Searing Steak Doesn't Seal In Juices

[mollyanne]

(I don't know how old this news is but I still hear lots of people and chefs saying to sear your meat to seal in the juices...)

I just read that Food Scientists say searing meat to lock in the juices was proven to be a fallacy by molecular gastronomy because, in fact, anytime you get something super hot, you actually begin to draw the moisture out of it rather than seal it in. It does enhance the outer flavor to sear your steak but the juicy claim is not valid. Other techniques must be used to make it juicy...including don't overcook it.

Click on this link:

Molecular Gastronomists Don't Sear Their Steak | Wylie Dufresne | Big Think

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[GB]

You ae absolutely correct Mollyanne. Searing meat damages the cell structure with makes the juices come out. The reason you sear if for flavor, not to lock in juices. Some chef somewhere must have said that at some point and it sounded good so people picked it up and ran with it.

If you cook your meat correctly then searing will lose some juices, but it will not be enough to make your meat dry. The trade off of a little bit of juice for the great crust you get from searing is well worth it in terms of flavor.

 

[mollyanne]

Thank you for that info. How long has this been a fact? It's new to me. But don't you still hear lots of chefs and foodies saying to sear meat first to lock in juices?

 

[GB]

I have know this for probably 5 years or so I am guessing and I bet it was known a lot earlier than that, but yes I still hear it all the time. I expect this is one of those food myths that will continue for a very very long time, if not forever.

 

[Andy M.]

Sealing in the juices is indeed a fallacy. It sounds good but has been proven wrong.

There is a book titled, "What Einstein Told His Cook." by a well known scientist/foodie named Robert Wolke. He's a now retired professor of chemistry who spent time preforming experiments trying to prove or disprove common food "facts" and explain cooking phenomena.

Wolke discussed the juice sealing issue and proved with an experiment that it was false.

Here's a link to the Washington Post were he had a column for years. Some fascinating reading.

Robert L. Wolke - Food 101 - washingtonpost.com

 

[4meandthem]

Wylie Dufresne is awesome.I would love to try his food.

 

[forty_caliber]

I think Alton Brown did an episode of Good Eats on this topic too.

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[Andy M.]

I think Alton Brown did an episode of Good Eats on this topic too.

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He did. He performed an experiment to prove the fallacy of this 'fact'.

 

[LPBeier]

Yep, I agree with everyone else!

 

[Uncle Bob]

How long has this been a fact?

It has always been a "fact" ~~~ Harold McGee debunks the Myth in one of his books. He traces the Myth from the 17th Century all the way up into the 20th century..The book copyright is 1984..So at least 25 or so years...Possibly longer.

 

[roadfix]

But the phrase itself has a nice ring to it....

 

[Jeff G.]

Searing meat brings it up to the Maillard point. Its a reaction that causes that great flavor. To get the reaction the meat has to reach a temp between 300F-500F.

You do that with meat by searing it or with roasts you can start with a VERY hot oven and then turn the heat down if you don't want to sear it.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I seared 2 pounds of oxtails last night for soup, you should see the broth, deep brown, rich and the flavor!!! I'll finish off the soup tomorrow night with veggies and barley.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

All you need to do is look at the meat as it's cooking. Sear one side of a steak, or pork chop, or chicken breast. Turn it over, and after a few more minutes of cooking, you will see juices begin to ooze from the meat surface. That's how I make decisions about my cooking techniques. I observe what's going on. If you do that, then you will become the expert.

Seeeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[velochic]

Interesting. It makes sense, but just goes to show you to not just take the "experts" at their word. I'll have to do my own experiment now. The crust on meats sure does taste good, though.

 

[Rocklobster]

OK. I'm going to get a bit gross here. Why do they cauterize tissue to seal blood vessels? I was a funeral director/embalmer for a few years when back in my 20's. Cauterization, burning of tissue, would damage the tissue, but create a seal. It is a technique/used in this profession to, well, you figure it out. It was expecially effective with accident victims or decaying tissue. It is also used for chronic bloody noses. So, It may damage the tissue, but that will also change the physical make up of it and create a non porous surface that will keep fluids in. So, I'm not totally convinced that searing meat doesn't seal in juices...

Sorry, if I grossed you out. But, the same principles apply, here.

 

[taxlady]

OK. I'm going to get a bit gross here. Why do they cauterize tissue to seal blood vessels? I was a funeral director/embalmer for a few years when back in my 20's. Cauterization, burning of tissue, would damage the tissue, but create a seal. It is a technique/used in this profession to, well, you figure it out. It is also used for chronic bloody noses. So It may damage the tissue, but that will also change the physical make up of it and create a non porous surface that will keep fluids in. So, I'm not totally convinced that searing meat doesn't seal in juices...

Sorry, if I grossed you out.

I would guess that cauterizing causes scar tissue that seals the blood vessels.

 

[velochic]

OK. I'm going to get a bit gross here. Why do they cauterize tissue to seal blood vessels? I was a funeral director/embalmer for a few years when back in my 20's. Cauterization, burning of tissue, would damage the tissue, but create a seal. It is a technique/used in this profession to, well, you figure it out. It was expecially effective with accident victims or decaying tissue. It is also used for chronic bloody noses. So, It may damage the tissue, but that will also change the physical make up of it and create a non porous surface that will keep fluids in. So, I'm not totally convinced that searing meat doesn't seal in juices...

Sorry, if I grossed you out. But, the same principles apply, here.

It's not blood in the meats that we eat. There is nothing to cauterize. It's myoglobin.

 

[Andy M.]

One cauterizes blood vessels to stop bleeding because the living body builds scar tissue to toughed the location of the burn.

In a corpse, the cauterizing wouldn't be done to muscle tissue (steaks) but to blood vessels and perhaps skin?

I guess you could test this for yourself by weighing a raw piece of meat then cooking it and weighing it again. If searing seals in juices, the before and after weights should be the same.

 

[taxlady]

Scar tissue won't form in something already dead.