Pişirme Teknikleri

Sote (Sautéing)
Soteleme Nedir?
Sote, yiyeceklerin yüksek ısıda çok az yağda hızlı pişirilmesi tekniğidir. Sözcüğün kökeni “sıçramak”
anlamına gelen Fransızca sauter’den gelir; ama bir pişirme tekniği olarak “sote”yi tanımlamak için
“sıçramak” sözcüğünün kullanılmasının nedeni sadece kızgın tavaya koyulduğunda yiyeceklerin
verdiği tepkiye dayanmaz; aynı zamanda, yiyeceklerin tavada “havaya fırlatılması” yöntemini
tanımlamak için de kullanılmıştır. Sote terimi aynı zamanda (tavukgöğsü, pirzola veya fileminyon gibi)
ince kesilmiş etlerin orta yüksek ateşte çok az miktarda yağda sıkça karıştırmadan pişirilmesine de
gönderme yapar ―bir yüzü kahverengi bir renk alınca etin diğer tarafı çevrilir.

Sautéing is a basic cooking technique essential to many recipes. Soups and stews, for example,
almost always begin with sautéed aromatics; sautéing browns the vegetables, which enhances the
flavor of the soup. But it's also used to fully cook whole dishes-and do so quickly. Sautéed chicken
breasts with a simple pan sauce, for example, may be ready in as little as 20 minutes, which is helpful
on busy weeknights.

Because it cooks food fast, sautéing keeps the flavors vivid. This is especially welcome with seasonal
ingredients such as tender asparagus. Just as hearty winter root vegetables benefit from long, slow
braising, the delicate produce of spring favors a light touch. With a few tips, this technique is easy to
master.

What sautéing does. The browning achieved by sautéing lends richness to meats and produce. And
because the food is cooked quickly, the integrity of the flavor and texture remains intact; asparagus,
for example, retains its slightly grassy punch, as well as a pleasing crisp-tender bite.

Equipment. Use either a skillet (a wide pan with sloped sides) or sauté pan (a wide pan with straight
sides) for this technique. Both have a large surface area, so food is less likely to become
overcrowded. Choose a pan with a dense bottom that evenly distributes heat. Nonstick, anodized
aluminum, and stainless steel options work well.

Best foods to sauté. Whether it's meat or vegetables, time in the pan is brief, so it's important that
the food be naturally tender. Cuts such as beef tenderloin, fish fillets, and chicken breasts are good
candidates; tougher cuts like brisket or pork shoulder are better for long cooking over low heat. The
same principle holds for produce. Asparagus tips will be more successfully sautéed than beets. Many
other tender vegetables, including baby artichokes, sugar snap peas, mushrooms, and bell peppers,
lend themselves to this technique. That's not to say that denser, tougher vegetables can't be
sautéed―they just may need to be blanched (briefly cooked in boiling water) first to get a head start
on cooking.

Size matters. Cutting food to a uniform thickness and size ensures that it will cook evenly. Vegetables
should be no larger than bite-sized, meat no larger than portion-sized. Meat that is too thick or
vegetables that are too large run the risk of burning or forming a tough, overly browned outer crust
in the time that it takes to completely cook them. Have the ingredients prepped before heating the
pan.

Heat the pan. Be sure to warm the pan over medium-high heat for a few minutes. It needs to be
quite hot in order to cook the food properly. If the heat is too low, the food will end up releasing
liquid and steaming rather than sautéing.

Add fat. Fats such as butter, oil, or bacon fat are used to coat the food and prevent it from sticking to
the pan, aid in browning, and add flavor. Once the pan is hot, add the fat, and swirl to coat the
bottom of the pan. (Heating the fat with the pan may cause food to stick.) Heat the fat for 10 to 30
seconds―until oil shimmers or butter's foam subsides―and then add the food.

In general, use fats that have a high smoke point―peanut oil, regular olive oil, canola oil, or rendered
pork fat. Once the fat begins to smoke, the flavor changes and can affect the food's taste. Butter adds
great flavor, but it may burn, so you will either need to clarify it to remove the milk solids (which are
prone to burning) or combine it with oil so there's less chance of burning. Oils that have low smoke
points, like extravirgin olive oil and many nut and infused oils, lose their characteristic taste when
heated to sautéing's high temperatures. It's OK to sauté with these oils―just remember that their
flavor will not be as pungent.

Don't overcrowd. It's crucial that only one layer of food cooks in the pan at a time. When sautéing
cuts of meat, there should be at least a half-inch between each piece. Food releases steam when
cooking. If that steam doesn't have enough room to escape, it stays in the pan, and the food ends up
steaming rather than sautéing and won't brown. If you've ever tried to sauté a large amount of
cubed beef for a stew, you may have experienced this problem. The solution is simply to sauté the
food in smaller batches.

Toss and turn. When sautéing tender vegetables and bite-sized pieces of meat, stir frequently (but
not constantly) to promote even browning and cooking. Dense vegetables such as cubed potatoes,
though, should be stirred once every few minutes so that they don't fall apart as they grow tender.
Portion-sized cuts of meat (chicken breasts, steaks, or pork medallions, for example) should only be
turned once so they have enough time to form a nice crust, which will also keep the meat from
sticking to the pan.

Stir-fry vs. sauté. Stir-frying and sautéing are techniques that share some similarities. Both methods
cook food quickly in a small amount of fat. But stir-frying cooks food over intensely high heat, stirring
constantly. Sautéing involves only moderately high heat, and the food is not in continuous motion.

The bottom line. These are the three most important things to know about sautéing.

Heat the pan (and then the fat) adequately before adding food.

Don't overcrowd the pan.

Stir frequently but not constantly.