I'm a trained chef and I know a lot of theory, but this is explained wayyyyyy better and in more detail than any chef has ever explained to me coming up through the ranks.
Related to #2 perhaps: Not bringing your braising liquid to a boil before putting it in the oven. Ovens aren't very efficient at bringing liquid to a boil, so you waste a lot of cooking time just bringing the temperature up.
Depends on the oven I guess. Here in UK you can get ovens delivering up to 7kW of heating power (230 Volts at 32 Amps on a single phase), I have a 5kW oven and it boils big tray of water from room temperature in less than 10 minutes.
My counter to that is you have to account for the ramp up time if you're not gonna heat up your liquids. Chuck flats 3 hrs 350, remove and vent and let cool at room temp has never failed me.
@@safuan2009 In the oven, use a lid on your container. Dutch oven, all-metal pans with all metal covers Aluminum foil. It works to keep the moisture in
Ethan, please know that we who have been subscribing since the early days love your content, appreciate your insights, and are super excited to see your channel grow to bigger heights! Keep doing what you're doing. We're all behind you!
Thank you so much! I'm glad to have found a like-minded community of home cooks to come along the journey. I can't wait to see where this all goes in the coming years.
You've worded this way better than I would've been able to, so I'm hijacking your comment to express my happiness. The content on this channel keeps true to its roots, and I love it oh so much. The production quality is the only variable and it's on a slow and steady climb up, which is quite something as the quality wasn't something to scoff at. I love this channel. I love its host. I learned to love cooking and I learned to understand cooking on a whole new level. Ethan, you're the best. Thanks for giving regular folk like myself all these amazing ways to cook straight up feasts both for dinner parties and average weekdays.
Ethan, I have been cooking out of necessity for my family since I was barely ten, have owned a restaurant, and have been obsessed with watching/learning other people’s technique since staying up late to watch Emeril or Good Eats, and this was the best explanation I have ever heard for braising. Very well done. I learned from this. Love your content.
Your comment hits home for me. I also have been cooking for my family out of necessity since a very young age, and grew up choosing to watch good eats and food network instead of cartoons. I haven’t owned a restaurant yet, but I have been a lead cook. 🤜🤛 Glad we kept our love for cooking!
Definitely the BEST explanation of a cooking method I've ever watched. So many chefs bypass the science of cooking. Understanding the science for a "science-head" like me, makes the education stick in my head and I will never need to read a braising recipe again..thanks!
This is easily one of the best vids you've made so far man, and you almost always make bangers. I know understand exactly why a braised pork belly I made for ramen last year failed so miserably, and I'm looking forward to trying again after fixing some mistakes you pointed out for me.
Being a home chef boils down to two fundamentals - sourcing ingredients and technique. This was an excellent video on technique. I love diving into the chemistry and physics, the understanding makes me a better cook. Thank you.
A really clear breakdown of what might occasionally go wrong with a cooking technique that everyone insists is super simple. I really like that you didn't tie your discussion to a single recipe but instead discussed the finer points of the technique itself. Your video has taken all of the "hit or miss" out of braising and given me an excellent practical understanding of the process to use as a base for experimentation. Really appreciate it! Thanks so much.
A great trick when the braise is not done in time is to transfer the meat to a pressure cooker and let it cook under pressure for a half hour or so. The last few years, I've been making most of my braised dishes in the pressure cooker (a stovetop Fissler pressure cooker from Germany). I cook it with the nearly the normal amount of liquid, and after it's done, I let the juices reduce and concentrate. It turns out just as good as slow braising (often even better) in a fraction of the time.
The old style "Presto" pressure cookers are fantastic, and can usually be purchased relatively cheap on used sites online. Many people rec'd them as wedding presents, and were too frightened to use them, lol. They are absolutely safe, just promise yourself you will never leave the kitchen until they have come up to pressure, and you have adjusted your heat to a gentle rocking motion...and observe that for a few mins to make sure you've got it right. If you are worried that it might be running out of liquid, LIFT the pot briefly. If it's getting too light, you know you are on the verge of scorching, so take the pressure down and add liquid. Also, Presto is a great company to deal with, and you can still buy parts (mostly gaskets are the only thing that wears out after years of use. Wash it the minute you have taken your food out, and when it's still hot, it's very easy to clean.
i've been slowly developing as a cook(being homeless without a kitchen is quite a hindrance on that end) but when i find successes i tend to find confirmation from people like you and adam ragusea to confirm for myself what i was doing right and to reinforce those good practices. you're doing the lord's work lad.
@@francostacy7675I take it you know very little about actually needing to save money. Tons of minimum wage jobs require a smart phone or PC to do things like receive schedules or request time off. Access to the internet also gives you tons of resources that can be life changing. Even the most poor of countries in the world have smartphones.
I've been skillet cooking, just dropped in a tri tip sirloin two pound roast, i seared it for two minutes each on all sides, now I've added water one cup to start, put lid on, now cooking @ 170 - 200 degrees, continue to cook on low heat for bout 3- hours for tenderness, u will have to add water as it evaporates, the last hour u add carrots & potatoes., In closing be patient for tenderness.! Enjoy!
This is wonderful! All week I have been thinking about trying braising for the first time but have been nervous about doing this right. After watching this I feel a lot more confident, and can't wait to start experimenting with a chuck roast this weekend.
This is funny because braising is the simplest, most fool-proof cooking method there is. It's basically just boiling meat for a couple hours. You really can't screw it up. Literally every other cooking method is harder. Have fun!
Ethan, just wanna say thanks for everything. I found your channel about a year ago when I was looking for whetstone tutorials, and slowly went down the rabbit hole of cooking and educational videos. My wife agreed to do most of the cooking this year, but after finding out we’re expecting our first, I took up the mantle again with a (much) pickier audience. I’ve been getting better and have been trying new things every day in the kitchen, and I can’t thank you enough. ✊🏾
Braising and slow cooking are my favorite methods to cook for sure. One day I had an exam in the morning, but also decided to make beef ribs that day. I woke up early, prepped and put the ribs in the oven, went to college and passed my exam, and then came back, finished the ribs and they were amazing! Just because it takes 4 or 5 hours to cook it, doesn't mean you need to be there for those 4 or 5 hours (especially if you cook it in the oven).
