Cooking Methods
Food + Heat = Cooking
Why DO we cook food?
No other animals cook food before consuming it.
So why do we?
Why DO we cook food?
Cooking food allows us to break down the
nutrients contained within, and more easily absorb
them into our bodies.
This allows us to gain a lot of energy and nutrients
in a relatively short time, and plays a big part in
shaping our society.
Why DO we cook food?
Cooking has evolved a lot over the years and we
don’t just cook for purely nutritional benefit
anymore.
Cooking allows us to control taste, texture, visual
appeal and more, and understanding the different
methods of cooking is the key to knowing how.
Types of Heat Transference
There are 3 basic types of heat transference used in
cooking.
They are:
o Conduction
o Radiation
o Convection
Types of Heat Transference
Conduction
Conduction is the transfer of heat through direct
contact.
Types of Heat Transference
Convection
A little bit more complicated, convection happens
when heat gets transferred through a fluid or a gas.
Convection actually combines conduction and a mixing
effect when the molecules in a fluid (air, water or fat)
move from a warmer area to a cooler one.
There are actually two types of convection: Natural and
Mechanical
Types of Heat Transference
Natural Convection
Natural convection occurs when the warm molecules
rise, and the colder molecules sink. This creates a
natural current distributing heat throughout the liquid
or gas.
Mechanical Convection
Mechanical convection follows the same principles as
natural convection, but uses a mechanical device to
assist the distribution of heat. Stirring a pot of liquid,
or a fan in a convection oven are examples of
mechanical convection.
Types of Heat Transference
Radiation
Radiation is different from the first two methods
because it doesn't require any contact between the
heat source and what you're trying to cook. Heat
waves or light waves radiate out from the heat
source striking and penetrating the food.
Unlike conduction or convection, the heat
produced by radiation travels in all directions,
rather than just rising.
Types of Heat Transference
All cooking methods will use at least one of
these methods of heat transference, and
most will actually use more than one.
Since most cooking uses multiple types of
heat transference, it’s easier if we break our
cooking methods into some different
categories.
Cooking Methods
Despite of all of these different types of heat, we
can basically only cook food in air, fat, water and
steam, which we call the cooking mediums.
Knowing this, we can separate our cooking
methods into these groups:
o Dry Heat Cooking
o Moist Heat Cooking
o Combination Cooking
Cooking Methods – Dry Heat
Dry-heat cooking methods are those that utilize air
or fat.
Dry-heat cooking typically involves high
temperatures, meaning 300°F or hotter.
Foods cooked using this method have a rich flavor
due to the caramelization and browning that
occurs because of these high temperatures.
Cooking Methods – Dry Heat
It might be strange to think of fat as a
dry heat cooking method since fat is
often a liquid (like oil), but it is
considered a dry heat. So why is that?
While we often think of any liquid as
being wet, this isn’t always the case.
Consider mercury. We probably
wouldn’t call it wet.
Cooking Methods – Dry Heat
Wetness can actually be somewhat hard to define
as a concept, and doesn’t really have a fully
satisfying answer.
For our purposes though we can think of it like
this. Wetness (or moisture) in cooking essentially
means water. Since oil not only contains no water,
but is in fact hydrophobic, we can think of it as
being dry.
Cooking Methods – Dry Heat
Dry heat cooking methods consist of the following
cooking methods:
• Grilling
• Broiling
• Roasting/Baking
• Sautéing
• Pan-frying
• Deep-fat frying
• Searing
Cooking Methods – Moist Heat
Moist-heat cooking methods are those that use water
or steam.
Because moist heat involves water, the temperatures
will generally not exceed around 212°F. Beyond this
point water will turn to steam and escape. Steam can
be heated to much higher temperatures, but only if
pressurized.
This slower, lower temperature cooking emphasizes
the food’s natural flavours.
Cooking Methods – Moist Heat
Moist heat cooking methods include:
• Poaching
• Simmering
• Boiling
• Blanching
• Steaming
Cooking Methods – Combination Heat
Combination cooking methods are that incorporate
both dry and moist heat cooking.
Dry heat cooking methods are used to establish
carmelization, and then moist heat cooking is used
to finish cooking the food.
Combination cooking is good for foods that need a
longer time to break down, but still want the
flavours obtained in dry heat methods.
Cooking Methods – Combination Heat
Combination cooking methods include:
• Braising
• Stewing
• Sous-vide
Dry Heat Methods
• Grilling
• Broiling
• Roasting/Baking
• Sautéing
• Pan-frying
• Deep-fat frying
• Searing
Dry Heat Methods - Air
Grilling
Grilling food involves cooking it suspended (by the
grill) over a radiant heat source. Convection also
plays a big role in grilling as the food is above the heat
source. The grill itself is also a source of conduction,
resulting in the characteristic grill marks.
