Braising: Tender Meat, On the Cheap

You know that holiday song, “Baby, it’s cold outside…”? Well, then baby it’s time to braise because nothing warms your soul more than a good-old pot of tender meat and vegetables! In a nutshell, braising is simmering food in a small amount of liquid. Usually, the food at hand is either tough cuts of meat like pork shoulder, chuck roast and short ribs (i.e. the cheap stuff!), or fibrous vegetables like carrots, leeks, and winter greens.

It’s an efficient way to stretch your dollar bill because you can transform a relatively inexpensive, tough cut of meat into a dinner miracle. Personally, I can’t always afford organic, boneless chicken breasts, but I can more readily afford the organic, bone-in chicken thighs that need just a little more TLC before dishing them out on the dinner table.

Braising is a bit of a time commitment though (not active time, just cooking time), so save this technique for a winter, weekend dinner – unless you are using vegetables or smaller cuts of meat, like chicken thighs or pork chops, that cook up much faster.

Here are some quick steps to ensuring the perfect braise:

1. Choose the right vessel. A dutch oven is ideal because it retains heat well and has a tight-fitting lid. A deep saute pan will also work.
2. Brown the meat or vegetables. This helps enrichen the overall flavor and improve the color of the meat. (Nobody wants to eat a pale chicken thigh or ashy brown pork shoulder no matter how tender it is).
3. Add aromatics like garlic, onions or herbs to further flavor the dish.
4. Pour in the liquid about 1-2 inches high or enough to cover the meat or vegetables about halfway. Broth, stock, wine or beer – they all work!
5. Tightly cover with a lid.
6. Gently simmer on the stovetop or in the oven for minutes or hours depending upon what you’re cooking (check your specific recipe for cooking times).
7. Serve with something crusty, crunchy or starchy to soak up all of the savory juices.

Tagged as: braise, braising, meat