What is Searing of meat?

Searing is a cooking process whereby the food, mostly meat products are introduced to a very high temperature briefly before taking them down to the normal cooking temperature.  This gives the food a more tasteful flavor as well as it gives an attractive texture to the food.  This type of cooking process is also called as Maillard Reaction.  Due to the Maillard effect, the food tastes crustier and has a  unique flavor to it.  It also brings out a different kind of feel that is crispy and soft in nature.

A searing process gives a caramelized crust to the meat.  It does not char a product but leaves a black and burnt taste to the food.  Searing can be experimented with different meats such as pork, lamb, chicken or fish and they all taste wonderful by the searing process.

The actual searing process:

For searing meat, the following process is followed:

·        Let the meat sit out at room temperature for a few minutes before proceeding for the cook.  Letting the meat come to the room temperature gives it a flexible state to absorb the seasonings and also letting the moisture to run into the tissues.

·        Add the seasonings like salt, pepper and any other dry herbs that you may prefer.  This brings out the flavors in the meat while searing.  The seasonings blend with the meat giving it a very unique texture and taste.

·        If the meat contains fat trims, it is advised not to add oil to the meat as the fat itself will get the searing process to run smoothly.

·        Small amount of vegetable oil can be added if the meat has less fat on it.

·        Also, peanut oil or corn oil can also be an alternative to olive oil which smokes out quickly.

·        When one side of the meat is seared, turn it over to the other side.  See to it that it is perfectly browned.

·        This finishes the searing process and the meat can now be kept aside or delivered to a slow flame to be fully cooked.  This meat can also be roasted or grilled as per your choice.  Another alternative is to transfer it to a stew pot to be cooked along with the stew.

·        While searing, see to it that the pan or grill is heated unto a temperature of min.      300 degree F or even to 500 or 700 degree F.

·        A properly seared meat will always be crusty as well as soft.

What is needed for a Gas Grill?

For searing the perfect grill, the following steps are to be followed:

·        See that the grilling surface is clean so as to have an even contact between the meat and the surface metal.

·        Don’t use oil if your meal has fatty cuts.

·        The meat surface should be dry.  If marinated, this marinating should be dripped off the flesh.

·        Preheat the gas grill for 10-15 minutes on high burners with its lid closed.

·        Put in the meat and put down the lid immediately.

·        Turn the meat on the other side after a minute of searing.

·        While turning, see to it that the meat is placed on the unused part of the grill.

Tip – If you are searing ribs, roasts or chicken, see to it that you use the indirect fire while finishing it off as these are tender flesh and searing on high temperature may char it or make it dry.

Try the searing method for your steaks and enjoy the beautiful flavors of this kind of cooking.