Tips & Secrets For Cooking Meat

Salisbury Steak

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  • Always thaw frozen meat and poultry in the refrigerator and not on the kitchen counter where bacteria can grow.
  • When you’re browning meat, dry it with a paper towel first and sear it in a hot, preheated pan.
  • When using foods with different cooking times, such as shrimp and beef, don’t combine them on the same skewer. Instead, make skewers of just shrimp or just beef.
  • If you can’t stand mixing raw hamburger meat by hand, try covering each of your hands in a clean plastic bag and dig in. The best meatloaf is always made with your hands!
  • When browning ground beef, brown several pounds at a time and drain. Divide evenly in freezer containers and freeze. Unthaw in the microwave for quick fixing next time.
  • Be gentle when making burger patties! You’ll get tough, dry burgers if you work the meat too hard.
  • Never press or flatten burgers with a spatula during cooking.  If you do, your burger will be dry and not juicy.
  • It’s important to let beef, pork, or chicken poultry rest a little while before carving. That allows the juices to retreat back into the meat. If you carve a roast too soon, much of its goodness will spill out onto the carving board.
  • To slice meat into thin strips, partially freeze, and it will slice easily.
  • Add a little lemon and lime to tuna to add zest and flavor to tuna sandwiches. Use cucumbers soaked in vinegar and pepper in sandwiches instead of tomatoes. Use mustard instead of mayo to cut the fat and add a tang.

Chicken

  • Use produce bags from the grocery store to pound chicken breasts. They hold up well and enclose the chicken so as not to splatter juices on the kitchen counter. No worries about salmonella poisoning!
  • Want juicier chicken? Marinade it in buttermilk for up to 24 hours to tenderize.
  • Try roasting a chicken or roast on top of long slices of celery or carrot sticks. The vegetables act like a roasting rack plus add flavor to the meat. You can eat the vegetables too, yum!
  • Make extra chicken stock and freeze it in plastic bags. That way, when you want to make soup, you can simply pull the bag out of the freezer and thaw it.
  • Get out your meat mallet! You cut the cooking time by pounding boneless chicken or turkey to 1/4 inch thickness.

Here are a few amazing chicken recipes to try:

Steaks

  • For tender, juicy steaks, try marinating them in red wine in the fridge for up to 24 hours.
  • When using a broiler for cooking steaks, pre-broiler until it’s really hot, this will sear the outside of the meat and keep it nice and juicy inside.
  • Never use a fork to turn the steaks; use tongs or a spatula to prevent juices from leaking out.

Here are a few amazing steak recipes to try:

Turkey

  • When trying to figure out what size turkey to buy, figure 1 pound of uncooked turkey per person. That gives you enough for everyone with some leftovers.
  • To thaw a frozen turkey, leave it in packaging and put it in a shallow pan in the refrigerator. Allow 24 hours of thawing time for every 4 to 5 pounds. A thawed bird can keep up to 4 days in the fridge.
  • Try bringing your bird! Soak the turkey in salted water (1 cup kosher salt per gallon of water) and refrigerate overnight to help keep it moist during the cooking process. You can add sugar and spices to the brine for more flavor too.
  • Brush the turkey with melted butter or vegetable oil and season well before roasting to get golden brown skin.
  • Use an instant-read meat thermometer when roasting turkey. Take out of the oven when the thickest part of the thigh reaches 180 degrees F, and the breast reaches 165 degrees F.
  • When the turkey is a little more than halfway done, loosely cover the breast and top of drumsticks with a piece of foil to prevent overcooking.
  • Don’t carve your turkey right away. Cover it loosely with foil and let it rest for 15 minutes before slicing. It will be nice and juicy!
  • Leftover turkey should be refrigerated and eaten or frozen within four days. Be safe rather than sorry!

Here are a few amazing turkey recipes to try:

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