I just bought a huge half loin sirloin pork tenderloin cut of meat and was wondering about braising it, so amazing that you happened to put out this video. Then you stop in the middle to warn me not to braise my sirloin....it felt like you were talking directly at me. Thanks for that.
Great explanation of what is happening with this cooking technique. Personally, I have been experimenting with a cheap chuck roast and turning it into mouth-watering birria tacos. It is fairly easy to do, and the juice is worth its weight in gold!
Beyond its particular value on braising, obviously, this is pretty much a near-perfect instructional video. The steps are there, the pitfalls are listed, but it also extends the technique outward into the realm of possibility so you can use it freely and adapt it as you wish. Absolutely first rate, sir. Bravo.
Hi Ethan. Thanks for this video. I am an engineer and a science guy at heart but I love the kitchen. Always fascinating to get behind the physics, chemistry, and in some cases biology of what works in the kitchen. I am also a big hunter, so given that game meat typically is lower in fat (especially venison, but also in feral hogs) and generally tougher than equivalent farm-raised cuts, braising is my biggest go-to. My favorite is to take a whole venison neck braised with stout beer-based braising liquid. I use a standard mirepoix (celery, carrots, onion, garlic). Between the big neck bones and all the connective tissue on the neck, you get a wonderful sauce with deep, rich flavor. Absolute favorite in my family!
One of my favorite braised dishes is duck tacos. I use muscovy duck, which is leaner and tougher than a peking duck, and braise it similarly to how one would do carnitas. Crisp under the broiler and server with typical taco accoutrements.
You hit the perfect level of detail in this video. You got into the science of why braising works and then left us with practical pragmatic information.
I used to braise only occasionally as it takes so long. Then I got an Instant Pot pressure cooker and now I do it all the time. My favorites are chuck roast, osso buco and I make pork ribs this way too. (I'd do beef ribs this way too, but they don't fit in my pot. All come out tender, juicy and flavorful. Hint: try using Guiness instead of water.
Love your work Ethan - congrats on the success of the channel!!! I would love it if you would cover either: - the Confit method of cooking (especially a duck leg or chicken thigh confit recipe) or - Middle Eastern cuisine, especially shawarma Two quick ideas there. Keep up the great work and enjoy the holidays!!!
I have made brisket once and it came out perfect. It was considerably more simple too. I prepared a fail wrapping for the meat, there was an overlap where I would eventually fold the two sided over twice to seal the meat and etc. I sat the meat in this foil “boat” sealing the ends. Then Input a heap of sliced onion on top, thin strips, sliced pole to pole. The pile of onions was almost as large as the meat. I held the top of the foil up so it was ready to seal and added lots of L&P Worschesterahire sauce, sealed it up, then placed it in the oven. I cooked that at 250F(110C off the top of my head) for hours and hours. I was in no hurry. Simple was good. It tasted like I had done much more.
This is fantastic resource you've given us Ethan,thank you! If possible could you make a video in the future about how to use a pressure cooker for making braised meats? I've been trying my hand at it and it's quite promising but I've really appreciate some pointers.
I made a pasta alla Genovese the other day. Super forgiving dish and tastes amazing. Simply cut some chuck roast into 2” cubes and brown it. Sauté some carrot, fennel, and garlic with about 3 lbs of onions. Braise everything in the Dutch oven with white wine for about 6 hrs and eventually the meat and onions become one. Give it a try!
The big Chleblowski for the win. Love the video. I have been a chef for a pretty long time (ugh I'm old) and this is one of the better braising videos I've seen. Comprehensive and engaging and it made me hungry.
YOU ARE A GODSEND. I enjoy the other cooking channels on TH-cam for different reasons. One of my biggest reasons I keep coming back here is I get to learn about food. I’m not the type to not press the red button just because you told me not to, I need a reason why! You give me that “why” and “how” and it is turning me into a very good cook and I am so grateful for you! Please never stop. Do you have a patreon?
In my culture we just cut our beef up into cubes and just make beef stew curry in huge pots. We don't have much preference for different cuts and pieces. We dont really have much knowledge of cow anatomy. I'm Bengali American (south asian). We just make mostly all meat into stew curries. The first day the beef might be tough (not always) but we reheat the stew everyday to preserve it. That makes it more tender and concentrates the gravy and adds more flavor the longer the it sits around. If the beef still isnt finished after a few days, we dry it out into these crispy browned pieces of meat. Sometimes the beef peices stays intact and some turn into shredded beef but the dried gravy flavor gets very concentrated and the fat makes everything crispy. I really like this dried beef and i feel its a unique thing of my culture. I would like to know if anyone else has something similar to this.
I lived in and near Switzerland for over 30 years and braising was a big deal there. You’ve explained it so well here. One thing we used to braise was breast of veal - sometimes with a stuffing inside. It was very inexpensive, but tasted divine.
My favourite braise is inspired by carnitas. pork shoulder, a paste of chilli cumin garlic oregano chipotles in adobo, and then some oranges and stock or water and cola or molasses for the liquid. It's easier to manage than having to confit a whole pork roast in lard and you can make a delicious taco sauce with the leftover braising liquid
My parents would make pot roast..weekly ...2 or 3 hours...perfect every time. Unfortunately they're gone and i watched them i just cant seem to have that same tenderness and believe me they didn't do any special day before set ups. Same thing every time. It was easy for them.. I miss it and trying to recreate
Your science-oriented presentations earned a new subscriber. My experience and focus re braising have been beef: Brisket, Shank, Oxtail, Short Rib. I've done pork shoulder and I'm curious about braising some ham hocks and perhaps various game; venison, duck, etc.
