best secret for "melt in your mouth"meat?

Aizer K'negdo in progress

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 2:42 am

HELP!

My meat is mostly hard like a rock embarrassed

.

What is your best kept secret to have
TENDER
MELT IN YOUR MOUTH
MMMMMHHHHH
Meat

Recipes are welcome ( OMG they are soooooo welcome shock

)

THANK YOU

cubbie

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 2:53 am

( 1)The cut, cheaper cuts are tougher, beef is tougher than veal, so go for the best cut that your budget allows.
(2) cooking time, always cook it in a whole piece and slice it afterwards, when I cook it in the oven I cook it covered in sauce on 160 for 4 hours, basting every hour, when I cook it as a stew in a pot on the hob I bring it to the boil in the sauce and then cook it on a low flame for 3 hours.

LeahW

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 4:57 am

cubbie wrote:

Just wanted to point out that you mean 160 celcius, so that no one should follow this and come out with a chunk of raw meat. Wink

Mrs Bissli

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 6:17 am

Cheap cuts of meat can be tender--you just have to cook long time on low temperature, AND with enough liquid. If you have pressure cooker, it definitely saves on cooking time and the meat comes out very tender.

I usually season the meat, sear the surface (to get rid of extra fat and to minimise shrinkage), cover generously with sauteed onions (use the same frying pan without cleaning), pour dry wine (red for lamb and beef, white for veal). Cover with double foil and bake in an oven-proof casserole--the cooking time/temp depends on the cut/size of the meat. For a brisket (like 1.5-2.5kg) I cook at least 5-6hrs then let cool and slice. For goulash-type cubed meat or lamb cutlets I cook 3-4hrs and they come out quite soft. First 30min on high temp (185C) then drop the temp to 160C.

For dry-heat cooking like grilling and broiling, you'll need high quality meat that's not too lean, marinate before and don't cook it welldone.

Aizer K'negdo in progress

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 9:02 am

usually I take
minute steak
shoulder roast
flank
cheek (in the chulent)

what I think is good pieces and they come out with a taste that is ok but texture is not optimum to stay polite.

As per the pressure cooker,
I tried it different roasts (veal and beef) and some 1st steak (not together! Wink

) they were so hard!
I'm new with this device. I have a lagostina pressure cooker, maybe I do not know how to use it?
Wrong quantity of water?wrong heat?
As I was asking before, please explain like a 4 y.o. what to do ie
what quantity of water/ of meat
what spices
what cooking time
What should I hear/ smell/see.

As per the oven!
OY vay!
But I will definitively try your recipes ladies

As per the stove top:
I just received a dutch oven just before Pesach: I thought it would help.
Again everybody is telling me how their meat is is sooo delicious, mine came out again good taste wrong texture.

HELP shock

P.S. I follow the recipes in cookbooks !!! So I'm doing something wrong for sure!

freidasima

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 12:41 pm

I don't get something - you talk about cooking a 1.5-2 kilo roast for how long??? 4 hours??? Gevalt. I do a two kilo for two hours at 350 (f.). Covered in foil in a deep pan its size with onions, tomato paste garlic and water. Last half hour without the cover. Isn't that enough?

mominlkwd

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 12:43 pm

cubbie wrote:

I agree. We always cook out meat overnight at about 225. In the morning I let it cool than slice it and reheat it in it's sauce and it's amazingly tender. The real trick to tender meat is to sloooooow cook it on a low temp. It literally falls apart on your fork.

cubbie

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 1:08 pm

freidasima wrote:

yup if you like soft meat like my dh, 4 hours!!!
Here's how I did our yomtov brisket - which was 1 1/2 kilo (not the lowest fat/cholesteral) but so tasty.
mix together 1/2 cup each of veg oil, honey, coke, red wine, ketchup and 2 onions finely chopped. pour on the meat, cover cook for 4 hours, basting every hour. When it was done I let it cool, sliced it, then I put a little marge in a pan melted added a spoon of potato starch, slowly poured in the sauce from the meat stiring, when the sauce was nice and thick, I took it off the heat and poured it over the sliced meat. Kept it in the fridge and heated up the next day.

nylon

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 1:53 pm

freidasima wrote:

If you're cooking a tender cut like a rib roast, I wouldn't even cook it that long. But a brisket, or a chuck pot roast? It needs very long slow cooking to dissolve all the fibers in the meat. Never put the oven above 325--300 is even better, and I have one recipe for short ribs that goes at 275! (I'm always nervous about the overnight at 225 method, but I'm sure it works.)

Acid (tomatoes, wine, vinegar) helps tenderize the meat as well as flavor it.

Tamiri

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 2:01 pm

First of all, there are different methods for cooking different cuts. Any brisket baked at 325F for 4-5 hours will be fall-apart and melt in your mouth. A shoulder roast also needs a slow, low oven. I am not a maven but you can do a search online for different cuts and the methods needed for getting them done perfectly. I think that too high heat, or too much boiling, or cooking for too long can destroy the meat. Read up on it, I am sure you are not the first one to encounter difficulties - I know that I used to!

nylon

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 6:08 pm

HindaRochel wrote:

Vinegar? I've used wine but not vinegar...what type of vinegar do you use, how much and doesn't it give it a rather sour flavor?

Yes, it does make it sour, but in a good way. You can use it to make sweet and sour, too. Often I just use a little vinegar (usually red wine) to give the sauce more of a tang. You can also make sauerbraten which is a German recipe where the meat is marinated in vinegar and spices.

Mirabelle

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 6:11 pm

I agree with those that said low and slow.

My other "secret" is the coca cola brisket recipe, which I have used for other cuts. Something about the sugar in coke helps tenderize the meat.

Grandmama

Wed, Apr 07 2010, 6:32 pm

My husband cooked flanken strips in sweet red concord wine and slices of oranges and onions. He added a little salt and a little sugar. It slow cooked for 2-3 hours and was scrumptious melt in your mouth. This was on top of the stove. Reheated in its own juices. Cheek meat in cholent is soft as butter. The kids love it.
The best meat to make in a George Foreman grill is club steak. You need to add NOTHING. Just put the steak on it for 15 minutes or so, it is delicious. Lamb comes out really good too.

Aizer K'negdo in progress

Thu, Apr 08 2010, 10:41 am

sgr wrote:

On a really low oven well covered over night comes out like butter every time!

That sounds great!
But for what cut of meat?
what weight?
what liquid in it?

thanks !