Simmered, Steamed or Stewed Meat

To secure the best results in the use of this method, the meat should be cut into small pieces so as to expose as much surface as possible. Then the pieces should be put into cold water rather than hot, in order that much of the juices and flavoring materials may be dissolved. When this has been accomplished, the temperature should be gradually raised until it nearly reaches the boiling point. If it is kept at this point for several hours, the meat will become tender and juicy and a rich, tasty broth will also be obtained.

The cheap cuts of meat, which contain a great deal of flavor and are likely to be tough, cannot be prepared by the quick methods of cookery nor by the application of high temperature, for the result would be a tough, indigestible, and unpalatable dish.

The long, slow cooking at a temperature lower than boiling point, which is known as stewing or simmering, should be applied. In fact, no better method for the preparation of tough meat and old fowl can be found than this process. By doing so, the connective tissue and the muscle fibers are softened. If the method is carried out in a tightly closed vessel and only a small amount of liquid is used, there is no appreciable loss of flavor except that carried into the liquid in which the meat cooks. But since such liquid is always used, the meat being usually served in it, as in the case of stews, there is no actual loss.