It's perfectly fine to just braise with no seasoning at all, and do a quick fry in some spicy oil before you serve. I even reserve the tallow that forms on top of the broth for deep frying potatoes, something not recommended if you used seasoning in your braise. The broth itself, being a liquid, is very easy to add flavour to as you need it. Great if you cook different flavour profiles.
This an several other your videos actually inspired me to braise the beef (I was only eating chickens or pork for the past years). And the taste + texture are incredible, not to mention very small time investment comparing to the amount of meat for the week. Thank you! Also I did it in a rise cooker, if someone is interested, it works like a charm. It has lower electricity consumption comparing to oven or stove
Super clear, complete, no fuss tutorial. Pretty dang perfect!.....My new favorite braising liquid was beef pot roast with Guinness stout (which is probably really common in Ireland:)). Thanks Ethan!.
No internet when I was a young cook. I did have foodie parents and grandmas from Ye Olde Country who shared their skills, but dang I wished I’d had this kind of content a long time ago. I say bring back Home Economics and make it mandatory for all. Thanks, Ethan.
Thank you so much for this video. VERY few people would be able to explain and understand these chemical processes and explanations, and this makes cooking much more interesting. Amazing video, Ethan - all the best!
I really appreciate the point brought out at 7:00. In the Balkans, throwing meat in crock pots, stewing, braising are go to methods for good majority of meats, and while those dishes end up great for the most part, tender cuts like tenderloin, loin and rib chops from quadripeds, chicken breasts are known to end up being used for these purposes . This results in meat ending up wayy overcooked even though it was cooked via wet cooking method. I never understood that trend even though it's a fairly simple fix. Either way, thank you for your great content! Keep up with good work!
One thing: Using meat tenderizer (the crystal/powder stuff in the shaker you buy from the store) has a VERY distinct taste. The papain (& OR) ficin enzyme is extremely potent to taste when used in the concentrated form. Using natural ingredients is always preferred. Using the concentrated forms are way more detectable to the palette.
Jewish style beef brisket slow braised in the crockpot for twelve hours (give or take). Not only was the meat itself one of the best things I've ever made the sauce (which was kind of sweet/savory almost BBQ sauce but not smoky) was amazing. I was putting it on almost everything for a week after the brisket itself was gone.
Not a single irrelevant point. Concise and easy to understand. I was tempted to start a cooking channel myself but to be perfectly honest you smash it out of the park to the point I'd just be redundant. Wish your sponsor delivered to the UK though, their produce looks terrific.
Love this vid! I come back to it whenever I'm braising something. I have this tradition of making red wine braised ox/beef cheeks for new years, I think cheeks is the ULTIMATE braising cut since it's high in collagen and it retains moisture really well, it's also less fatty than some other cuts which in my world just makes for a better sauce. When braising my secret weapon is port wine or madeira and about a bottle or so of good red wine, the port or madeira adds bit of sweetness. Roughly cut celery, carrots, shallot onions, silver onions, garlic, bay leaf's and thyme. I also use home made reduced demi-glace. I will strain out all the veggies, reduce the sauce as needed serve with mashed potatoes. The dry brine is a must do step, I'm a sucker for Le Cruset their enameled cast iron pans are made for this. If you're using wine or tomato based braising liquid do not do it in a black cast iron pan, the acids in the liquids aren't good for the pan.
Thank you for the informative science and excellent tips Ethan!!🙌🏼 We braise a Persian dish with chicken thighs, onion, tomato paste, saffron, garlic, turmeric, water or chicken stock and serve with basmati rice. So delish!!😋
Recently braised lamb shanks in pomegranate juice, chicken stock, and a splash of balsamic for the liquids, paprika, smoked paprika, cinnamon, cloves, and salt for the rub, and bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, cherries, plums, thrown in for more flavour, on a bed of carrots and sweet onions. Probably the best meal I’ve ever had.
Absolutely loved this format, great content. Would love some more ideas as to ways to experiment flavor wise. Lamb shank in an Indian curry sauce, goat cut in some kind of Indian curry, pork butt in birria seasoning / chili’s, etc. Would be great to have even a follow up video or even a minute on the end that talks more about specific pairings that would make great meals using the cooking method. Anywho, Thanks for the awesome content
Thanks for the great tips. I definitely need to use more liquid the next time. My favorites braising dishes are either an italian osso bucco or the typical german Beef Roast, a chuck roast with onions, carrots and maybe some celery as aromatics and red wine and broth as liquid with red cabbage and bread dumplings on the side - and some even marinade the beef in vinegar for a few days before to turn it into Sauerbraten
Man, I love your channel. You do such a good job of explaining things and making it easy to understand, and approachable. Super happy I found this channel.
Absolutely love your teaching style. Informative, straightforward, with not only instructions but the rationale for those instructions. Thanks so much. I’m doing the short ribs today for dinner tomorrow.
Excellent and informative video, thanks! I just invested in a mid-sized Le Creuset braiser to basically function as an all-purpose fry pan, etc for pan fry salmon and other things. I have a 5 qt Le Creuset dutch oven, which I realize I could be using for braising as well. So I'm eager and curious to braise something .... I was hung up through most of this video on "braising liquid," a BIG COMPONENT (was reminded of the ol' Steve Martin joke, How to Be a Millionaire and Not Pay Taxes, "First: Get a million dollars."). Unless this newcomer has missed something, a braising liquid tutorial will be welcome.
Unless you absolutely have to have the meat in one large chunk, portioning the meat into smaller sections will reduce the braising time. For a modified boeuf bourguignon, I braised 1kg of brisket two days ago in just under 4 hours in my oven at 275 degrees Fahrenheit. The brisket was portioned into 3 inch cubes, seared on all sides before immersing into the braising liquid, and remained pink by the end of braising.
I couldn't agree more about the pork tenderloin cut. I am a beginning smoker and have smoked tenderloins over apple wood to an internal temp. of 142F, wrapped in foil to rest at least 8 minutes then sliced to serve. Wonderful!!
