Cooking Techniques

STANDING TIME

Dense foods e.g. meat, jacket potatoes and cakes, require standing time (inside or outside of the oven) after cooking, to allow heat to finish conducting to cook the center completely. Wrap meat joints and jacket potatoes in aluminium foil while standing. Meat joints need approx. 10-15 minutes, jacket potatoes 5 minutes. Other foods such as plated meal, vegetables, fish etc require 2-5 minutes standing. After defrosting food, standing time should also be allowed. If food is not cooked after standing time, return to the oven and cook for additional time.

MOISTURE CONTENT

Many fresh foods e.g. vegetables and fruit, vary in their moisture content throughout the season, particularly jacket potatoes. For this reason cooking times may have to be adjusted. Dry ingredients e.g. rice, pasta, can dry out during storage so cooking times may differ.

STARTING TEMPERATURE

The colder the food, the longer it takes to heat up. Food from a fridge takes longer to reheat than food at room temperature.

LIQUIDS

All liquids must be stirred before and during heating. Water especially must be stirred before and during heating, to avoid eruption. Do not heat liquids that have previously been boiled. DO NOT OVERHEAT.

TURNING & STIRRING

Some foods require stirring during cooking. Meat and poultry should be turned after half the cooking time.

ARRANGING

Individual foods e.g. chicken portions or chops, should be placed on a dish so that the thicker parts are towards the outside.

DENSITY

Porous airy foods heat more quickly than dense heavy foods.

CLING FILM

Cling film helps keep the food moist and the trapped steam assists in speeding up cooking times. Pierce before cooking to allow excess steam to escape. Always take care when removing cling film from a dish as the build-up of steam will be very hot.

SHAPE

Even shapes cook evenly. Food cooks better by microwave when in a round container rather than square.

SPACING

Foods cook more quickly and evenly if spaced apart. NEVER pile foods on top of each other.

QUANTITY

Small quantities cook faster than large quantities, also small meals will reheat more quickly than large portions.

PIERCING

The skin or membrane on some foods will cause steam to build up during cooking. These foods must be pierced or a strip of skin should be peeled off before cooking to allow the steam to escape. Eggs, potatoes, apples, sausages etc, will all need to be pierced before cooking. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO BOIL EGGS IN THEIR SHELLS.

COVERING

Cover foods with microwave cling film or a lid. Cover fish, vegetables, casseroles, soups. Do not cover cakes, sauces, jacket potatoes or pastry items.