
Brined meat retains more moisture than unbrined meat, to the tune of 30% more moisture retained in brined meat. This is an older technique, but some people still swear by it.
- Listen To A Butcher
No matter how much you cook, chances are you don’t know as much about meat as a butcher. It’s your butcher who is trained to spot great cuts of meat and subpar ones. He or she will know what select of cuts to buy and which ones to steer clear of.
- Learn To Spot Marbling
Marbling is easy to spot. That’s the streaks of fat running through the meat, and they’re white and fairly easy to learn. The more marbling, the more fat, and fatter pieces of meat tend to be mouth wateringly juicy compared to the lesser marbled pieces. Your butcher can help you spot marbling as well. Don’t be afraid to ask a few questions.
- Oil The Steak, Not The Pan
For tender, juicy meat, stop oiling the pan and massage oil into the cut of meat instead. This really gets the oil into the meat and doesn’t burn off in the pan. It makes for one juicy steak.
- Salt Only Before Cooking
If you let salt sit on meat for too long, it’s going to take away some of the moisture from the meat, so salt only right before you’re about to throw the meat in the pan, in the oven, or on the grill.
If you follow these few simple tips, you’ll be having juicier and more tender steaks than ever before in your life.