Probably the most common form of grilling is
barbecue, but other varieties exist as well.
Dry Heat Methods - Air
Grilling
Grilling is widely used because of the strong flavours
created. Often times the heat source adds it’s own
flavours as well, resulting in complex flavour profiles.
The smoky taste obtained from charcoal grills would
be a great example of this.
Another big advantage of grilling is the ability to use
both direct and indirect heat. This can allow for a
wide variety of cooking.
Dry Heat Methods - Air
Broiling
Broiling food consists of cooking it with an overhead radiant
heat at high temperatures. Most commonly this will be the broil
setting on your oven, but other options exist.
Broiling food is sort of like the reverse of grilling. The heat
comes from above and the food is below. Because heat rises
though, there isn’t really any convection happening, so it’s even
more directional.
Broiling is also often used as a way to finish off food. A short
exposure to the high heat can be a great way to add browning to
the top of a dish.
Dry Heat Methods - Air
Roasting/Baking
This method of cooking is used for it’s very even heating,
the result of convection. Convection ovens use a fan
(mechanical convection) to create even more even
heating. Usually, the temperature for baking is
determined more by the food being cooked than the
technique, but like all dry heats rarely goes below about
300 F
Roasting and baking are essentially the same thing.
Probably the biggest differentiation comes from the type
of food being cooked. We usually think of roasting
meats, but baking things like cakes and cookies.
Dry Heat Methods - Air
Roasting/Baking
Of course there are exceptions and nomenclature is
always an issue. Compare a baked potato with a
roasted potato, and you probably aren’t thinking of
the same thing.
One of the ways we can think of separating the two is
that roasting often involves the addition of fat to
promote additional browning. This isn’t always the
case though, and shouldn’t be used as a distinction.
Dry Heat Methods - Fat
Sautéing
Sautéing involves cooking food in a small amount of fat at
very high heats.
Because the heat is high, the food needs to move around a
lot to avoid burning. Hence the name sauté. Usually this
is accomplished by shaking the pan, but can be done with a
spoon or spatula.
The high heat also means that the food shouldn’t take long
to cook. Smaller uniform pieces work best for this method.
Dry Heat Methods - Fat
Sautéing
Fats used for sautéing should be carefully selected.
Because of the high heat, fats with a higher smoke
point work a little better.
Many high flavour oils also lose a lot of their
complex flavours at high heats. Don’t waste
money by using expensive flavourful oils for a
sauté.
Dry Heat Methods - Fat
Pan-frying
Pan-frying consists of cooking foods at more of a
medium-high heat, rather than the high heat of a
sauté.
More fat is used for pan frying, usually enough to
come up to about 1/3 to 1/2 of the way up the food.
Pan frying also usually involves little to no movement,
excepting for a flip part way through the cooking.
Dry Heat Methods - Fat
Pan-frying
Pan-frying is great for breaded or battered things,
as well as a variety of other foods.
While breading or coatings are common for both
pan, and immersion (deep-fat) frying, the
conduction provided by the hot pan provides
additional carmelization and flavour for foods
cooked via pan frying.
Dry Heat Methods - Fat
Deep- fat frying
Deep fat frying, or immersion frying involves
immersing the food into a vessel full of hot fat (usually
oil)
Once immersed, the oil will try to get into the food.
However, the heat causes the moisture inside to turn
into steam, and push back against the oil. Moisture
moves from inside the food to replace the exiting
steam, cooking the food from the inside.
Dry Heat Methods - Fat
Deep- fat frying
Proper fat heat is really important for good results
when deep frying. Too hot and the food will burn, too
low and the oil will seep into the food, resulting in a
greasy mess.
Fried food cooks very fast, and works best with high
starch foods, that are uniform and even, or foods that
have a coating to protect them from the hot oil.
Dry Heat Methods - Fat
Searing
Searing consists of cooking food in a pan with a small
amount of fat, and little to no movement. Unlike
sautéing or frying however a wide range of heat can be
used.
Searing is desirable because of the browning that
occurs, and works best with thin flat foods. If the food
is thicker another cooking method may be required to
finish it off.
Dry Heat Methods - Fat
Searing
Searing works best with a vessel that can hold it’s
heat. The most ideal pans for searing are made
out of cast iron, but other types exist as well.
Contrary to popular belief, searing doesn’t “lock in
the juices” or anything of the like. Food actually
looses more moisture to searing than other
methods, but the flavour is worth it.
