10.1 Braising

What braising is

When the food is meat, a braise is often called a pot roast. Not every cook agrees that the two are the same thing. Some say a pot roast has no extra liquid added, and a braise does.

A pressure cooker cooks by braising. So does a slow cooker, such as a crockpot.

Why it works on tough meat

Many famous dishes began as a way to make hard, chewy food good to eat. Coq au vin is one of them.

The basic steps

Most braises follow the same pattern.

• Sear the food in a pan until the outside is brown. Browning builds flavor through the Maillard reaction. Meat, vegetables and mushrooms can all be braised.
  ▶ Watch
• Add liquid if the food will not give off enough of its own. Stock is common. An acid is often added too, such as wine, beer, tomatoes or balsamic vinegar.
  ▶ Watch
• For a classic braise of a large, mostly whole cut, the liquid comes one-third to one-half of the way up the food. It does not cover it.
  ▶ Watch
• Put the lid on. Keep the pot at a very low simmer.
  ▶ Watch
• Cook until a fork can cut the meat with almost no pressure. You should not need a knife.
  ▶ Watch
• Turn the cooking liquid into a sauce or gravy to serve with the food.
  ▶ Watch

Braising poultry

With red meat, the size of the piece decides the method. A large cut is braised, and small pieces are stewed. Most birds are small, so with poultry the two methods are treated as one.

Braising can soften an old, tough bird. But cooks more often braise a young, tender chicken or duck. The aim then is to add moisture and flavor, not to tenderize. The bird is cut into joints and cooked on the bone. Stop as soon as it is done, so the meat stays juicy. Ducks and geese are cooked much the way red meat is.

Three classic chicken dishes cook this way: coq au vin, chicken fricassee and chicken cacciatore. Cacciatore and coq au vin start with a thorough browning. Fricassee does not.

Season well. Much of the flavor comes from the liquid and from what you add to it, so both the bird and the liquid need seasoning. Add any extra seasonings at the start, not the end, so the flavor has time to blend and reach into the larger pieces. These might be an onion piquet, a sachet, a bouquet garni, or dried herbs and spices. If you coat the pieces in flour before browning, you can mix the seasoning into the flour.

The goal is an exchange. The sauce should taste of the poultry, and the poultry should carry the moisture and taste of the sauce.

Once the liquid is in, keep it at a slow simmer. Never let it boil hard. You can do this on the stove or in the oven. Low heat keeps the cooking under control, and the meat ends up tender and juicy.

To test for doneness, push a kitchen fork into a piece. It should go in easily, and the piece should slide off the fork by itself. But the piece should still hold its shape. If it falls apart, it is overcooked. Test small boneless pieces by cutting into them with a fork.

Braised poultry is always served with its cooking liquid. Rice, pasta, boiled potatoes and boiled vegetables all go well with it.

The full procedure for poultry is below.

• Brown the poultry in oil or butter, as dark as the dish needs.
  ▶ Watch
• Add the vegetables and other ingredients the recipe lists, and sauté them.
  ▶ Watch
• Add flour or roux, if the recipe uses it.
• Pour in the liquid.
  ▶ Watch
• Cover. Simmer on the stove or in the oven until done.
  ▶ Watch
• Add seasonings and garnishes at the right points as it cooks.
• Finish the sauce. You may add cream or a liaison, or adjust how thick it is. Taste and correct the seasoning.
  ▶ Watch
• Serve each portion of poultry with sauce and a suitable garnish.
  ▶ Watch