Cookthink

What's the point of resting meat before cutting it?

Letting cooked meat rest before you cut into it can be patience-trying for the hungry carnivore. But it's worth it for a number of reasons. High heat makes muscle proteins in the meat contract, pushing juices toward the center. If you allow your meat to relax -- anywhere from 5 minutes for a steak to around 40 for a turkey -- liquid that has been pushed out of tightened meat cells is able to circulate and be reabsorbed, making the meat more tender. This also means the juice will stay in the meat, not run all over your cutting board or plate. It also helps even out the temperature of the meat. Remove your cooked meat and place it on a wooden cutting board (or, as some chefs insist, on a wire rack above a plate to capture juices, which allows air to circulate on its underside, preventing it from becoming soggy). You can also loosely tent the meat with foil; again, be careful not to wrap it too tightly, lest you lock in the moisture and lose your crisp crust. Note: The internal temperature of meat rises while it rests, due to the residual heat from the oven. So invest in a digital, instant-read meat thermometer and get in the habit of pulling your meat out before it's done to your liking. Recipe: Roast Leg Of Lamb With Garlic And Rosemary (Cookthink) Reference: Does searing meat really seal in moisture? (Cookthink) Reference: Do I need a digital, instant-read meat thermometer? (Cookthink)

Do I need a digital instant-read meat thermometer?

For $10-25, you'll have the most foolproof way to ensure that the meat you cook is done to how you (and the people you're feeding) like it. It's simply the most reliable way to get meat right. Here are the temperatures to aim for. If you're going to let the meat rest before serving it (which is a good idea), take it out 3F (single pieces of meat) to 5F (roasts and whole birds) cooler than the temps listed below: Pork slightly pink: 150F Poultry (chicken, turkey, cornish hen) 160F Beef rare: 125F-130F medium-rare: 130F-135F medium: 135F-150F Lamb rare: 125F medium-rare: 130F medium: 135F Duck Whole duck: 170F in the thigh Breasts: rare: 130F medium-rare: 135F medium: 140F Sausages and ground meat: 170F Note that trichinosis (which used to be danger with under-cooked pork) is killed at 137F. Salmonella is killed at 160F. If you're worried about salmonella, cook everything to 160F.

What makes a mustard Dijon?

Unlike champagne and asiago cheese (and scores of other foods and drinks), which must be made in a certain area to be considered the real thing (and labeled as such), Dijon mustard does not have to be made in Dijon, France. In fact, most of the world's Dijon mustard is not made in Dijon, France. So what makes a Dijon a Dijon? Well, all mustard is made by mixing ground mustard seeds (white, yellow, brown, or black) with vinegar, water, grape must, and other liquids. What makes a mustard a "Dijon mustard" is the use of wine must and white wine which -- in combination with brown and/or black mustard seeds, cloves, cinnamon and other spices and herbs -- give Dijon mustard its distinctive tangy flavor. Reference: What does "emulsify" mean? Recipe: Fettucine With Salmon, Lentils, Mustard And Cream Recipe: Grilled Herb-Mustard Chicken Breasts Recipe: Superfantastic Brussels Sprouts (VeganYumYum)

What do we mean by shimmering oil?

Shimmering oil is hot oil that is nearing its smoke point. At room temperature, common cooking oils like vegetable and olive oil seem fairly thick. Put them in a pan and heat them though, and they thin out when you swirl the pan. As they get hotter, they tend to "flow" and coat the pan more easily. In the right light, when you look at oil that's at a good temperature for sautéing -- nice and hot, but not yet smoking -- it shimmers. It forms "tines" like those on a wine glass. It looks colorful, iridescent even. Shimmering oil is good for sautéing because it increases the chances that the food won't stick. Hot oil immediately seals the bottom of food, creating a natural barrier between it and the bottom of the pan.

What makes meat taste juicy?

Most of the juiciness in meat is actually water, but the sensation of juiciness happens on two fronts. The first comes from actual moisture held in meat fibers that is released when the fibers are broken during chewing. The secondary perception of juiciness is due to saliva flow that is stimulated by the presence of fat in the mouth. That is why a well-marbled meat will taste juicy even when it has been cooked relatively dry, while a bite of veal (too young to be thickly marbled) may start out moist and tender, but will dry out in the mouth before it’s swallowed.

What does it mean to French a rack of lamb?

To "French" a rack of lamb means to clean meat, cartilage and fat between the tips of the rib bones to make for a neater presentation. It also makes the rack a little easier to cut apart into chops and serve when fully cooked. We like to leave Frenching to the expert hands of our butcher, but you can try it yourself with a very sharp knife.

Marjoram vs. oregano

Marjoram is oregano's calmer, sweeter fraternal twin. Oregano = zesty + peppery + lemony. Marjoram = delicate + floral + round. The two are often used interchangeably but if you get up in their mix you'll see some big differences. Want to test the difference? Get a fresh sprig of marjoram and a fresh sprig of oregano. Tear an oregano leaf in half. Hold it up to your nose. Smell that piney resin? That jolt? It's sharp, isn't it? Almost one note. Okay, wait a few minutes, then do the same thing with the marjoram. Smell the complexity? The spice is still there but it's perfumed, heady. Almost soapy. (If you use too much of it, that soapiness can take over a soup or sauce.) So, can you use one in place of the other? Sure. If you use oregano when a recipe calls for marjoram (or vice versa), the flavors of the dish won't be wildly different. Still, we like to honor and explore the subtle character differences between the two. Try some of our marjoram recipes or oregano recipes on Cookthink.

What does deglaze mean?

Deglazing is a fancy term for using the flavor-packed brown bits stuck to the bottom of a pan to make a pan sauce or gravy. To deglaze, just skim excess fat from the pan you've just used to cook meat or poultry. Then add a small amount of liquid -- such as wine, stock or water -- to the cooking juices and boil quickly over high heat, stirring constantly to dislodge the brown bits and evaporate any added alcohol. From here, you can reduce the liquid to a desired consistency, then maybe finish it off with a touch of cream, a knob of butter or a squeeze of citrus juice. After you take the pan off the heat, you can sprinkle in some chopped herbs and last-minute seasonings. Or if you want to be very French about it, you can finish by straining the imperfections from your sauce. Vegetables can also be used to lightly "deglaze" a pan to which you have just browned a bit of meat. Water from the vegetables (especially onions) will have the same dislodging effect. And deglazing to make a flourless gravy for poultry can be as simple as removing a chicken from a roasting pan, straining excess fat, adding water and stirring vigorously until the liquid is uniform and slightly reduced. Reference: What is a pan sauce? (Cookthink) Recipe: Pan-Roasted Pork Chops With Mustard-Caper Sauce (Cookthink)

What exactly is feta cheese?

Feta cheese is the most famous Greek invention since democracy. Traditionally made from sheep's (or goat's) milk, commercial producers now also use cow's milk to make the bright white, rindless cheese. Feta is cured and stored in a salty whey brine and has a distinct tangy taste and crumbly texture. Feta is made by draining curdled milk in molds or cloth bags. It is then cut into slices, salted, and these days, packed in whey brine-filled barrels or plastic tubs, although the best feta is salted and aged rather than drowned in brine. The flavor and level of moisture in the cheese depends on the cheesemaker. Feta-like cheese is now made in many parts of the world. In Europe the cheese is produced from Bulgaria to Denmark and France. But authentic Greek feta is now protected in Europe with an AOC designation of origin label, like Champagne or Bordeaux. Real feta must contain at least 70 percent sheep's milk and be made using traditional methods and in just seven regions of Greece. Feta cheese sold in the U.S. does not have to comply with these rules.