The Foolproof Formula for Braising Beef | Techniquely with Lan Lam
Braising is the best way to turn a tough cut of meat tender. Lan shows you the 3 keys to achieving perfectly braised beef.
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0:00 – The Perfect Braise – Catalan Beef Stew
0:27 – Braising Formula
1:07 – How Collagen Affects Meat’s Tenderness
1:43 – Building Fond For A Braising Liquid
3:33 – How Time Affects Tenderness
5:18 – Thickening the Sauce
6:54 – Tasting
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I see new video from Lan I click and upvote. Always learn a ton from her.
Please metric units, literally 95% of world uses celsius, at least could be added like text on screen..
Lan, your techniques are always intriguing and informative. I really get a lot of inspiration and desire to emulate what you achieve. Thanks for an xlent presentation!!
Gosh she’s wonderful.
Thought searing the meat was also key
AND putting the lid on to keep the juices in?
If cooks could have groupies, I am an Alan Lam groupie! My Lord!
Cook some beef in water and wine with herbs for a couple of hours in the oven. It’s not rocket science.
I like potatoes and carrots in my stew 😊
I find it interesting that you did not brown the meat in the dutch oven first, remove, then work on the soffrito.
Why do cooks share videos of themselves cooking and only tell us the ingredients without telling us what heat setting the stove is set to? Low? Medium? High? Onions caramelizing for 40 minutes at what level?
Thank you so much, Lan. Making this tonight ❤
these videos are the besg series you have seriously make more!!
Lan is the best – I love her Techniquely series!
I typically use a lid on the pot when I braise. Is there a reason you didn't???
Why not sear the short ribs first, and then caramelize the onions? Is it because the meat gets browned while it's braising without a lid on the pot?
Lan speaks. I listen. Family eats better meals.
Great TV series. I originally thought this was going to be an Asian recipe since I did not know where Catalan is. Now I know.
2:40 No I can't.
What is the benefit adding the bay leaf with the tomatoes, rather than with the liquid? I would think that you would just be driving off aromatics that would otherwise go into the dish?
almost every braising recipe see also have a browning step with the beef as well, it's omitted here, how does that influence the outcome?
What's the difference between braising and a slow cooker?
Why not sear the meat before hand… then take out , deglaze with the onions and then continue with the rest of the recipe?
Are these temperatures in F or C?
Yeah, I really want to stir onions for 40 minutes when doing a "hands off" braise…
I'd love to hear more about why the beef wasn't seared before adding to the sofrito- that's a super common thing recipes say to do that was omitted here. looks delish, though!
Love her! Great lesson!
I don’t understand why braising is not best accomplished in a pressure cooker. Saves a day of cooking.
Brad would’ve browned the meat….
When you say"season the beef" you didn't mention what seasoning you use
Does Flo know that you stole her look??
Could the baking soda trick speed up the browning of the onions by 30 minutes? I tried it a while ago (per ATK) and I went, where did they go? The fond was great.
I don't get the bread crumbs as a sauce thickening agent
I ❤ her.
I will never spend 40 minutes caramelizing onions, completely unnecessary
The flavors for this braise didn't thrill me enough to try it. Glen and Friends has a pot roast with Ancho Chili and coffee that is amazing. It also uses Chuck which is cheaper than short ribs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAdzQcGqvEw
Thanks. Good tips. I like to dust my mear pieces in flour, salt and pepper and sometimes thyme, and brown them, then take out and proceed with your steps. Works with any kind of tough meat. My favorite is veal shank, aka osso buco, but works wonders for boneless, as well.
When making this or similar, I add anywhere from 6-10 cloves of garlic. They cook to a very mild flavor and soften to the point where they are blended with the sauce. You really only notice when they are missing.
What a sweet gift idea. Now I want to see everyone else's mini paintings.
The absolute best.
You can tell Lan and Dan share a sincere love for the science of cooking as much as for the art. My favorite educators/presenters! Unless we're talking equipment, and then Lisa and Hannah are chef's kiss
Wait – did she just say Platonic ideal of a braise? OMG YES! Only Dan or Lan would talk about Ancient Greek metaphysical ideals in relation to food <3
Lan Lam = upvote
Easy
45 minutes in a pressure cooker will also get you that collagen breakdown.
I'm curious why you didn't brown the beef first? Great video, thanks
What Garlic are you talking about? am i dumb?
LAN is an awesome chef & teacher. I could watch her cook ALL day long !! No nonsense & straight to the point every time !!
I'm horrible at timing, and I understand that braising for a longer time will be helpful. Question: How do I reduce the chance of ruining my meat from over-braising? temp/time/etc?
Nice. I was having a hard time translating what Mexicans call "guisado". I think this is it
People wondering about the lack of searing the meat and braising uncovered:
"So this is a very odd beef stew, it’s all backwards and one of the things that’s most amazing about it is that meat in the oven is gonna brown on its own. We didn’t have to start the recipe by browning it in the Dutch oven as we normally would. Why not? Well, browning has to do with the Maillard reaction, you’ve all heard of that. That’s when amino acids and sugars combine. That happens at temperatures of 300°F or above and it takes a little bit of time. So, in the pot, the meat – part of the meat – is above the surface of the liquid. It will start to dry out in the oven – there’s no lid on the Dutch oven – and the temperature climbs above the boiling pint of water – 212°F, which is only as hot as it would get if it was wet – up to 300°F and above, the Maillard starts to take off and it’s in there for enough time, so you actually get browning and you get a lot of flavor development. So that’s how this recipe without browning the meat ahead of time, actually develops flavor and develops browning." Catalan Beef Stew, ATK TV S13, E3