- Hamburgers with a difference
To add flavour and moisture to hamburger patties, add 1/4 cup (30g) finely chopped onion and 2 tablespoons barbecue sauce. Blend the ingredients into the beef or turkey mince with freshly washed hands, taking care not to overwork the mixture.
Variations of the ingredients are endless —you can add everything from crushed garlic, or finely chopped celery or other crisp vegetables paired with sweet chilli sauce, tomato sauce or Worcestershire sauce. You could also mix a teaspoon of chilli powder or cumin (or 1/2 teaspoon of both) into the meat to give the patties a slight Mexican flavour or even a sprinkle of curry powder to add some Indian spice.
- Speed defrosting with salt
Defrost frozen meats quickly and safely by soaking them in cold salt water for several hours. Mix 50-100g sea salt or any other coarse-grained salt with 2 litres water, then submerge the meat and refrigerate it. Once the meat has thawed, just discard the salt water and cook as usual.
- Making better burgers
Although your usual hamburgers probably taste absolutely fine, you can notch up a burger’s wow factor with a few easy tricks.
- Keep them juicy For a juicier grilled burger, add 100 ml cold water to the mince and shape the patties as you normally would. Prepare the patties shortly before you grill them.
- Flash freeze Keep hamburger patties from breaking up during grilling by freezing them for 5 minutes just before they go on the grill.
- Dented burgers Use your forefinger to make two or three dents in the centre of a patty before placing it on the grill. This distributes heat more effectively so that the burger will cook faster.
- Toast some herbs You can easily flavour and scent grilled burgers on a barbecue by giving the hot coals a herbal treatment. Place fresh herbs like basil and rosemary directly onto the coals.
- Bathe flank steak in ginger ale
Lend flank steak an Asian touch — and make it more tender — by marinating it in 150 ml ginger ale mixed with 3 crushed garlic cloves, 150 ml orange juice, 1/4 cup (60m) soy sauce and 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil. Cover and keep in the fridge for 4-8 hours. This recipe makes enough marinade for 700g flank steak.
- Wake up a bit of brisket with coffee
This innovative method for cooking brisket of beef uses coffee and chilli sauce to give what can be a toughish meat a new twist. To enjoy this twice-cooked dish for yourself, combine 2 cups (500ml) brewed coffee with 1 -1/4 cups (310ml) chilli sauce in a mixing bowl. Stir in a chopped onion, 2 tablespoons each brown sugar and salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.
Place a 2-kg brisket in a roasting dish, then pour the sauce over the meat. Cover tightly with a lid or foil and bake for 2 hours in a preheated 160°C oven. Remove the pan from the oven and transfer the meat to a platter to cool. Now slice the meat, lay the slices in the sauce in the pan and cover again. Bake the joint at 160°C for another 2 hours or until the brisket is completely soft and tender (when a fork inserted into the meat goes in with little resistance).
- Mix up in a bag
Put mince, breadcrumbs, chopped onions and seasonings for a meatloaf or hamburgers into a large self-sealing plastic bag and squish it about with both hands to evenly distribute the seasonings throughout the meat. Turn the bag inside out into a prepared loaf tin, gently press it into shape and bake. Your hands will be clean and there’s no bowl to wash.
- Keep meatloaf moist
Spray the top of meatloaf with water to keep it from cracking and drying out as it cooks. Open the oven door and brush tomato sauce over the top of the loaf about 15 minutes before it has finished cooking.
- Easy slices without tearing
To slice thin steaks or cubes from a roast prior to cooking, wrap the meat in heavy-duty plastic wrap and freeze for 10 minutes. This method works for any cut of meat.
- Brilliant pork glaze
All you need is apricot jam, soy sauce and powdered ginger and you have the makings of a simple but delicious glaze. Just whisk together 3 tablespoons apricot jam, 2 tablespoons soy sauce and 3/4 teaspoon ginger and brush it onto a pork loin or pork roast before cooking. If you are pan-frying pork chops on top of the stove, glaze the browned top of the chops after you’ve flipped them over once.
- A bit of a brew for lamb
To give Iamb stew a beautiful dark colour and great flavour, add 1 cup black coffee to the pot about halfway through the cooking process.
Credit : Reader’s Digest
Picture Credit : Google