Ode to the Browning of Meat

ChowderMan

Pizza Chef
Super Site Supporter
all the hooha about searing in juices triggered another of my favorite 'quirky cooking interpretations' - namely "brown the meat and . . . ."'

probably preaching to the choir, but anyway:

this came to a point when my son - who is a avid cook but like so many people lacks the opportunity to devote huge chunks of time to the topic - was visiting. spaghetti with (ground beef) sauce was on the menu. his comment was "gosh how do you do that? mine never quite tastes as good."

long story short, it browning the meat. "browning" the meat does not mean just making it turn from bloody red to insipid brown. that one can do in the microwave. heat red blood, it turns brown.

"browning the meat," imho, means putting a sear on most of it. haven't written any cookbooks, don't work in a four star kitchen - just practical experience.

for "ground beef" I push up the heat and toss until about 50% of the crumbles have some notable color - past yukkie brown to dark brown & crisp outside.

as I stood fixing chili, this all came to mind so I grabbed the camera.

here's the red-turning-brown beef - diced up USDA choice top round was the cut - on sale - $2.44 for 0.98 lb. one can see the color change, but that ain't "browned" to me.
DSC_1052.jpg


pushing it right along, here's what I consider 'dang near browned" - I'll take pix, just don't ask me to sacrifice my dinner - the pix is a bit early, I took this pan further. as I mentioned in the other post(s) - for stuff going into a 'wet cook' dish - chili in this case - dark red kidney beans + "schufft" I push the brown past "average" because most of that color&crisp is going to dissolve into the liquid "mix"
DSC_1055.jpg


the ad-hoc chili was a hit - probably far from original but:
two ultra-generous portions - stretch to four . . .
3/4 cup dry red kidney beans - bring to a boil, simmer for 2 hrs, add water as needed
with
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup diced banana pepper (frozen garden stock)
1/2 cup corn kernels (frozen supermarket variety, sigh)
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp paprika
salt to taste
BAM it up a notch with cayenne if you please.

sliced & cubed the meat - salted & peppered & dusted with garlic powder - rested about an hour
brown the meat with a smidge of olive oil, when nearly done toss in 1-1/2 handful diced scallion.

when the beans are tender, add meat mix to bean mix - low low simmer for 30-45 minutes.

loaf of saltines, a jug of wine, hot chili - what else I need?
 

Sass Muffin

Coffee Queen ☕
Gold Site Supporter
Now that's a perfect pan of browned meat!
Mmmmmm!
(I like your chili recipe too) :D
Indeed, what else would you need?
Delicious!
 

Doc

Administrator
Staff member
Gold Site Supporter
Good info chow. :thumb: Interesting.
I have not browned that far but your post makes sense. I plan to try it next time we have spaghetti. :tiphat:
 

lilbopeep

🌹🐰 Still trying to get it right.
Site Supporter
WONDERFUL!!

I brown/sear meat (almost ALL meat of any variety before I "finish" it whatever way) till it has a nice colorful crust and the kitchen gets a bit smoky. LOL
 

Leni

New member
WONDERFUL!!

I brown/sear meat (almost ALL meat of any variety before I "finish" it whatever way) till it has a nice colorful crust and the kitchen gets a bit smoky. LOL

Me too. Dad taught me to brown until it is almost but not quite burned.
 

JoeV

Dough Boy
Site Supporter
Your method of searing is the same degree that I take beef and pork roasts to prior to baking, but after reading your description for chili, I'm going to use this method for stew and chili. That "carmelizing" (someone used that term in Qsis's thread) has to add another dimension of flavor to those dishes. Thanks for the tutorial.
 

Nancy-MD

New member
I'm going to give that deep browning a try the next time I make meat sauce or chili too. An added depth of flavor we didn't even know we were missing!
 

High Cheese

Saucier
This is exactly why I buy primal cuts of meat, or double thick cuts if it's on the shelf. You will never get a proper sear on those wafer thin pieces of meat the supermarkets put out there. All you'll wind up with is a gray piece of shoe leather.

Also, for good browning you need 2 things:
1) high heat and
B) fat

If you think you're going to get some browning on a "london broil" or any very lean meat without adding some sort of fat you're wrong.

For steaks on the grill I like to use a 3" thick steak, ribeye. I sear all sides over high heat, then reduce the heat until I reach the temp I want. I'll serve the steak by slicing as you would do a london broil, and you wind up with a tender center and nice crispy/well seasoned exterior.

Burgers seared in brown butter.

IMG_0658.jpg
 

lilbopeep

🌹🐰 Still trying to get it right.
Site Supporter
Flank steak rubbed on both sides with oil then seasoned and cooked on a cast iron stove top grill pan

011211_flank-steak_on_grill.jpg


011211_flank-steak_resting.jpg


011211_flank-steak.jpg
 
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