Dry Heat Methods - Fat
Frying vs Searing
While the definitions provided here will provide you with a
good understanding of some basic cooking methods, they
aren’t always written in stone. The different types of
cooking done in a frying pan take some different names.
Though searing is presented here as a method of cooking,
it is sometimes viewed as more of a technique to apply to
cooking methods. Pan frying (as presented here) is
sometimes called shallow frying, and searing (as presented
here) is called pan frying (which may or may not involve
more fat)
Dry Heat Methods - Fat
Frying vs Searing
Aside from these different definitions, there are a
lot of ways to cook something in a pan, and it’s not
always easy to label them.
What is important is to understand what you want
to do to the food, and what different cooking
methods will give you. After all, pan-fried or
shallow fried, it still tastes good.
Moist Heat Methods
• Poaching
• Simmering
• Boiling
• Blanching
• Steaming
Moist Heat Methods - Water
The Liquid
One of the major differences between moist heat
cooking methods is the temperature. As the water
gets hotter, the method changes and becomes
more or less suitable for different foods.
In most moist heat methods, you can also replace
water with another liquid to add additional
flavour.
Moist Heat Methods - Water
Poaching
Poaching consists of cooking food gently in a liquid
that is just starting to move, but is still free of bubbles.
This temperature is usually thought of as being
between 160oF and 180oF.
Poaching is well suited for things like fish, eggs and
chicken breasts, since they take advantage of the
gentle heat, and lack of movement in the liquid to
keep their shape and not break down.
Moist Heat Methods - Water
Simmering
Simmering consists of cooking food at temperatures
just before a boil, usually 185oF to 205oF.
Simmering provides more heat that poaching does,
but continues to have little movement, thus
preventing food from moving around too much.
Simmering is a great way to get flavour out of food, for
things like soups and sauces, stews and meats.
Moist Heat Methods - Water
Boiling
Boiling consists of cooking food in water at that has
reached a boil, at a temperature of 212oF.
Because of the higher temperature and increased
movement promoted by the boil, this method delivers the
most heat the most quickly or our water based heats. It is
ideal for foods that can handle this increased heat and take
advantage of the movement.
Pasta, for example, is a great candidate for boiling because
the water will wash away excess starch as it moves around.
Moist Heat Methods - Water
Boiling
Boiling consists of cooking food in water at that has
reached a boil, at a temperature of 212oF.
Because of the higher temperature and increased
movement promoted by the boil, this method delivers the
most heat the most quickly or our water based heats. It is
ideal for foods that can handle this increased heat and take
advantage of the movement.
Pasta, for example, is a great candidate for boiling because
the water will wash away excess starch as it moves around.
Moist Heat Methods - Water
Blanching
Blanching involves cooking food in boiling water, but
only for a short period of time, and then transferring it
to an ice bath to stop the cooking process. By doing
this, the food stops cooking before it turns to mush.
Commonly used for fruits and vegetables, blanching
can help brighten food, release unpleasant flavours,
and even be useful for removing peels of skins.
Moist Heat Methods - Steam
Steaming
Steaming food involves cooking food by passing steam
over it, usually using a steamer or double boiler.
Steaming is great for delicate foods that want the heat
obtained by boiling water, but don’t want to deal with
the movement associated with it.
Another advantage of steaming is that it doesn’t wash
anything off the food, which can be desireable.
Combination Heat Methods
• Braising
• Stewing
• Sous-Vide
Combination Heat
Braising
Braising food involves searing or pan frying food to
develop browning, and then finishing it off cooking it
in liquid, usually enough to cover the food about 1/3
of the way up.
Braising is great for foods that need a longer cooking
time to break down, but which still benefit from
browning. Braising also keeps the foods whole as
opposed to stewing, where they break apart.
Combination Heat
Stewing
Stewing food involves browning foods by searing
or pan frying, and then finishing them off by
simmering them in liquid.
Unlike braising, the liquid covers the entirety of
the food and helps to break it down while cooking.
Stewing is best served by evenly cut up pieces of
food.
Combination Heat
Sous-Vide
Sous-vide is actually a rather modern technique that
takes advantage of modern technologies.
In sous-vide cooking, food is encased in a sealed water
tight contained and immersed in a water bath to be
heated to precisely the perfect temperature.
Once the food has reached the ideal temperature it is
removed from it’s packaging and finished off with a
dry heat method to provide browning.
Combination Heat
Sous-Vide
Sous-vide is desirable because the food has little
exposure to an outside environment while
cooking, thus maintaining a very natural flavour.
Many high end steaks are prepared in this manner
since they can emphasize the quality of the meat.
