EP 5 - Meat

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Meat - "To Beef or not to Beef, that is the question"

I hope you enjoyed episode 5, here are the notes and a recipe below

Lean Meat - These meats are your typical steaks and chops.  As we discussed in Episode 1, we need to cook these to temperature, not time.  This will result in moist, delicious meat.  Overcook them and they become tough!

Fatty Meats and Tough Meats - These meats are usually your big joints of meat.  The stuff you often see flung into an oven and overcooked, or undercooked..  They mostly consist of Fat and Collagen. 

Fat - Fat can make things rubbery.  However, if can also add lots and lots of FLAVOUR!  You just need to know how to treat it.  Fat likes to be rendered down, slowly.  It begins the rendering process at 55c, so the secret is hold it about this temperature.  Be careful, if the fat is connected to lean meat, then you run the danger of drying out the meat! A pork chop is an example of a meat that can be difficult, but take a look at what we did in Episode 1, we trimmed the fat and cooked it separately.

Collagen - this is a protein tissue that holds the muscle together.  It can make meat very tough if it isn't cooked properly.  Like fat, it needs to render down.  It does this between 70-80c, which is higher than fat.  The best way to break down Collagen, is to cook low and slow, indirect (see episode 2).

High Collagen, lower on fat?  This will likely dry out and feel tough.  This is where braising and stews comes in handy, cooked for longer, gentle periods.  If you try and cook too fast, it will go tough.  If you cook too high and for too long, it will dry out.  This is where the skill of Chef is handy or a slow cooker!