Even experienced cooks can make meat hard and rubbery after cooking. This problem is especially common for those who use home-cooked meat. Even the toughest pork can be turned into a luxurious and tender delicacy if you know a few culinary tricks.
How to soften raw meat
- Making the meat tender and soft will help marinate it with baking soda water. This is often used to marinate kebabs, although it will also be useful for any other meat. Cut the meat into portions and pour the mineral carbonated water over it. Put it in the fridge for 4 hours. After that, you can proceed to cook.
- Fruit marinades due to their acidity make the meat fibers softer. For 1 kg of meat take one kiwi or the pulp of one lemon. Mix the meat with the fruit puree and leave for 30 minutes in the fridge.
- Many cooks confirm that meat becomes softer if you soak it in red wine for 1 hour. All thanks to the grape juice in the composition of the drink.
- Experienced cooks use spritzing to soften tough meat. To do this, a piece of meat is pricked with a culinary or regular drugstore syringe on all sides and left for 4 hours. The recipe for the sprinkling mixture is as follows: a glass of boiled chilled water, 1 tsp. salt and 2 tsp. black pepper.
- If you bake the meat in the oven, place a container of water under the baking tray with the meat.
How to soften cooked meat
If the meat is already cooked, you can not fry it more to soften it, because it will simply burn. In this case, the following methods will help you.
- Finished tough meat can be softened with a water bath. For this purpose, the meat is put in a colander and placed over a pot of boiling water. The meat absorbs the moisture and becomes juicier. Cook the meat for 15 to 45 minutes – taste it until you are satisfied.
- Hard-cooked beef can be re-cooked in water with cream and a small pinch of sugar. A small amount of sugar will not affect the taste of the dish but will make the fibers soft.