Hi, I'm a complete amateur at cooking, so forgive me if this is a stupid question. I couldn't find an answer anywhere.
I just got an enameled cast iron grill pan from Le Creuset to upgrade from my Foreman Grill. With my Foreman Grill, I was very elementary with my cooking techniques. For example, I never thawed meat. I just placed it on the Foreman and let it do its thing.
That said, the cast iron grill pan is more high maintenance, from what I've read, because the moisture from the meat will stick to the grill. Never had that problem with the Foreman, so this is new to me.
I did a search, and everybody just had techniques on thawing. But my questions are more technical.
1. I understand if I buy fresh meat, and I decide to store it in the freezer, I'll need to thaw it the conventional way (stick in the fridge for a day). However, I tend to buy a lot of frozen meat that come in bulk. These all usually come with simple instructions on defrosting (sticking it in the microwave). The products will say that the taste and moisture will stay in tact, due to their microwave safe bag that preserves the flavors, etc etc. So my question is, is this technique that is promoted by these frozen products, approved by veteran cooks? Is it okay to just stick these in the microwave without the end product being significantly degraded, than had I thawed it conventionally?
2. Is it ever okay to just toss frozen meat straight onto a cast iron grill pan? Has anyone ever tried this? I thought of trying it, but then I wondered how I'd season it... usually, you season it, and then toss the meat on the grill pan. But if it's frozen, there's gonna be a bit of frost that'll prevent the meat from absorbing the seasoning... maybe I should water down some frost, dab it with a paper towel, and then season? I probably won't be able to marinate it...
3. This question might very well overlap the last two, but if I buy meat that comes frozen, do I thaw it the conventional way? For example, chicken breast. If it comes frozen, do I just saran wrap it and let it thaw in the refridgerator overnight? The thought of thawing meat that already comes frozen, just never occurred to me. Something about it seems off. I don't know.
I just got an enameled cast iron grill pan from Le Creuset to upgrade from my Foreman Grill. With my Foreman Grill, I was very elementary with my cooking techniques. For example, I never thawed meat. I just placed it on the Foreman and let it do its thing.
That said, the cast iron grill pan is more high maintenance, from what I've read, because the moisture from the meat will stick to the grill. Never had that problem with the Foreman, so this is new to me.
I did a search, and everybody just had techniques on thawing. But my questions are more technical.
1. I understand if I buy fresh meat, and I decide to store it in the freezer, I'll need to thaw it the conventional way (stick in the fridge for a day). However, I tend to buy a lot of frozen meat that come in bulk. These all usually come with simple instructions on defrosting (sticking it in the microwave). The products will say that the taste and moisture will stay in tact, due to their microwave safe bag that preserves the flavors, etc etc. So my question is, is this technique that is promoted by these frozen products, approved by veteran cooks? Is it okay to just stick these in the microwave without the end product being significantly degraded, than had I thawed it conventionally?
2. Is it ever okay to just toss frozen meat straight onto a cast iron grill pan? Has anyone ever tried this? I thought of trying it, but then I wondered how I'd season it... usually, you season it, and then toss the meat on the grill pan. But if it's frozen, there's gonna be a bit of frost that'll prevent the meat from absorbing the seasoning... maybe I should water down some frost, dab it with a paper towel, and then season? I probably won't be able to marinate it...
3. This question might very well overlap the last two, but if I buy meat that comes frozen, do I thaw it the conventional way? For example, chicken breast. If it comes frozen, do I just saran wrap it and let it thaw in the refridgerator overnight? The thought of thawing meat that already comes frozen, just never occurred to me. Something about it seems off. I don't know.