This is really great! One thing - when you were talking about pork tenderloin, you showed a pic of pork loin - totally agree on cooking pork loin that way. I tend to sear pork tenderloin and serve it slightly rare, or cut it into thick medallions, sear THOSE, and serve them slightly pink inside. Good stuff, keep it up!
I always wondered why beef chuck roast turned out dry and stringy in the crock pot. Even after several hours. Always disappointing. I made my last chuck roast using a dutch oven, in a standard oven at 220 degrees for 7-8 hours. It was so much better.
Hey. This was super useful information. I made a really, really good braised boneless blade roast on my first attempt. The advice to turn collagenous tissue to gelatin by keeping the temperature in between 160 to 200 for at least three hours; Yah. It felt like a block of rubber after an hour. At three hours it was fall-apart and off-the-bone, juicy and full of flavour. Well explained, easy to reproduce and really useful. Thanks.
Haven't made pulled pork for a while but a friend suggested blanketing the meat and liquid with parchment as well as seal the dutch oven/lid edge with foil. It was a lot more moist and just as tender. I always used pork shoulder, so a good amount of connective tissue and fat.
When we used to braise chuck flats in the restaurant, we would leave it in the braising liquid for several hours to reabsorb the liquid. If you pull it out right away to rest on a cooling rack I find it's significantly drier and not as flavourful.
Amazing video... I'm getting ready to make birria tacos for the first time and this was the best thing I could have watched before starting a whole days work on the project. Thank you!
i made short rib braised in red wine and tomatoes with bay leaf, chili, onion garlic and carrot last week, side dish was a purree of oven roasted butternut. kinda standard but it was one of the best things ive ever made
yeah man i challenge you to do it aswell. its less than an hour of active work and the entire house is going to smell like heaven. if you do it like me, you can make the butternut a day in advance and have one half of it for dinner with a salad, and warm up the other half in the oven for half an hour wrapped in aluminium, since the oven is on anyways. i just heated up some milk and butter, grated in nutmeg, some salt&pepper and blended it with the squash. (btw i made it just for myself during quarantine, so scale up if needed).
Just discovered this video a few weeks after trying to braise beef short ribs for the second time. I definitely made more than one mistake on this list. The end result was OK - nothing to complain about - but it was disappointing to spend that amount of time and money and get an average dish. This definitely motivates me to get back at it and correct my mistakes. I love the part at the end about experimenting with the flavor profile as well. Good stuff!
I love braising pork neck (idk if it's the exact same cut that pork neck is in the anglophone world, it's called kassler in Finland which is a different thing from the German kassler), it's a really cheap cut where I live and it turns out beautifully every time. My preferred way of making it is braising it in a miso paste and soy sauce-heavy liquid with a bunch of garlic and chili as the aromatic base, with a bit of star anise, clove and brown sugar and a few other things, then serving it with basic cheap ramen noodles cooked in the braising liquid.
Been looking to improve my family's Sunday Gravy recipe. The base flavors are always good but they only use ground beef and ground pork. This video will help me introduce better cuts, like short ribs into the sauce for braising which will make it incredible. Thank you, Ethan 🙏🏼
Made Kenji's beef stew perfectly a year ago. Every time since then I have never been able to reproduce the tender beef chunks from before. This cleared that right up thanks. I'm not braising long enough. Thanks!
My two favourite braising cuts are oxtail and veal osso buco. Had the latter tonight for dinner with creamy mashed potatoes and gremolata… heavenly. Great video mate! Cheers from Melbourne Australia 🇦🇺
you nailed it. trasnformation of colagen to gelating takes time and adequate temperature. the result depends on the cut but also a lot how the animal was raised. my father in law raises lambs, sheep and pork and its so different in cooking than regular store ones.... one thing i noticed is less fat and also less water content. i braised osso buco recently and it was mouth watering.
I'm a trained chef and I know a lot of theory, but this is explained wayyyyyy better and in more detail than any chef has ever explained to me coming up through the ranks.
Related to #2 perhaps: Not bringing your braising liquid to a boil before putting it in the oven. Ovens aren't very efficient at bringing liquid to a boil, so you waste a lot of cooking time just bringing the temperature up.
Depends on the oven I guess. Here in UK you can get ovens delivering up to 7kW of heating power (230 Volts at 32 Amps on a single phase), I have a 5kW oven and it boils big tray of water from room temperature in less than 10 minutes.
@@AuxHex well the more surface area the faster it goes
My counter to that is you have to account for the ramp up time if you're not gonna heat up your liquids. Chuck flats 3 hrs 350, remove and vent and let cool at room temp has never failed me.
Gas oven is better.
@@safuan2009 In the oven, use a lid on your container. Dutch oven, all-metal pans with all metal covers Aluminum foil.
It works to keep the moisture in
Ethan, please know that we who have been subscribing since the early days love your content, appreciate your insights, and are super excited to see your channel grow to bigger heights! Keep doing what you're doing. We're all behind you!
Thank you so much! I'm glad to have found a like-minded community of home cooks to come along the journey. I can't wait to see where this all goes in the coming years.
@Thomas Richardson such as?
@Thomas Richardson disagree.
You've worded this way better than I would've been able to, so I'm hijacking your comment to express my happiness. The content on this channel keeps true to its roots, and I love it oh so much. The production quality is the only variable and it's on a slow and steady climb up, which is quite something as the quality wasn't something to scoff at.
I love this channel. I love its host. I learned to love cooking and I learned to understand cooking on a whole new level. Ethan, you're the best. Thanks for giving regular folk like myself all these amazing ways to cook straight up feasts both for dinner parties and average weekdays.
@Thomas Richardson the titles are straight forward and exactly what the videos are about lol.
Ethan, I have been cooking out of necessity for my family since I was barely ten, have owned a restaurant, and have been obsessed with watching/learning other people’s technique since staying up late to watch Emeril or Good Eats, and this was the best explanation I have ever heard for braising. Very well done. I learned from this. Love your content.
I thought this too. So well explained
Im chuckling because this was my first video by him and i totally commented and compared him to alton brown!
