Food & Receipts

How to boil various types of meat (chicken, duck, pork) using warm water instead of boiling water, ensuring the skin remains intact, tender, and delicious.

This is a general principle when using water and water temperature to boil in order to enhance the sweetness of meats that many restaurant chefs apply.

Administrator

8 December, 2023

170

Pork, chicken, and duck liver have a common characteristic of firm, slow-cooked texture from the outside to the inside. When cooked at high heat, the meat decomposes and forms nitrites, which create poisonous substances in the broth. Furthermore, meat and bones contain calcium, which can make the boiling water sour and less delicious. Boiling meat also requires a temperature of at least 15 minutes or more. Therefore, boiling meat in continuous boiling water often makes the broth sour and lose its flavor.

Therefore, the experience of restaurants is not to use water at 100 degrees to boil meat and only use water at around 80 degrees. This allows the meat to slowly cook, both on the outside and inside. Moreover, to make the meat sweet, it is necessary to retain the nutrients in the meat rather than letting them dissolve in the broth.

Especially when boiling chicken and duck liver, it is highly recommended not to rupture them. High heat and boiling can cause the skin of poultry to become soft and torn. By the time the inside of the meat is cooked, the outer layer of skin has become soft and loose, making it unappetizing and less flavorful. Similarly, if pork is cooked at high temperatures, the meat becomes dry and less savory.

The process of boiling delicious meat

First, the meat must be prepared to remove the odor: Pork, chicken, or duck can be soaked in cold water and alcohol, and ginger to reduce the odor. If there is a lot of blood in pork, it should be soaked and squeezed in cold water to prevent it from becoming bloody when boiled.

For chicken, duck, and geese, to eliminate the odor, it is necessary to clean the beak, abdomen, and gut. Remember to remove all internal organs, especially the lungs that can cause an unpleasant odor in the broth and affect the meat’s taste.

Alcohol and ginger are effective spices for eliminating the meat’s odor.

Boiling the broth:

Step 1: Pour water into the pot, if the water has already been boiled, try to ensure that the amount of water is enough to submerge the meat. Because if it is not enough, part of the meat will protrude above the water’s surface, resulting in an unattractive appearance. For geese, chicken, and duck, if there is not enough water, you have to turn them over to cook each side. Otherwise, when removed, there will be a visible separation line between the two halves, which does not look aesthetically pleasing and affects the cooking time.

The boiling water can be seasoned to enhance the flavor. For geese, chicken, and duck, you can place the seasoning inside the stomach to let them gradually diffuse instead of putting the seasoning directly into the water. The delicious boiling seasonings include salt, MSG (if using), sugar (or sliced sugarcane), and aromatic herbs (ginger, lemongrass, lime leaves, depending on the type of boiling). If boiling chicken, it is advisable to add grilled onions and ginger for better fragrance. If boiling geese or duck, ginger and lemongrass are recommended.

In terms of nutrition principles, sugar is not good for health when consumed in large quantities. However, in terms of taste, adding a small amount of sugar (don’t add too much, especially for people from the North) will make the broth sweeter and penetrate into the meat. Using fresh sugarcane instead of sugar also makes the broth sweeter. Salt should be used instead of broth powder because salt will make the taste deeper and richer.

Step 2: Bring the water to a boil. Add the meat, chicken, duck, or geese and let it boil continuously or wait until it boils again before turning off the heat for it to steep. Then let the meat steep in this water, with a low simmer, to ensure that the water does not boil vigorously. At a temperature of about 80 degrees Celsius, the meat will be cooked slowly and evenly on the inside. Therefore, the skin does not shrink from the chicken, goose, or duck. Placing the meat in boiling water immediately causes the outer skin layer to contract, preserving the sweet taste inside the meat and preventing it from dissolving into the broth. This slow cooking method helps the meat cook evenly on the inside without becoming overly tender. This method also keeps the skin of chicken, goose, and duck crispy without becoming limp.

Step 3: Pierce the chicken thigh with a toothpick, and if the released liquid is clear, it is cooked. Remove the meat and hang the chicken, goose, or duck to drain off the water before chopping. If you want the meat to become firm quickly and stay crispy, you can immediately put it in the refrigerator or an ice bath. When the hot meat meets the sudden cold temperature, it will contract. This technique helps the meat become firm, and the sweet liquid remains inside. When you chop the meat, you will see that it is moist inside.

Note: Absolutely do not use a knife to pierce or cut the chicken thigh, goose, or duck to speed up the cooking. This method causes the sweet liquid inside the thigh of the chicken, goose, or duck to seep out, making the meat dry and less flavorful. With this boiling technique, you do not need to cut the meat, and it will still cook completely without the skin coming off. You can cut it after boiling to release the liquid and prevent splashing. This method helps retain the sweetness and juiciness in the chicken, goose, and duck meat.