I sat down a while back with Johnny Condor and started throwing out ideas and discussing different meat article ideas for our blogs. If you don't know him, Johnny writes at johnnycondoreats.blogspot.com and you should really pay him a visit. Johnny and I are big meat guys and I asked him to write down for me one of his favourite meat techniques and a good bistro style recipe to go along with it. He wasted no time in preparing a good article and recipe on the art of the braise.
Johnny wrote:
When Toby came to me with his
thoughts about creating a forum in which to share thoughts and ideas about the
techniques of cooking I was psyched. It is seemingly rare things to be able to
talk about the basics or at the very least define what terms mean when you are
flipping through cookbooks or watching cooking shows on TV. So I start off by
saying thank you to Toby for taking on this project. As our conversation
continued I found myself getting excited about sharing the admittedly limited
knowledge that I have acquired. I have no formal training in cooking but I do
consider myself to be a pretty good home cook. Toby told me to take a technique
that I used on a fairly regular basis and write something about it. So here it
is.
I am a full on carnivore. All things
meat, I am all for, which is evident to anyone who reads my blog, and one of my
favourite ways of preparing meat is the glory of braising. Now a little
definition for you, braising is basically starting something off with dry heat
and moving to a wet heat. So searing off a piece of meat and then adding a
liquid and allowing it to simmer. That is how I define it anyway. There are
many actual chefs who define it differently but for my purposes I am going to
go with the low and slow oven method. The true beauty of this method of cooking
is that it allows you to use a less desirable cut of meat, which is generally
cheaper by the way, and turn it into something that is rich and tender and
simply a beautiful thing. I would not recommend using this method to cook
really good cuts of meat. Braising something like filet mignon would be a waste
of time and money. Just sear it on both sides and be done with it. You’re not
going to get a better product than that. But if you get your hands on brisket,
pork shoulder, beef short ribs, or shanks of any kind braising becomes an
awesome option. It is also incredibly easy.
You are looking at three basic
steps to ensure an awesome end product.
- Sear off your meat: This means brown your meat on all sides over high heat. This seals in all of the wonderful juices, or so I am told, and that is a good thing. I do this in the pan or pot that I am going to transfer into the oven. Toss in your liquid before you put it in the oven and you are good to go.
- Low and slow is the way: Here I am talking about cook time and oven temperature. The time should be long, this will vary depending on the size of what you are cooking and the temperature should be low. I braise around 275 degrees or so. Just cook it until it is done. Poke it a little bit with a finger it should feel like a medium rare steak that is there is some give to it. If it is really firm it is not done yet, if it falls apart you have left it too long.
- Let it rest. You should be doing this every time you cook any meat. Just let it sit for 5-10 minutes. This allows the juices to redistribute through the meat and will give you a juicy end product rather than a dry one. That, my friends, is how I braise.
Now let’s put this sweet technique
into practice. I am thinking oxtail in red wine. So here is a little recipe to
rock your new found braising skills.
Oxtail Braised in Red Wine
2-3 pieces of oxtail
Salt and pepper
2 tbsp oil
1 onion finely diced
½ a bottle of wine
that you would drink
3 cloves of garlic
smashed
- Preheat your oven to 275 degrees
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