Pan Roasting and Braising

These are actually very similar techniques and the principal way that meats are prepared in Italian cooking. Braising involves cooking with more liquid than pan roasting does, but both use the moist-heat cooking method. When cooking with dry heat, the meat is seared, such as cooking a steak on a grill or a roast beef in the oven, and usually it is not cooked all the way through, leaving the center at least pink. With moist-heat cooking, meat is cooked using gentle heat in a moist environment. When the meat passes the point of being cooked through, it becomes more and more tender as the fibers break down and it absorbs the flavors of the juices in which it is cooking.