Meat wonderful meat! There are more ways to cook meat than there are types of meat. Roasting, frying, broiling stir frying…whatever meat you have to hand there will be a great way to prepare and cook it.
When you have a nice chicken, of all the ways to cook meat then one of the best has to be roasting.
A great roast chicken is one of the most popular meals and for good reason. Tasty and tender roast chicken is simply delicious!
To get a nice crispy skin on your chicken, rub a teaspoon of olive oil in before cooking and then top that with a pinch of salt, rub oil and salt well into the skin. That’s all you need for delicious chicken…no butter or mounds of herbs, let the meat speak for itself!
Not all meat benefits from the less is more attitude though and if your meat is not a particularly good cut then you may want to consider putting it in a casserole.
Slow cooking a tougher meat can really improve it and of all the ways to cook meat then casseroles are the tops.
Marinating your meat before adding it to a casserole can be a great way to maximise flavour and the fact that marinade can be made with very few ingredients is a huge plus!
For a basic red wine marinade you need a cup of red wine, two cloves of garlic, half an onion, Worcester sauce, salt, pepper and a cup of water.
Chop your garlic and onions finely and place in a shallow dish, pour in your wine and water then add two or three teaspoons of Worcester sauce. Stir the marinade well and add salt and pepper.
Now your marinade is ready for your meat! Place the meat in the dish with the marinade and spoon generously over the top ensuring that all of the meat has some marinade over it. Let it sit for one hour and then flip the meat over.
Leave to soak for a further hour and then place the meat and the marinade in your casserole dish. The marinade makes delicious gravy when cooked slowly with the meat and with vegetables added to the mix!
If you are in a hurry and simply do not have the time for marinating and slow cooking, then stir frying is one of the best ways to cook meat in a tasty way that the whole family will enjoy.
Again, you don’t need a cupboard full of specialist Chinese herbs and spices, I am a huge fan of Chinese All Spice which is a basic mixture of the most popular spice and goes well with chicken, beef or pork.
For a good stir fry all you need is meat of your choice cut in strips, spring onions, peppers and bean sprouts.
The trick to a good stir fry is speed and a good wok. Heat your wok well with a splash of sesame oil and when the wok is hot all over then throw everything in. Keep the ingredients moving at all times and as you draw closer to the end of cooking, add your spice and a good shake of soy sauce and there you have it, basic stir fry.
If you like, you can add noodles to the wok too and then you have a one pan meal. Prawns can also contribute to colour and taste and take literally minutes to cook.
So whether you grill, fry, roast or bake, the ways to cook meat are innumerable and the best way of finding your favourite is to experiment!
Be brave and take a risk, add your own personality to your recipes and you will begin to find that cooking is more than just means to a meal…it’s actually great fun!
