* Three factors affecting cooking time *

1. COOKING TEMPERATURE

• Air in the oven

• Fat in the fryer

• Liquid in which food is being cook.

2. SPEED OF HEAT TRANSFER

• Speed of cooking is more efficient in steaming.

• Slightly slow in baking because air is a poor conductor of heat.

3. SIZE, TEMPERATURE AND CHARACTER OF FOOD

• Small cuts of beef cook faster than bigger cuts.

• Chilled steak takes longer time to cook.

• Fish cook quickly due to the structure of the flesh.

Methods of cooking

WHY DO WE COOK ?

• Easy to digest, soften and palatable.

• Improve flavor

• Destroys pathogenic bacteria

• Safer to eat

Effect of heat on food

PROTEIN	COAGULATION (FIRM) At 71 °C to 85 ° C Example: Eggs and Connective tissue in meat.
STARCH	GELATINIZATION Occurs when starches absorb water and swell.
FATS	MELT Fats that present in meat or fish can act as a cooking medium. When fat is heated at too high heat, it begins to smoke and deteriorate.
WATER	EVAPORATES Reduction occurs and water tends to dry up.
SUGAR	CARAMELIZATION Over heated sugar changes color and taste bitter. (sugar is converted to carbon)

Method of cooking

1/- Role of cooking:

▪ Make the food safe in killing all harmful micro-organisms, ▪ Modify the taste by making the food more crispy or softer according to the ingredient or method of cooking chosen for the recipe,

▪ Heat the food to simply embellish the tasting,

▪ Make the food digestible. 2/- Choice of a method of Cooking:

The choice of a method is made in relation to: ▪ The ingredient: its shape, its size, its quality, its taste, its tenderness.

▪ The final purpose: exchange of flavors or not with other ingredients or cooking liquid. 3/- Classification of Cooking:

This classification is applied for all ingredients:

▪ DRY-HEAT METHOD,

▪ MOIST-HEAT METHOD,

▪ COMBINATION OF BOTH METHODS.

***** Explanation of those 3 methods: *****

 DRY HEAT METHOD → The main culinary aims are a superficial clotting of the proteins, a changing in the texture due to the browning of the proteins on the surface, and in some cases to collect the juices to make a sauce. The beginning of this cooking must be done at a very high temperature.

Examples of Dry-Heat Cooking Methods: - Roasting, - Sautéing, - Grilling, - Pan-frying, - Deep-frying, - Broiling, - Baking.

 MOIST HEAT METHOD → Cooking with moist heat is the process of applying heat to food by submerging it directly into a hot liquid or by exposing it to steam. Examples of Moist-Heat Cooking Methods: - Poaching, - Simmering, - Boiling (à l’anglaise, etc…), - Steaming.

 COMBINATION COOKING METHODS → Some cooking methods employ both dry-heat and moist-heat cooking techniques.

The two principal combination methods are: - Braising (large pieces), - Stewing (smaller piece). In both methods, the first step is usually to brown the main item using dry heat. The second step is to complete cooking by simmering the food in a liquid. Combination methods are often used for less tender but flavorful cuts of meat as well as for poultry and some vegetables.

(Below are some of the main cooking methods explained in detail)