Sharpening your kitchen skills takes time and practice. But for novice at-home chefs, cooking meat can feel especially daunting at first. Fish, beef, chicken, and pork require a bit more cooking know-how than say, broccoli. Not only should meat be cooked to a safe internal temperature, it also takes some mastering to make it taste restaurant-quality tender and juicy (not dry and tough).
Here are a few hard and fast rules you should know when cooking meat in your kitchen:
Browning Brings the Flavor
Science proves those turkey burgers off the grill, or that seared piece of salmon taste better because of something called “the Maillard reaction”: it’s a chemical reaction where sugars and amino acids combine after being subjected to high heat. The result is new, nuanced flavor compounds that take a burger from good to “YUM.”
To achieve a perfect browning or sear, start with dry meat; pat the outside dry with a paper towel, removing any liquid or remaining marinade. Don’t overcrowd your meat either — cook pieces too close, and your meat could end up being steamed rather than browned. Finally, always add the meat to a hot, oiled pan (hot enough that the oil is almost smoking). This is a great way to add flavor dimension to fish or beef, but can also work for veggies, too!
Going Big? Try Low and Slow
If you’re roasting a full chicken or turkey, or need to cook a large cut of brisket, repeat after me: low and slow. This is the best way to keep large cuts of meat juicy.
Science backs this up: America’s Test Kitchen conducted an experiment to see how different cooking temperatures affected meat.
- Two 6‑pound rib roasts were roasted — one at 450 degrees and the other at 250 degrees until each was medium-rare.
- After cooking, the slow-cooked roast had lost about 9.25 percent of its starting weight, while the high-temperature roast had lost nearly 25 percent of its original weight.
What caused the weight difference? Moisture loss.
Meat loses more moisture and fat when cooked at high temperatures than when roasted at lower or moderate heat. Always double check your recipe for oven temperature to avoid drying out your meat.
Match the Cut to the Cook
In general, “tough” cuts (like chuck roast, brisket, hanger steak, and flank steak) come from parts of the animal with more muscle. These cuts are especially suited for low and slow cooking to bring out their richer flavor and break down those tough tissues.
Tender cuts, however, like a pork tenderloin or sirloin steak, are best cooked fast and hot, and can be cooked from rare to well done, based on your preference. Cooking these “low and slow” can actually make these less tender, so be sure you are ordering the right cuts for your recipe at the butcher.
Here’s a helpful article to learn more about the types of cuts you see at your grocery store.
Give It a Rest
When grilling, braising, or roasting, patience is key. Resting meat after cooking allows the juices to redistribute evenly. If you slice too soon, those juices spill out and you miss out on lots of flavor and tenderness. Giving your steak or chicken breasts a quick 5 to 10 minute rest can pay off big time when it’s time to enjoy.
(Cooking something larger like a turkey or whole chicken? The larger the cut, the longer the rest: these should be rested for 20-40 minutes before slicing.)
Kitchen Tools are Your Friends
Here’s one of the best hacks for beginners: invest in a meat thermometer. We promise: once you have one, you’ll never know what you did without it. (Cheaper varieties are available for just over $10.) With a handy digital thermometer, you’ll be able to avoid under or overcooking, and always have peace of mind that your meat is safe to consume.
- For burgers and steaks, insert the thermometer horizontally through the center of the meat to get an accurate read. For a whole chicken, insert the thermometer into the thigh, away from the bone. And for chicken or fish fillets, insert it into the thickest part of the cut.
Bookmark or print this chart for handy reference. It lists all the internal temperatures each variety of meat should be cooked to for food safety.
Get Cooking With Resolute Weight Loss
Cooking is a skill that will serve you your whole life; learning tips like these will make your meal times in the Resolute Weight Loss program even more delicious and satisfying. If you’re preparing meat-based dishes this week, consider using some of these tips!