What’s up my Eaters! The weekend is almost here. I hope you are all doing well. Last week we discussed the 3 primary cooking methods and how understanding them is the key to unlocking the cooking freedom that so many desire. Moist, dry, and combination cooking are the absolutes. They are why cooking never changes, only the ingredients do. Now that we have laid the foundation, this week I am going to tell you about what ingredients work best with each cooking method.

I am going to start with dry heat cooking because it is the method that I feel most affects our homes daily. Baking, grilling, frying, or sauteing use air or fat to transfer heat to its ingredients. Dry heat cooking can be low and slow but is typically used hot and fast. Think of making pancakes in the morning, having stir fry for lunch, or grilling a steak for dinner.   There are countless other applications, but dry heat cooking is used for ingredients that are lean and tender.  It is best suited for your steaks, chicken breasts, seafood, and pork loin.  It is also utilized when cooking vegetables or baking bread and sweet treats. 

Moist cooking, in contrast to dry heat cooking, utilizes moisture to cook food gently and evenly. Water, stocks, or steam are the means in which moist cooking is done. Boiling then simmering tough meats like beef roasts, pork shoulders, lamb shanks, or oxtails can benefit from moist heat preparation for soups and stews. Gentler methods like steaming or poaching can be used for more delicate ingredients such as eggs, fish, or vegetables.  When wanting to make potato salad for your next barbecue, rice for dinner, or grits for breakfast, simmering in water or stock allows the ingredients to cook gently while also maintaining their structural integrity. There is nothing worse than mashed potatoes that were supposed to be the potato salad. Moist cooking is also used to prepare beans and grains.

The third method, combination cooking, is my favorite. It is the type of cooking that grounds me the most. It always reminds me of home. One of my favorite things about being a chef is having the ability to take what some would consider lesser ingredients and making them delectable. In my opinion, combination cooking is most often utilized in accomplishing such things. Combination cooking, braising and stewing, is the utilization of both dry and moist cooking in preparing a dish. Dry cooking is used to lock in flavor, seal in juices, and give color. It also produces richness and flavors of caramelization in the product. Moist cooking is then used to tenderize and create the dishes sauce or liquid base. Typically, over a long period of time. All the meats listed under moist cooking can be applied here as well. Root vegetables, hearty mushrooms, celery, onions, and cabbage lend themselves well to combination cooking methods. Lentils, beans, and rice will also lend themselves well to combination cooking.

Eaters!  You can do this. Cooking doesn’t change. Only the ingredients change. Last week I laid the foundation.  This week I reinforced it and taught you what ingredients to attach to each method. At this point, all you need to do is go cook something. I empower you too.  Again, you can do this. 

In closing and as I depart from you this week, I will leave you with two things. Heat kills food over time. As you are adventuring down this new path of culinary understanding and freedom, always remember to pay attention to your heat source. Watch your fire and take fire management seriously. Learn to appreciate the difference in cooking something for 3 minutes more vs. 5 minutes more. Those two minutes can be the difference between a wonderful meal and one you could’ve done without.  Lastly, familiarize yourself with the different internal temperatures of meat and what they feel like (to the touch) at their ideal doneness.  This will only add to your skillset.

Remember, you can always come to see me and my team every Saturday at the Peachtree City Farmers Market.  Until next time!