Your comment hits home for me. I also have been cooking for my family out of necessity since a very young age, and grew up choosing to watch good eats and food network instead of cartoons. I haven’t owned a restaurant yet, but I have been a lead cook. 🤜🤛 Glad we kept our love for cooking!
Love your comment as I resonate fully
God bless you and may your food bring many smiles
You probably didn't own a restaurant.
Definitely the BEST explanation of a cooking method I've ever watched. So many chefs bypass the science of cooking. Understanding the science for a "science-head" like me, makes the education stick in my head and I will never need to read a braising recipe again..thanks!
This is easily one of the best vids you've made so far man, and you almost always make bangers. I know understand exactly why a braised pork belly I made for ramen last year failed so miserably, and I'm looking forward to trying again after fixing some mistakes you pointed out for me.
On the upside, if you remember a bad dish from a year ago, your regular cooking must be good! 👍
Are you a real estate agent from Australia?
What did you do to fuck up?
Being a home chef boils down to two fundamentals - sourcing ingredients and technique. This was an excellent video on technique. I love diving into the chemistry and physics, the understanding makes me a better cook. Thank you.
shut up!
A really clear breakdown of what might occasionally go wrong with a cooking technique that everyone insists is super simple. I really like that you didn't tie your discussion to a single recipe but instead discussed the finer points of the technique itself. Your video has taken all of the "hit or miss" out of braising and given me an excellent practical understanding of the process to use as a base for experimentation. Really appreciate it! Thanks so much.
A great trick when the braise is not done in time is to transfer the meat to a pressure cooker and let it cook under pressure for a half hour or so. The last few years, I've been making most of my braised dishes in the pressure cooker (a stovetop Fissler pressure cooker from Germany). I cook it with the nearly the normal amount of liquid, and after it's done, I let the juices reduce and concentrate. It turns out just as good as slow braising (often even better) in a fraction of the time.
My grandmother swore by her German stove top pressure cooker!! She was born there & was one tough cookie! Holy moly could she cook.
The old style "Presto" pressure cookers are fantastic, and can usually be purchased relatively cheap on used sites online.
Many people rec'd them as wedding presents, and were too frightened to use them, lol.
They are absolutely safe, just promise yourself you will never leave the kitchen until they have come up to pressure, and you have adjusted your heat to a gentle rocking motion...and observe that for a few mins to make sure you've got it right.
If you are worried that it might be running out of liquid, LIFT the pot briefly.
If it's getting too light, you know you are on the verge of scorching, so take the pressure down and add liquid.
Also, Presto is a great company to deal with, and you can still buy parts (mostly gaskets are the only thing that wears out after years of use.
Wash it the minute you have taken your food out, and when it's still hot, it's very easy to clean.
i've been slowly developing as a cook(being homeless without a kitchen is quite a hindrance on that end) but when i find successes i tend to find confirmation from people like you and adam ragusea to confirm for myself what i was doing right and to reinforce those good practices. you're doing the lord's work lad.
Proud of you buddy
You are homeless but have a PC or smart phone?
@@francostacy7675 yes
How are you doing now? Have your skills and home situation improved?
@@francostacy7675I take it you know very little about actually needing to save money. Tons of minimum wage jobs require a smart phone or PC to do things like receive schedules or request time off. Access to the internet also gives you tons of resources that can be life changing. Even the most poor of countries in the world have smartphones.
I've been skillet cooking, just dropped in a tri tip sirloin two pound roast, i seared it for two minutes each on all sides, now I've added water one cup to start, put lid on, now cooking @ 170 - 200 degrees, continue to cook on low heat for bout 3- hours for tenderness, u will have to add water as it evaporates, the last hour u add carrots & potatoes., In closing be patient for tenderness.! Enjoy!
This is wonderful! All week I have been thinking about trying braising for the first time but have been nervous about doing this right. After watching this I feel a lot more confident, and can't wait to start experimenting with a chuck roast this weekend.
This is funny because braising is the simplest, most fool-proof cooking method there is.
It's basically just boiling meat for a couple hours. You really can't screw it up. Literally every other cooking method is harder.
Have fun!
Ethan, just wanna say thanks for everything. I found your channel about a year ago when I was looking for whetstone tutorials, and slowly went down the rabbit hole of cooking and educational videos. My wife agreed to do most of the cooking this year, but after finding out we’re expecting our first, I took up the mantle again with a (much) pickier audience.
I’ve been getting better and have been trying new things every day in the kitchen, and I can’t thank you enough. ✊🏾
Braising and slow cooking are my favorite methods to cook for sure.
One day I had an exam in the morning, but also decided to make beef ribs that day. I woke up early, prepped and put the ribs in the oven, went to college and passed my exam, and then came back, finished the ribs and they were amazing!
Just because it takes 4 or 5 hours to cook it, doesn't mean you need to be there for those 4 or 5 hours (especially if you cook it in the oven).
I just bought a huge half loin sirloin pork tenderloin cut of meat and was wondering about braising it, so amazing that you happened to put out this video. Then you stop in the middle to warn me not to braise my sirloin....it felt like you were talking directly at me. Thanks for that.
Great explanation of what is happening with this cooking technique. Personally, I have been experimenting with a cheap chuck roast and turning it into mouth-watering birria tacos. It is fairly easy to do, and the juice is worth its weight in gold!
Beyond its particular value on braising, obviously, this is pretty much a near-perfect instructional video. The steps are there, the pitfalls are listed, but it also extends the technique outward into the realm of possibility so you can use it freely and adapt it as you wish. Absolutely first rate, sir. Bravo.
Hi Ethan. Thanks for this video. I am an engineer and a science guy at heart but I love the kitchen. Always fascinating to get behind the physics, chemistry, and in some cases biology of what works in the kitchen. I am also a big hunter, so given that game meat typically is lower in fat (especially venison, but also in feral hogs) and generally tougher than equivalent farm-raised cuts, braising is my biggest go-to. My favorite is to take a whole venison neck braised with stout beer-based braising liquid. I use a standard mirepoix (celery, carrots, onion, garlic). Between the big neck bones and all the connective tissue on the neck, you get a wonderful sauce with deep, rich flavor. Absolute favorite in my family!
