How to properly season meat - Chefs Trick

JD

September 28, 2019

0

cooking-tips

No matter how well cooked the meat is, it won’t taste very good if it’s
not properly seasoned.

Season Early

For the most well-rounded flavor, we encourage seasoning meat
before cooking. This gives the salt time to migrate into the food and
allows heat to tame the punch of pepper. Seasoning properly at the
start is especially important with steaks, chops, and roasts since you
won’t be able to season them to taste after cooking without cutting off
a piece!

Salt + Time = Better Meat

You can certainly season with salt right before cooking for flavor, but
you can also use salt (and time) in advance of cooking to improve the
texture of many cuts of meat. When salt is applied to raw meat, juices
inside the meat are drawn to the surface. The salt then dissolves in
the exuded liquid, forming a brine that is eventually reabsorbed by the
meat, creating juicier and more flavorful results. But you do have to
wait until the brine is reabsorbed; if you try to pan-sear the meat too
soon, the liquid will inhibit browning in the skillet. We prefer to use
kosher salt for salting meat because it’s easier to distribute the salt
evenly.

Seasoning with Flair (and a Purpose)

In recipes that call for seasoning meat with a specified amount of salt,
it can be tempting to sprinkle very close to the meat so that none of
the salt is lost to the cutting board. Unfortunately, this leads to an
uneven distribution of salt. There’s a reason that chefs tend to season
food by sprinkling the seasoning from a good foot above the counter,
and it’s not just kitchen theatrics: The higher the starting point, the more evenly the seasoning will be distributed. The more evenly
distributed the seasoning, the better the food tastes. So next time you
have to season a steak, place the meat on a rimmed baking sheet and
sprinkle with the specified amount of salt from up high. Then simply
pick up each piece of meat and roll it in any salt that has landed on the
baking sheet.