Nearly every recipe for the classic French dish pot-au-feu (see related content) calls for simmering rather than boiling once the meat has been added to the pot. Yes, this means you’ll be cooking the meat for upwards of 3 hours, but there’s a good reason for cooking low and slow here. Just as when you’re making stock for soups or stews, boiling will cause soluble proteins and rendered fat to emulsify into the cooking liquid. By simmering, you avoid emulsifying the fat and thus keep the stock clearer, and we found that the scum created simply settled to the bottom of the pot.
FAQs
Yes, it takes longer, but sometimes there's a good reason for cooking low and slow when making stock. Nearly every recipe for the classic French dish pot-au-feu (see related content) calls for simmering rather than boiling once the meat has been added to the pot.
Why is it important to simmer stock and not boil it? ›
Cooking low and slow gives you good conversion while preventing fat, minerals and other gunk from emulsifying into your stock. Boiled stock will be cloudy, greasy and have a lower yield. To avoid that, start with cold water and your bones (or veggies, if you're going vegetarian) and put over high heat.
How does simmering temperature affect the clarity of a stock? ›
As meat and bones cook, they release proteins and fats into the surrounding liquid. Stock should be heated slowly to only a simmer. At a slow simmer, these components appear as scum on top of the stock and can be skimmed. If the stock is boiling, these substances are churned back into the stock and become emulsified.
Which cooking method will produce a clear stock? ›
Blanching is when you drop something in boiling water briefly, usually done with vegetables to pre-cook them. You can apply the same technique to stock, by blanching the bones and meat in water before you add the aromatics and simmer.
Why is it important to simmer and not boil the soup? ›
Whether you're making a soup or stew, simmering instead of boiling allows the ingredients to cook slower at a lower temperature, creating a tender consistency without a mushy texture. Simmering gently softens the ingredients and melds the seasonings into a delicious one-pot meal.
What happens if you boil instead of simmer? ›
Boiling can quickly overcook food, making vegetables limp and meat dry and tough, even though they are cooked in liquid.
Why would someone want to simmer instead of boil? ›
When we want to cook food low and slow in liquid, simmering is the best option. Simmering helps break down the connective tissue of tougher cuts of meat such as chicken thighs, beef pot roast, pork shoulder, and lamb shanks. You'll also want to simmer more delicate foods such as poached eggs or poached fish.
Why does boiling stock make it cloudy? ›
The culprit? Boiling. Fats in your stock emulsify with the water when the stock boils. This is why a milky white tonkotsu ramen broth (which is produced via a rapid boil) is much cloudier than a stock with the same ingredients that is never boiled.
What makes stock clear? ›
How to Prepare Ingredients to Make a Clear Broth. If using meat in your stock or broth, you must soak it for at least 1 hour to get rid of excess blood and impurities. This includes chicken/chicken bones, pork/pork bones, and beef/beef bones, etc. Change the water out 1-2 times, and once soaked, thoroughly rinse clean.
What are two techniques used to clarify stocks and soups? ›
The simplest way of clarifying a stock is to simply pass is through layers of wet cheese/muslin cloth. Simply wet your muslin and fold into 4 layers in a colander or sieve and pass your stock or broth through this. Egg rafting is a very quick, very easy, and very traditional way of clarifying a stock or broth.
What is that stuff, anyway? Broth scum is simply denatured congealed protein. It comes from the meat, not the bones.
Is it better to boil or simmer? ›
More often, we turn to simmering. Less agitation means delicate foods won't break apart and fats and soluble proteins in stock won't coagulate and turn the liquid cloudy. Because lower burner temperatures allow time for heat to transfer evenly from the bottom of a pan to the top, there's also less risk of scorching.
Is it better to boil or simmer to reduce? ›
Simmering not only develops the maximum possible flavor, but also allows impurities to collect at the top and be skimmed off periodically as the sauce cooks. Boiling would diffuse the impurities into the liquid and result in a bitter taste and unclear stock.
Should stock boil or simmer? ›
Simmer, Never Boil: Keep your stock at a simmer with gentle bubbles just breaking at its surface. You want to avoid boiling because as the bones heat they keep releasing proteins and fats. If these are boiled, they're churned back into the stock, making it cloudy and greasy.
What will happen if stock is not simmered gently? ›
If this process happens too rapidly, or at too rapid of a boil (vs. simmer) the scum does not rise to the top in groups, and as the convectional currents are much more quicker and violent than a simmer, the impurities are brought back down into the stock before we are able to skim them off.
Is it better to boil or simmer bone broth? ›
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for at least 10-12 hours, or until reduced by 1/3 or 1/2, leaving you with 6-8 cups of bone broth. The more it reduces, the more intense the flavor becomes and the more collagen is extracted. We find 12 hours to be the perfect cook time.
Does stock need to simmer? ›
(It helps draw out nutrients and minerals from the bones into the stock.) Simmer the stock for 6 to 8 hours, covered, keeping an eye on it to make sure it stays at a simmer. Strain the stock through a fine-meshed sieve. Let cool.