From Cork, Ireland...I will do exactly what you say....Beamish stout of course, being Older, better and from Cork!
One of my favorite braised dishes is duck tacos. I use muscovy duck, which is leaner and tougher than a peking duck, and braise it similarly to how one would do carnitas. Crisp under the broiler and server with typical taco accoutrements.
You hit the perfect level of detail in this video. You got into the science of why braising works and then left us with practical pragmatic information.
I used to braise only occasionally as it takes so long. Then I got an Instant Pot pressure cooker and now I do it all the time. My favorites are chuck roast, osso buco and I make pork ribs this way too. (I'd do beef ribs this way too, but they don't fit in my pot. All come out tender, juicy and flavorful. Hint: try using Guiness instead of water.
wow man, your videos are so well produced there's no lacking information , a real master class on braising!
Love your work Ethan - congrats on the success of the channel!!!
I would love it if you would cover either:
- the Confit method of cooking (especially a duck leg or chicken thigh confit recipe) or
- Middle Eastern cuisine, especially shawarma
Two quick ideas there. Keep up the great work and enjoy the holidays!!!
I have made brisket once and it came out perfect. It was considerably more simple too.
I prepared a fail wrapping for the meat, there was an overlap where I would eventually fold the two sided over twice to seal the meat and etc.
I sat the meat in this foil “boat” sealing the ends.
Then Input a heap of sliced onion on top, thin strips, sliced pole to pole. The pile of onions was almost as large as the meat.
I held the top of the foil up so it was ready to seal and added lots of L&P Worschesterahire sauce, sealed it up, then placed it in the oven. I cooked that at 250F(110C off the top of my head) for hours and hours. I was in no hurry.
Simple was good. It tasted like I had done much more.
Hey Ethan, could you add temperature in °C on screen while you talk about it in F?
Makes it easier to follow as a european :)
I second this! It would be a small gesture that would help a lot
Just google the conversion......
Just take the F temp, subtract 32, and then multiply by five ninths. What could possibly be easier? ^.^
@@kevinpowers3907 no need to be an ass
This is fantastic resource you've given us Ethan,thank you!
If possible could you make a video in the future about how to use a pressure cooker for making braised meats?
I've been trying my hand at it and it's quite promising but I've really appreciate some pointers.
Very smart and clear explanation about the transformation of collagen into gelatin.
Cosmic alignment! I have 2 lamb necks to braise today. Never did lamb necks before and watching your video this morning gives me more confidence
serendipity.
I made a pasta alla Genovese the other day. Super forgiving dish and tastes amazing. Simply cut some chuck roast into 2” cubes and brown it. Sauté some carrot, fennel, and garlic with about 3 lbs of onions. Braise everything in the Dutch oven with white wine for about 6 hrs and eventually the meat and onions become one. Give it a try!
The big Chleblowski for the win. Love the video. I have been a chef for a pretty long time (ugh I'm old) and this is one of the better braising videos I've seen. Comprehensive and engaging and it made me hungry.
YOU ARE A GODSEND. I enjoy the other cooking channels on TH-cam for different reasons. One of my biggest reasons I keep coming back here is I get to learn about food. I’m not the type to not press the red button just because you told me not to, I need a reason why! You give me that “why” and “how” and it is turning me into a very good cook and I am so grateful for you! Please never stop. Do you have a patreon?
In my culture we just cut our beef up into cubes and just make beef stew curry in huge pots. We don't have much preference for different cuts and pieces. We dont really have much knowledge of cow anatomy. I'm Bengali American (south asian). We just make mostly all meat into stew curries. The first day the beef might be tough (not always) but we reheat the stew everyday to preserve it. That makes it more tender and concentrates the gravy and adds more flavor the longer the it sits around. If the beef still isnt finished after a few days, we dry it out into these crispy browned pieces of meat. Sometimes the beef peices stays intact and some turn into shredded beef but the dried gravy flavor gets very concentrated and the fat makes everything crispy. I really like this dried beef and i feel its a unique thing of my culture. I would like to know if anyone else has something similar to this.
I lived in and near Switzerland for over 30 years and braising was a big deal there. You’ve explained it so well here. One thing we used to braise was breast of veal - sometimes with a stuffing inside. It was very inexpensive, but tasted divine.
My favourite braise is inspired by carnitas. pork shoulder, a paste of chilli cumin garlic oregano chipotles in adobo, and then some oranges and stock or water and cola or molasses for the liquid. It's easier to manage than having to confit a whole pork roast in lard and you can make a delicious taco sauce with the leftover braising liquid
My parents would make pot roast..weekly ...2 or 3 hours...perfect every time. Unfortunately they're gone and i watched them i just cant seem to have that same tenderness and believe me they didn't do any special day before set ups. Same thing every time. It was easy for them.. I miss it and trying to recreate
Big science guy and I love how in depth you went on the science behind the braiding process. 10/10 🔥🔥🔥
Your science-oriented presentations earned a new subscriber.
My experience and focus re braising have been beef: Brisket, Shank, Oxtail, Short Rib. I've done pork shoulder and I'm curious about braising some ham hocks and perhaps various game; venison, duck, etc.
It's perfectly fine to just braise with no seasoning at all, and do a quick fry in some spicy oil before you serve. I even reserve the tallow that forms on top of the broth for deep frying potatoes, something not recommended if you used seasoning in your braise. The broth itself, being a liquid, is very easy to add flavour to as you need it. Great if you cook different flavour profiles.
What an outstanding breakdown. Very thoughtful, mindful of the beginner, and well done.
Great job!
I hope this channel is extremely lucrative for you. The amount of time and love you put into every facet of your videos is infinitely valuable.
Really nice! In Germany, we grow up with braising. I learned it from my (grand)mother and never had trouble. Now I know why. Thank you!
