Searing Meat

In article <[email hidden]>,

(Juds Boy) said:

I've tried searing beef roasts in large frying pans before slow roasting
in the oven and gotten pretty good results . The meat has been tender
and juicey. I guess the theory is to seal off the pores of the meat with
a really hot ,oily pan and then move it to a steady, lower heat for an
extended period.

I think most of that stuff about "sealing the pores" has been pretty
much discounted. The point of searing the meat is to cause a Maillard
reaction (browning) which adds a lot of flavor. IMO it will work a lot
better in a hot iron skillet with a bit of oil than on a grill; the
grill cannot get the surface of the meat as hot, as quickly, as direct
contact with the cast iron, with heat transfer aided by the oil.

Isaac

"Juds Boy" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've tried searing beef roasts in large frying pans before slow roasting
in the oven and gotten pretty good results . The meat has been tender
and juicey. I guess the theory is to seal off the pores of the meat with
a really hot ,oily pan and then move it to a steady, lower heat for an
extended period. Would this method work in a charcoal grill; put the cut
of meat over the coals till it's well browned and then move it to an
area of the grill where it can slow roast ? I've got a weber grill. (
I've made some great beer can chicken with it)
Don,...

For roasts I always use the Weber charcoal grill with two baskets, and cook
directly for searing and then indirectly by moving the baskets to the side
and turning the
heat down. I do this with standing rib of beef, turkey, and leg of lamb.
The sear seals the exterior, in the same way that grilling a "char-rare"
steak does.
I think this works much much better in a charcoal grill than in an oven
because you
heat directly initially and then indirectly and at a low temp. following.
You also
catch your drippings between the baskets to make Yorkshire pudding, gravy,
and any
other sauce. I can't imagine doing this in a frying pan.

Kent

isw said:

Juds...@webtv said:

I've tried searing beef roasts in large frying pans before slow roasting
in the oven and gotten pretty good results . The meat has been tender
and juicey. I guess the theory is to seal off the pores of the meat with
a really hot ,oily pan and then move it to a steady, lower heat for an
extended period.

I think most of that stuff about "sealing the pores" has been pretty
much discounted. The point of searing the meat is to cause a Maillard
reaction (browning) which adds a lot of flavor. IMO it will work a lot
better in a hot iron skillet with a bit of oil than on a grill; the
grill cannot get the surface of the meat as hot, as quickly, as direct
contact with the cast iron, with heat transfer aided by the oil.

Scientifically not true. The best you're going to do in a pan with
oil is the oil's smoke point, about 370-400degF... much hotter it'll
reach flash point and ignite.... if you persist all that will occur is
burned/carbonized... blackened, not browned meat. But with an oven or
a covered grill much higher temperatures can be achieved, easily
500-550degF with an oven and 650-700degF with a covered grill... and
the entire surface of the meat will be exposed to super heated air all
at once so no flipping/maneuvering is necessary... and because those
temperatures are really much too hot is why the oven or grill should
be cranked down immediately after introducing the meat or burning/
incineration will occur, especially the portions not covered with a
good layer of fat.... you're not going to brown the meat under the fat
anyway, and only an amateur would want to render off the fat right at
the onset of cooking. To pan brown meat as for pot roast use medium
heat, just enough to sizzle and enough so it doesn't stew... trying to
pan brown any food at full throttle is the sign of a kitchen imbecile,
who is only going to create burned food, burned pan, a smokey stinky
kitchen, and extra fill for their trash can.

Sheldon

In article <[email hidden]>,

Sheldon said:

isw said:

Juds...@webtv said:

I've tried searing beef roasts in large frying pans before slow roasting
in the oven and gotten pretty good results . The meat has been tender
and juicey. I guess the theory is to seal off the pores of the meat with
a really hot ,oily pan and then move it to a steady, lower heat for an
extended period.

I think most of that stuff about "sealing the pores" has been pretty
much discounted. The point of searing the meat is to cause a Maillard
reaction (browning) which adds a lot of flavor. IMO it will work a lot
better in a hot iron skillet with a bit of oil than on a grill; the
grill cannot get the surface of the meat as hot, as quickly, as direct
contact with the cast iron, with heat transfer aided by the oil.

Scientifically not true. The best you're going to do in a pan with
oil is the oil's smoke point, about 370-400degF... much hotter it'll
reach flash point and ignite.... if you persist all that will occur is
burned/carbonized... blackened, not browned meat. But with an oven

--snip--

"Scientifically" you'll find that direct contact between solid surfaces
will transfer heat a lot faster than any kind of convection through air.
It's not the temperature that matters; it's how fast the heat can be
transferred.

Would you rather grab a red-hot needle, or plunge your hand into a vat
of 350 F oil?

Isaac