Steam Cookers and Crock Pot Dishes

Steam Cookers Steam cookers allow food to be prepared at high levels of heat and moisture without losing any of the nutritional value of boiling. No oils or butters are required for the preparation of the food, thus reducing the fat content and pleasing health-conscious individuals. Boiling food in water causes the nutrients to leach out of the food into the water, which is usually discarded upon completion of the preparation. Steam cookers allow no such leaching to occur, thus retaining the nutrients—and the flavor—of foods prepared in a steam cooker. Steam cookers allow a chef to place food in the cooker, then the cooker heats the water beneath the food to boiling. The steam produced by the boiling water then cooks the food. Steam cookers make it easier to avoid burning the food, as no contact between the food and a hot surface occurs. In Western cultures, vegetables are the primary foods that are steamed. In Chinese cooking vegetables are stir fried or blanched, while meats are usually steamed in steam cookers.

Crock Pot Dishes Crock pot dishes are becoming more and more prevalent in our busy society. Where once a man or woman prepared an entrée, one or two side dishes, a bread, and a dessert for the evening meal, more and more individuals are discovering the simplicity of placing all the ingredients for a meal in a crock pot, covering the food and turning on the heat, and walking away. While the chef does the things required in today’s busy living, her crock pot dish simmers unattended for a few hours until she is ready to serve up the delicious crock pot dish for herself or for her family. Crock pot dishes include breads, vegetables, entrees, and even desserts. Cookbooks for crock pot dishes have become a new publishing industry as the demand for simple and easy meals surpasses the supply of such recipes. Even specialized crock pot recipes have begun to appear in bookstores and on the internet: “low-carb crock pot cooking,” “low-fat crock pot cooking,” “crock pot cooking for one,” etc. With one simple, inexpensive appliance and certain ingredients, even gourmet dishes can be prepared without excessive use of time and effort. Crock pot dishes and recipes are often similar to food prepared in steam cookers.

Recipes Recipes have been utilized by chefs for as long as human beings have used written language. A recipe is a set of written instructions, used in this case for the preparation of food. Some recipes are very precise and must be followed exactly; some recipes require less exactness. Many chefs prefer to invent their own recipes by adding or subtracting ingredients to or from an established recipe. This experimentation allows individualization of standard recipes based upon the taste of those who will consume the food. Most recipes provide a list of ingredients, the cooking instructions, and the number of standard servings per recipe preparation. For experienced chefs, recipes merely provide a foundation for experimentation. The chef begins with a basic recipe, then using his own understanding and experience of ingredients, alters the recipe to create a new flavor or texture of the food. This allows him to adjust the taste of the food to suit those who will enjoy it. Recipes can be specialized for many different mediums including crock pot dishes.

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