Using Health Craft cookware, you can cook nearly all of your poultry, beef, pork and lamb without any added grease, fat or cooking oil. This can help you reduce calories without dieting and help you lower your cholesterol level and maintain a healthy heart.
How it works All meats and poultry contain juices. Much of it is water, but unfortunately much of it is also fat. By trimming the visible fat from meat before cooking and then "pan broiling" the meat in the Health Craft System™ Cookware without adding fats or oil, you can enjoy tender juicy meats that are much lower in fat and calories.
Preheat the pan at medium or medium-high. After about 3 minutes, test the surface with a few water drops. If the droplets bead up and dance across the surface, the pan is hot enough to brown the meat and seal in juices.
Meats will stick at first while they are browning. Don't cover the pan until the meat loosens (usually in about 5 minutes). To prevent grease from splattering, you can cover partially, leaving the top slightly ajar.
When the meat loosens, turn it to brown on the other side. Then, cover the pan with the Vapor Vent open.
Continue cooking according to the recipe. Normally, cooking time is about 5 to 10 minutes for steaks, chops, cutlets or boneless chicken; the time is longer for thicker cuts of beef or poultry with bones.
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Oven broiling subjects the meat to extremely high surface temperatures, whether it’s a gas flame, electric element or glowing charcoal, with a space of only a few inches of air. It’s an extremely hot process – gas burns at 3,000°F (1,649°C), the electric element glows at about 2,000°F (1,093°C). The high temperatures involved in broiling limits its usefulness; the whole piece of meat must be cooked through before the outside surface is browned (caramelized). For this reason, oven broiling is traditionally limited to relatively thin and tender cuts like chops, steaks, small poultry parts and fish. Meat with a lot of connective tissue is less suited for oven broiling because collagen does not have time, or reach the internal temperature necessary, to soften or liquefy, rendering the meat tough.
BBQ Grilling deposits harmful hydrocarbons on meat The one advantage of grilling is that the very high temperatures at the meat’s surface are ideal for a browning (caramelized) reaction; thus broiled meats have a characteristically intense caramelized flavor. (Caramelized is the process of bringing the natural salts and sugars of the meat to the surface for a crisp outer surface, creating the flavor that’s most desirable). A drawback is that these same temperatures are high enough to burn fat. Liquefied fat drips on the hot surface, creating smoke and potentially carcinogenic hydrocarbons. Deposited on the meat, they may be as dangerous as smoking cigarettes.
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Pan Broiling the Greaseless Way
Because heat is conducted very efficiently through the quality of Health Craft cookware, to the meat, the meat’s surface tends to brown (caramelize) very quickly, in 5 to 10 minutes. No fat is needed for cooking. To prevent the meat’s surface from toughening while the inside cooks, the heat is usually reduced after the initial browning. If the pan is covered, water vapor is trapped and a process like basting results. Therefore, you must open the vent when pan broiling (frying). It should be noted, the best Steak Houses, seldom, if ever cook chicken, steaks and chops over an open flame. They cook on a stainless steel slant grill or a heavy duty heat conducting pan under the broiler.
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Testing Meat for Doneness
During the searing and cooking of steaks, chops, and poultry, when you cook with the cover on and the vent open; the meat will cook quicker and juicier. However, crowding the pan, or cooking at too low a temperature and covering, may cause the meat to steam. Practice makes perfect, and a good home chef quickly learns to cook steaks, chops and poultry to the desired doneness with good equipment, proper techniques and by feel. Because of the different texture, cuts and thickness, learning the feel of the desired doneness by pushing down on the center of the cut of meat with a fork is by far the best method over attempting to time for doneness. Never cut into the meat to determine doneness, when cutting into the meat it releases the natural juices and the meat dries out. These basic rules apply to cooking all meats when attempting to accomplish different stages of doneness. To demonstrate, turn the palm of your left hand up and spread your fingers apart.
Doneness Test Rare: Rest your left thumb against your left forefinger and press down on the soft fleshy part at the base of your left thumb with your right forefinger. That’s what rare feels like.
Medium-Rare: Place your left thumb directly over the center of your left forefinger and press down on the soft fleshy part at the base of your left thumb with your right forefinger. That’s what medium-rare feels like.
Medium: Place your left thumb in between your left forefinger and your left middle finger and press down on the soft fleshy part at the base of your left thumb with your right forefinger. That’s what medium feels like.
Medium-Well: Place your left thumb directly over the center of you left middle finger and press down on the soft fleshy part at the base of your left thumb with your right forefinger. That’s what medium-well feels like.
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*Internal cooking temperatures established by USDA
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Basic Cooking Instruction for Protein Roasting Beef, Poultry, Pork and Lamb on top of the range
Cooking time is for unstuffed, skinned poultry, as well as beef, pork and lamb, is reduced by about half the time. Begin with meat that is nearly room temperature. To roast, preheat appropriate size utensil over medium or medium-high heat (depending on range type). Sear first side of meat, partially cover the pan or cover with vent open. After first side is seared (caramelized) turn meat and reduce the heat to low. With the high dome in place (or cover with vent closed), roast to desired doneness using the methods described on the previous page. Proper cooking temperature can be determined by tiny bubbles forming around the base of the cover. If water bubbles spit, reduce the temperature so only tiny bubble appear around the rim. Cooking time begins after searing (browning) the meat on all sides and covering.
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Pan Broiling Chicken, Steaks and Chops To cook meats and some fish without oil or grease: Preheat appropriate size skillet over medium-high heat until water drops “dance” on the pan. Place meats in the pan lightly pressing down to ensure meat surface is in contact with pan. Cover the pan with the vent open. Meat will immediately begin to sear, initially sticking to the pan. When the first side is seared (3-5 minutes) the meat will loosen, turn over and sear other side for additional 3-5 minutes. Test for Doneness.
To deglaze for creating a pan sauce; after removing meats add 1 cup (80 ml) of liquid (chicken stock, beef stock, veal stock or wine) and stir to loosen juices from pan. Pour over meats. For a thicker sauce, reduce over medium-high heat until desired thickness. |
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Pan Frying Seafood and floured and breaded Meats Pan frying with a small amount of oil or butter is recommended for floured and breaded meats, as well as most seafood. With the exception of Tuna, Salmon and Sword Fish, (which can be pan broiled the greaseless way, in a similar method to steaks, chops and chicken), most seafood contains very little natural oils. Add a little oil or butter prior to adding seafood, floured or breaded meats to the pan. Fry over medium to medium-high heat. Cook about 3-5 minutes per side, and Test for desired Doneness. |
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Steaming & Braising Meats
There are a few exceptions to cooking meats the waterless and greaseless way. However, some recipes call for braising or steaming meats. Steaming can be an excellent method to remove excess fat from ground beef, lamb or venison. Live lobster, crab, mussels, and clams are also best cooked by steaming or braising (submerging in liquid).
To Steam Meats: Place Steamer/Pasta Basket in tall 6-quart Stockpot, add 2-3 cups of water, stocks, wine or beer, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add meat to Steamer/Pasta basket and cover with the vent open, about 15 minutes per pound. Live Lobster, Crabs, Mussels and Clams are best steamed in wine or beer. When the alcohol is released during the boiling process the seafood is gently put to sleep, relaxing the muscles and tenderizing the meat.
Braising is the process of submerging the meat in liquid; stocks, wine, beer or water, etc.
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