How To Boil And Steam
from Italian Traditional Food

Learn how to boil and steam

Check out these great Italian ideas at Amazon for Italian food and kitchen ideas.

It is important to know how to boil and steam so here is a brief outline on how to go about it.

How to boil and steam

Boiling is the most simple and economical form of cooking. The word implies that the food is immersed and cooked in water and for better or worse has become known internationally as the English way of cooking.

Meat can be boiled in two different ways:

1. A joint such as leg of mutton is plunged into boiling salted water and boiled for 5 minutes to firm the outside and to seal in the juices. The heat is then reduced and the meat simmered until tender. Place the meat in the pan with the side that is to be uppermost when dished up on the bottom. Skim frequently during cooking time and allow 20-25 minutes per pound and 20-25 minutes over.

2. Meat for soups, stocks and beef tea is covered with cold water, salt added, and then allowed to stand for up to 20 minutes before cooking. This is because cold water and salt draw out the juices of the meat. Length of cooking time depends on the weight of the meat and only gentle heat should be applied. To get as much flavour into liquid as possible, cut meat into small pieces.

Salted meats - beef, ham, pork and tongue should be put into tepid water to prevent over-saltiness.

More information on how to boil and steam:

Steaming

Steaming is cooking by moist heat, a comparitively slow method as the food does not come into direct contact with boiling water but only with its vapour. Steaming food takes half as long again as boiling, and twice as long if it the texture of the food is particularly dense.

There are two ways of steaming:

1. Using a steamer - a container with perforations at the bottom and a close-fitting lid. This can be bought with graduated ridges at the base rim so that it will fit snugly on to saucepans of varying sizes. For a perfect fit, saucepans can be bought complete with matching steamers. The food is placed directly in the top half - the steamer - and therefore comes in immediate contact with the steam. This method is used for vegetables such as potatoes; puddings; fish and poultry. Different foods wrapped separately in parchment paper can be cooked together in one steamer.

2. Using two plates. The food to be cooked is put between two plates over a pan of boiling water and cooks in its own juice and steam. The result is delicate in flavour and easily digested - an ideal way of cooking for invalids.

Read more Italian traditional food related articles here

• herbs
• cook
• vegetables
• dessert
• italian traditional food
• recipes
• meat
• olive oil
• fish
• bread
• sauce
• italian
• traditional
• meal
• dish
• recipe
• pasta
• cheese
• food
• cooking

Copyright © 2009 - . All Rights Reserved Worldwide. Italian Traditional Food

You may not reprint articles from this website without the written permission of the site owner.

Disclaimer: Articles on this Website are provided for information purposes only. Italiantraditionalfood.com does not accept any responsibility or liability for the use or misuse of the article content on this site or reliance by any person on the site's contents.