Velveting Meat: The Best-Kept Chinese Restaurant Secret - what do restaurants use to wash dishes

One of my favorite things about American Chinese food is how easy it is to eat: these are Bites --
Size, addictive taste, meat is always tender and easy to chew.
But if you 've ever tried to copy your favorite takeout in the kitchen, you may have noticed that the heat required for most recipes will dry the meat you're trying to cook completely.
The technology that most Chinese restaurants use to create juicy, delicious consistency that we all know and like is called velvting, which is not so much a secret as a little secret --
Famous American cooking methodS. home cooks.
What is velvating & why does it work? When thinly-
Cut and peeled meat (such as chicken) is velveted, marinated in a base mixture of salt, liquid and corn starch for at least 30 minutes.
After pickling, put the chicken in the pan and flash it
Fry with oil at high temperature.
Take the chicken out of the pan after cooking for a minute or two, and the remaining ingredients cool (
Vegetables and/or sauces, for example)are cooked.
Then add the chicken to the final frying pan and fry a short piece with the prepared sauce before serving.
The most important part of this process, and the key to velvting, is marinade: the chicken takes at least half an hour to ensure that every inch of its surface is coated with corn starch paste.
This layer of corn starch forms a barrier to the heat introduced by the pot-
But it can also prevent the loss of water inside the meat.
Bleach, or flash
Frying is another step in strengthening the barrier;
The outside of the meat is cooked so fast that it seals the juicy nature of the chicken.
Finally, adding the chicken a few minutes before the dishes are completed allows the meat to be heated to the same temperature as other foods without being exposed to more heat for a long time (
This will cause loss of moisture and a tougher texture).
I use chicken as my main example because I prefer cooking with chicken: cooking velvating with chicken breast is technically working well.
But as long as the meat is cut into thin strips or small pieces, velvting can work with any kind of meat.
More information about velvating marinade the most important ingredient in any velvating marinade is corn starch-
Everything else is left to explain.
Chicken protein is a common ingredient that helps the corn starch to attach to the meat, but I don't like the egg yolk lying around but choose to use Shaoxing wine instead.
Alcohol is one of my favorite ways to add complex and delicious food to a dish.
At home, I use 1 tablespoon of liquid to 2: 1 ratio to corn starch.
Half a tablespoon of Shaoxing rice wine.
Corn starch: this small part is enough for 1 pound. of thinly-sliced meat. (
If you can't find Shaoxing wine in the local Asian market, rice wine such as dried sherry or sake can be used as a good alternative. )
Other ingredients initially added to the marinade include salt, pepper and other ground spices.
However, do not add fresh aromatic substances such as garlic or ginger: The high temperature of the oil will bake them crispy.
Water velvting: traditional velvting methods using a large amount of oil are easier to replace;
However, most home chefs do not have a large industry
Size of woks and restaurant-
Oil around.
Hot water is more friendly (and healthy)
For home cooking.
Simply cook enough water to cover the meat you are eating, then add the meat and cook until the meat becomes opaque.
Drain the meat and use it in your favorite recipe.
When using Velveted meat, the preparation with a high content of sauces and spices tastes the best.
Here are some recipes that can serve as a starting point for your cooking velvating adventure: velvating is a simple but essential technique for Asian stirringfry.
Knowing the practice of velvet meat made me addicted to Chinese takeout. . .
This has certainly reduced the burden on my budget.
If you decide to try velvating at home, be sure to let us know in the comments!