Alto-Shaam Electronically Operated Ovens manual Low Tem Pe Rature Cook Ing Facts

LOW TEMPERATURE COOKING INTRODUCTION

LOW TEM PE RATURE COOK ING FACTS

SHRINKAGE CONTROL AND COOKING TIME

THERE ARE TWO MAJOR FACTORS CONTROLL ING MEAT SHR INKAGE OR COOKI NG LOSSES.

1.Temperature at which meat is cooked:

The high er the temperat ure at whi ch meat is coo ked the more shr ink age will result. Over-cooke d meat als o results in hig her losse s. Hig her temp erat ures and over- coo kin g draws moisture to the surf ace and this moistur e evapor ates or dri ps out of the meat.

2. Inter nal temp eratu re of the meat:

Lik e over -cook ing, as meat is brough t to a higher int ern al temp eratu re shr inkage is increase d. For thes e two reasons, it is sugg ested mos t cut s of red mea t be cooked at 250° F (121°C ) and that all coo king be based on inte rnal product temperatu re. The use of a meta l-stem med [poc ket-t ype], indi cati ng therm omete r is encou rage d.

THER E ARE FOUR MAJOR FACTORS INVOLVED IN DETERM INI NG COOKIN G TIM ES FOR MEAT:

1.The degree of aging on the meat:

Aged meat will cook faste r, shri nk more, and has a much shorter holdi ng life than fresh meat .

2.Intern al temperature before cooking :

Meat should be pla ced in a preh eate d oven direc tly from a refrig erat ed tempe ratu re of 38° to 40°F

(3° to 4°C). Meat cooked from a froz en sta te will requi re approx imately one and one-hal f to two times the norma l cooking time. In addition, freez ing rupture s tissu e cells creati ng addi tiona l moist ure loss during the cooking proc ess and will resu lt in more shrin kage.

3.Desired degree of doneness:

The higher the degree of intern al tem pera ture requi red, the longer the nece ssary cooking time. Cooking times in this gui delin e are bas ed on the mos t popul ar inte rna l prod uct tem pera tures .

4.Quantity and quality of produc t.

TO CAL CU LATE MEA T SHRI NKAGE

STARTING WEIGHT (Weight of Raw Product)

-MINUS:ENDING WEIGHT (Weight of Cooked Product)

	EQ UAL S: AM OUNT OF SHRINK AGE
AM OUN T OF SHRINKA GE (Total			Weight		Lost	in Cooking)
÷ DI VID ED BY:		START ING WE IGHT (Weight of Raw					Pr oduct)
	EQ UAL S: PERCE NT OF SHRI NKA GE
EXA MPLE:		Raw Beef Roast:	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

EQ UALS : PERCENT OF SHRINKAGE

PREVENTING BACTERIA GROWTH

The surf ace of raw meat may become contamin ate d in processin g, hand lin g by the butcher or chef, or by other mea ns. Food cont ami nati on can als o be caus ed by uns anitar y personal hygi ene and work habit s, unclean slicer s, knive s, and probes, or by faulty

oper atio nal proce dure s. It is impor tant , the refore, that

sanita ry procedu res be foll owed at all time s during food prep ara tion and handl ing. This is your main prote ctio n in gua rdin g agai nst food conta mina tion. For add ition al inform ation see the Clean ing and Mainten ance section of this man ual.

3.