This an several other your videos actually inspired me to braise the beef (I was only eating chickens or pork for the past years). And the taste + texture are incredible, not to mention very small time investment comparing to the amount of meat for the week. Thank you!
Also I did it in a rise cooker, if someone is interested, it works like a charm. It has lower electricity consumption comparing to oven or stove
I'm about 4 vids away from conquering TH-cam, and this is one of the best I've watched. Thank you
Super clear, complete, no fuss tutorial. Pretty dang perfect!.....My new favorite braising liquid was beef pot roast with Guinness stout (which is probably really common in Ireland:)). Thanks Ethan!.
The thing I love the most about this channel is how much you get into the underlaying process so we can play with it.
No internet when I was a young cook. I did have foodie parents and grandmas from Ye Olde Country who shared their skills, but dang I wished I’d had this kind of content a long time ago. I say bring back Home Economics and make it mandatory for all. Thanks, Ethan.
Got to love how he always goes into the science of cooking. Another awesome video to help improve my cooking skills.
Thank you so much for this video. VERY few people would be able to explain and understand these chemical processes and explanations, and this makes cooking much more interesting. Amazing video, Ethan - all the best!
I really appreciate the point brought out at 7:00. In the Balkans, throwing meat in crock pots, stewing, braising are go to methods for good majority of meats, and while those dishes end up great for the most part, tender cuts like tenderloin, loin and rib chops from quadripeds, chicken breasts are known to end up being used for these purposes . This results in meat ending up wayy overcooked even though it was cooked via wet cooking method. I never understood that trend even though it's a fairly simple fix. Either way, thank you for your great content! Keep up with good work!
One thing: Using meat tenderizer (the crystal/powder stuff in the shaker you buy from the store) has a VERY distinct taste. The papain (& OR) ficin enzyme is extremely potent to taste when used in the concentrated form. Using natural ingredients is always preferred. Using the concentrated forms are way more detectable to the palette.
Jewish style beef brisket slow braised in the crockpot for twelve hours (give or take). Not only was the meat itself one of the best things I've ever made the sauce (which was kind of sweet/savory almost BBQ sauce but not smoky) was amazing. I was putting it on almost everything for a week after the brisket itself was gone.
This answered A LOT of my questions about past failures! Thanks!
Not a single irrelevant point. Concise and easy to understand. I was tempted to start a cooking channel myself but to be perfectly honest you smash it out of the park to the point I'd just be redundant. Wish your sponsor delivered to the UK though, their produce looks terrific.
Love this vid! I come back to it whenever I'm braising something. I have this tradition of making red wine braised ox/beef cheeks for new years, I think cheeks is the ULTIMATE braising cut since it's high in collagen and it retains moisture really well, it's also less fatty than some other cuts which in my world just makes for a better sauce. When braising my secret weapon is port wine or madeira and about a bottle or so of good red wine, the port or madeira adds bit of sweetness. Roughly cut celery, carrots, shallot onions, silver onions, garlic, bay leaf's and thyme. I also use home made reduced demi-glace.
I will strain out all the veggies, reduce the sauce as needed serve with mashed potatoes.
The dry brine is a must do step, I'm a sucker for Le Cruset their enameled cast iron pans are made for this. If you're using wine or tomato based braising liquid do not do it in a black cast iron pan, the acids in the liquids aren't good for the pan.
Thank you for the informative science and excellent tips Ethan!!🙌🏼 We braise a Persian dish with chicken thighs, onion, tomato paste, saffron, garlic, turmeric, water or chicken stock and serve with basmati rice. So delish!!😋
Perfect video for today. I was planning on making a red wine braised beef roast and this helped me avoid mistakes I’ve made in the last
Even his sponsorship promotions are so well done and interwoven.
Thanks!
Many thanks for explaining collagen. Now I understand why I made braising dry.
Looove the detailed explanations!! Thanks!
Thank you for the best explanation of brasing I've ever heard! Now I just need to concoct a good brasing liquid.
Recently braised lamb shanks in pomegranate juice, chicken stock, and a splash of balsamic for the liquids, paprika, smoked paprika, cinnamon, cloves, and salt for the rub, and bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, cherries, plums, thrown in for more flavour, on a bed of carrots and sweet onions.
Probably the best meal I’ve ever had.
My sister and I were having this conversation just yesterday. How is something cooked in liquid dry? Excellent video, thank you.
Absolutely loved this format, great content. Would love some more ideas as to ways to experiment flavor wise. Lamb shank in an Indian curry sauce, goat cut in some kind of Indian curry, pork butt in birria seasoning / chili’s, etc. Would be great to have even a follow up video or even a minute on the end that talks more about specific pairings that would make great meals using the cooking method. Anywho, Thanks for the awesome content
Pan sauces with this format would be a good idea next :)
Thanks for the great tips. I definitely need to use more liquid the next time. My favorites braising dishes are either an italian osso bucco or the typical german Beef Roast, a chuck roast with onions, carrots and maybe some celery as aromatics and red wine and broth as liquid with red cabbage and bread dumplings on the side - and some even marinade the beef in vinegar for a few days before to turn it into Sauerbraten
Yup. Totally agree. My grandma's 96 and she taught me how to make pot roast when I was 10 or 11 and she also agrees.
Man, I love your channel. You do such a good job of explaining things and making it easy to understand, and approachable. Super happy I found this channel.
Absolutely love your teaching style. Informative, straightforward, with not only instructions but the rationale for those instructions. Thanks so much. I’m doing the short ribs today for dinner tomorrow.
This video has directly improved my cooking - hugely interesting.
Excellent and informative video, thanks! I just invested in a mid-sized Le Creuset braiser to basically function as an all-purpose fry pan, etc for pan fry salmon and other things. I have a 5 qt Le Creuset dutch oven, which I realize I could be using for braising as well. So I'm eager and curious to braise something .... I was hung up through most of this video on "braising liquid," a BIG COMPONENT (was reminded of the ol' Steve Martin joke, How to Be a Millionaire and Not Pay Taxes, "First: Get a million dollars."). Unless this newcomer has missed something, a braising liquid tutorial will be welcome.
