Meat, Poultry and Seafood Tips

[Ally]

MEAT, POULTRY AND SEAFOOD TIPS

Sprinkle a bit of salt in the frying pan before adding
meat. It will cut down on the amount of grease splattering.

To help lower a recipe's fat content, place cooked,
ground meat in a colander and rinse with hot water after draining
off the excess fat.

Rub both sides of a burger with water before grilling.
It will make the burger juicier.

Meatloaf won't stick to the pan if you put a slice of
uncooked bacon beneath the loaf before baking.

Chill chicken for 1 hour after coating it. The coating
will stick better when cooking.

To keep hands clean, try using a potato masher next time
you are mixing a meatloaf, or...

If you don't like getting your hands messy when mixing
meat loaf, put the ingredients in a large, zip-lock style plastic
bag, seal, then mash the contents together until well
mixed...and there's no bowl to clean!

You can make individual servings of meatloaf by using
muffin tins. Remember to adjust the cooking time.

Pour cooled broth from meat or poultry into a glass jar
with a secure lid and refrigerate upside down. The fat will
harden and remain in the bottom of the jar when you pour out the
liquid for use in your recipes.

Roast diced onions, carrots, and celery in the pan right
along with meat or poultry. With the vegetables cooked down and flavored with the meat juices, you've the base for a wonderful gravy.


To know how long to cook fish, measure at the thickest
point, then allow 10 minutes per inch. This applies to all methods
of cooking, such as broiling, frying, grilling, poaching, and
steaming.

Thaw fish filets in milk. The milk absorbs the "frozen"
taste and adds a "fresh caught" taste.

Place a "bed" of celery and onions under fish when
baking. Besides adding flavor, it will prevent the fish from
sticking.

When recipes call for meats or poultry to be sliced or
cubed, it is easier to do so when the meat is slightly frozen.
Fresh meats can be placed in the freezer for about 30 minutes
before preparation. Also, make sure you use a sharp knife. Few
things are more dangerous in the kitchen than a dull knife because
you have to use more strength to try and cut or slice something
and the possibility of the knife slipping is more apt to happen,
perhaps causing injury.

Use tongs or a flat utensil to turn meat during cooking.
A fork will puncture the seared crust, releasing the meat's
juices and leaving it dry.

Wine corks contain tannin. Drop one into a pot of stew
to tenderize the meat.

Don't salt meat before you cook it. The salt forces the
juices out and impedes browning. Instead, salt meat halfway
through cooking, then taste when the meat is done and adjust the
salt as needed.

Marinate in ziptop plastic bags instead of bowls or
containers you have to clean. Be sure to flip the bag from time to
time to make sure everything gets a good soak!

At the grocery store, look for meat cuts that have the
most lean meat for the money. Be sure when you buy less expensive
cuts you are not paying for large amounts of gristle, fat and
bone.

When grilling meats, trim off excess fat with a sharp
knife to keep fire flare-ups to a minimum.

When grilling chicken, place bony or rib-cage side of
chicken down next to heat first. The bones act as an insulator and
keep chicken from browning too fast.

When freezing large quantities of steaks, chops, chicken
pieces, meat patties, etc., place a piece of the wrapping
material between each. They'll separate easily to make thawing
quicker.

[eefanincan]

Great tips, Ally.

I liked the one about the meatloaves in the muffin tins...... I do this all the time then freeze them individually for lunches.