Low Temperature Cooking

Low Temperature Cooking recognizes that some things are better done slowly. A confit depends on a gradual increase in temperature, maintained for some time. So too, does a pot-au-feu and many stews (see under beef, and simmer), which also, to most people’s delight, improve if they are left for a day. The process is not quite the same, but the result is equally pleasing, if a roast joint is rested before carving.

Meat benefits from a temperature low enough not to dry out the muscle (from 60–65°C/140–150°F) yet hot enough to dissolve the tough connective tissue (collagen) into succulent gelatin (70–80°C/160–180°F). McGee (2004) advises that for best results the temperature is raised from cold over 2–3 hours. It is then meltingly tender.