Love this! My favorite braise is oxtail ragu. But I don't sear it, the local 4th generation butcher told me that.
Unless you absolutely have to have the meat in one large chunk, portioning the meat into smaller sections will reduce the braising time.
For a modified boeuf bourguignon, I braised 1kg of brisket two days ago in just under 4 hours in my oven at 275 degrees Fahrenheit. The brisket was portioned into 3 inch cubes, seared on all sides before immersing into the braising liquid, and remained pink by the end of braising.
Time. I always think I can do it with less time. Thanks for the highly helpful instructions. I'll take a whack at brisket this weekend.
I couldn't agree more about the pork tenderloin cut. I am a beginning smoker and have smoked tenderloins over apple wood to an internal temp. of 142F, wrapped in foil to rest at least 8 minutes then sliced to serve. Wonderful!!
So proud of you and the progression your channel has made
This is really great! One thing - when you were talking about pork tenderloin, you showed a pic of pork loin - totally agree on cooking pork loin that way. I tend to sear pork tenderloin and serve it slightly rare, or cut it into thick medallions, sear THOSE, and serve them slightly pink inside. Good stuff, keep it up!
surprising how many people confuse pork loin and tenderloin. I saw the same thing!
Very inpressive video! Thanks. Who hasn't experienced a dried out roast from a crock pot? Super helpful.
I always wondered why beef chuck roast turned out dry and stringy in the crock pot. Even after several hours. Always disappointing.
I made my last chuck roast using a dutch oven, in a standard oven at 220 degrees for 7-8 hours. It was so much better.
Hey. This was super useful information. I made a really, really good braised boneless blade roast on my first attempt. The advice to turn collagenous tissue to gelatin by keeping the temperature in between 160 to 200 for at least three hours; Yah. It felt like a block of rubber after an hour. At three hours it was fall-apart and off-the-bone, juicy and full of flavour. Well explained, easy to reproduce and really useful. Thanks.
Haven't made pulled pork for a while but a friend suggested blanketing the meat and liquid with parchment as well as seal the dutch oven/lid edge with foil. It was a lot more moist and just as tender. I always used pork shoulder, so a good amount of connective tissue and fat.
When we used to braise chuck flats in the restaurant, we would leave it in the braising liquid for several hours to reabsorb the liquid. If you pull it out right away to rest on a cooling rack I find it's significantly drier and not as flavourful.
Amazing video... I'm getting ready to make birria tacos for the first time and this was the best thing I could have watched before starting a whole days work on the project. Thank you!
Legend!!
Great explanations to give understanding of why and how
i made short rib braised in red wine and tomatoes with bay leaf, chili, onion garlic and carrot last week, side dish was a purree of oven roasted butternut. kinda standard but it was one of the best things ive ever made
Standard is still good! Don't shame yourself. Making anything at all is worth being proud of.
Sounds sick tbh
yeah man i challenge you to do it aswell. its less than an hour of active work and the entire house is going to smell like heaven. if you do it like me, you can make the butternut a day in advance and have one half of it for dinner with a salad, and warm up the other half in the oven for half an hour wrapped in aluminium, since the oven is on anyways. i just heated up some milk and butter, grated in nutmeg, some salt&pepper and blended it with the squash. (btw i made it just for myself during quarantine, so scale up if needed).
Just discovered this video a few weeks after trying to braise beef short ribs for the second time. I definitely made more than one mistake on this list. The end result was OK - nothing to complain about - but it was disappointing to spend that amount of time and money and get an average dish. This definitely motivates me to get back at it and correct my mistakes. I love the part at the end about experimenting with the flavor profile as well. Good stuff!
I love braising pork neck (idk if it's the exact same cut that pork neck is in the anglophone world, it's called kassler in Finland which is a different thing from the German kassler), it's a really cheap cut where I live and it turns out beautifully every time. My preferred way of making it is braising it in a miso paste and soy sauce-heavy liquid with a bunch of garlic and chili as the aromatic base, with a bit of star anise, clove and brown sugar and a few other things, then serving it with basic cheap ramen noodles cooked in the braising liquid.
Great vid Bro.
Been looking to improve my family's Sunday Gravy recipe. The base flavors are always good but they only use ground beef and ground pork. This video will help me introduce better cuts, like short ribs into the sauce for braising which will make it incredible. Thank you, Ethan 🙏🏼
Ethan your content gets better and better every time!
Thanks. I use a slow cooker but never really understood what braising really is so I am looking forward to doing it.
I made the pickled red onions and they turned out killer! gonna have to try some other recipes from the channel! love the content my man
A lot of excellent information here! Thank you Ethan
Made some braised short ribs because of your video last month. They were absolutely perfect.
I love the science aspect you bring together with the practicalities. I've watched several of your videos, and they are all great!
Excellent content! Julia Child’s beef burgundy is my go to braised dish for sure!
Made Kenji's beef stew perfectly a year ago. Every time since then I have never been able to reproduce the tender beef chunks from before. This cleared that right up thanks. I'm not braising long enough. Thanks!
Just don't cook too long, that can make the meat dry. At least that happens to me, it might be something else, I'm still learning!
My two favourite braising cuts are oxtail and veal osso buco. Had the latter tonight for dinner with creamy mashed potatoes and gremolata… heavenly. Great video mate! Cheers from Melbourne Australia 🇦🇺
You are rocking the beardstache hard, E. Very nice, and a great deep dive in to braising.
you nailed it. trasnformation of colagen to gelating takes time and adequate temperature. the result depends on the cut but also a lot how the animal was raised. my father in law raises lambs, sheep and pork and its so different in cooking than regular store ones.... one thing i noticed is less fat and also less water content. i braised osso buco recently and it was mouth watering.
Very useful. Thank you. Braised meats are so delicious, but I've had mixed results when cooking them.