Alto-Shaam 1000-TH SERIES LO W TE MPE Rature CO OKI NG Facts, Shrinkage Control and Cooking Time

L O W T E M P E R AT U R E C O O K I N G I N T R O D U C T I O N

LO W TE MPE RATURE CO OKI NG FACTS

SHRINKAGE CONTROL AND COOKING TIME

THERE ARE TWO MAJOR FACTORS CONTROLL ING MEAT SHRIN KAGE OR COOKI NG LOSS ES.

1.Temperature at which meat is cooked :

The hig her the tem peratu re at which meat is cook ed the more shrin kage will result. Ove r-co oke d meat als o results in higher los ses. High er temp erat ures and over -co oking draw s moistu re to the surface and this moisture evap orate s or drip s out of the meat.

2.Intern al temperature of the meat:

Lik e over- coo king, as meat is brou ght to a hig her inter nal tem per atur e shri nkage is increased. For thes e two reason s, it is sugge sted most cuts of red meat be cook ed at 250°F (121° C) and that all cook ing be based on internal produ ct temperatur e. The use of a therm ometer is encourage d.

THER E ARE FOUR MAJOR FACTO RS INVOLVED IN DETERMI NING COO KIN G TIME S FOR MEAT:

1.The degree of aging on the meat:

Aged meat will cook faste r, shri nk more, and has a much short er holdi ng life than fres h meat .

2.Interna l temperature before cooking:

Meat sho uld be pla ced in a prehe ate d oven direct ly from a refrige rated tempe rature of 38° to 40°F

(3° to 4°C). Meat cooked from a froz en sta te will requi re approxima tely one and one -ha lf to two tim es the norma l cooking tim e. In addi tion, freez ing rupture s tissu e cells creating addit iona l moistu re loss duri ng the cooking proc ess and will resu lt in more shrink age.

3.Desire d degree of doneness:

The higher the deg ree of interna l temp erat ure requi red, the lon ger the nece ssary cooking tim e. Cooking tim es in this guid eline are bas ed on the most pop ular inter nal produ ct tem perat ures .

4.Quantity and quality of product .

TO CALC UL ATE						ME AT SH RINK AG E
				STARTING WEIGHT (Weight of Raw Product)
-MINUS:ENDING WEIGHT (Weight of Cooked Product)
			EQUALS : AMOUNT				OF SHRI NKAGE
AM OUNT		OF			SHRI NK AGE (Tot al Weight Los t in Cook ing)
÷ DIVIDED	BY:				STA RTING	WEI GHT		(Weight of		Raw	Produ ct )
		EQUALS : PERCE NT OF SHRINKAG								E
EX AMP LE :					Raw Beef Roa st:			100	lb	(45	kg)
				Cooked Beef Roast:				-95	lb	(-43	kg)
= AMOUNT OF SHRINKAGE:								5.0	lb	(2	kg)
SHRINKAGE DIVIDED BY							0.	05 = 5%			0.05 = 5%
STARTI NG WEIGHT:
						100	5.	0		45	2.0

EQUALS : PERCE NT OF SHRINKAGE

PREVENTING BACTERIA GROWTH

The surf ace of raw meat may bec ome con tam inated in processing , handling by the butcher or chef, or by other mean s. Food cont amination can als o be caused by unsanita ry perso nal hygi ene and work habit s, unclea n slicers, knive s, and prob es, or by fau lty opera tiona l procedure s. It is important, theref ore, tha t

sanitar y procedu res be follo wed at all times during food prepa rat ion and handl ing . Thi s is your mai n prote ction in gua rding agai nst food conta mina tion. For add ition al inform ati on see the Cleani ng and Maintena nce section of this manu al.

SEC TIO N 1 • LOW TEMPERATURE COOKING INTROD UCTION

3.