4.3 Sautéing (and deglazing)
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This article is from the Cooking and Conversions FAQ, by with numerous contributions by Victor Sack cooking.faq@mac.com others.
4.3 Sautéing (and deglazing)
'Sauté' is the past participle of the French verb sauter (to jump, hence
to fry in shallow fat, while tossing, i.e. making to jump). Sautéing is
thus a method of briefly cooking food in a shallow pan or skillet in a
small amount of hot fat or liquid over direct heat. One of the primary
cooking techniques, it is similar to grilling and roasting in that it
consists of the quick sealing and browning of small pieces of food.
This method is most often used for making dishes in savoury sauces,
sautéing being just a stage in the preparation of the dish, but also as
an end in itself, as in sautéed potatoes or mushrooms. To be
successful, sautéing should be done at the last minute. The size of the
sauté pan should correspond with the quantity of food to be cooked. The
pan should be large enough to accommodate food without crowding,
otherwise the food steams. It shouldn't be *too* large, though,
because, if the base of the pan is not entirely covered with the food to
be sautéed, the fat will start to burn in the empty spaces between the
food pieces, and give a bitter taste to the sauce (if such is going to
be made).
If the food is going to be served with a sauce made with the food's own
juices, sautéing would be followed by the next step - deglazing the pan
and making a sauce. After the food is seasoned and cooked to the
desired degree, the pieces are taken out of the pan and kept warm. The
pan can now be deglazed, using some sort of liquid specified in the
recipe, typically wine, brandy or vinegar. The liquid is brought to the
boil to loosen and dissolve the caramelised juices stuck to the bottom
of the pan. Some sort of hot stock can now be added and reduced by
half or so. The pan is then taken from the heat, and butter or cream
may be added and blended into the sauce. The sauce is then added to the
food, which should never be cooked in the deglazing liquid (it would
turn it into a ragoût).
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