How brown do you brown your mince?

haaammit · 15 Jun 2011 at 15:32

When making bolognese sauces and the like, I used to brown the meat for a short while - just so the pink went. I have recently been really browning it - as in lightly burning. Doing this seems to really enhance the flavour of the meat and sauce.

How brown do you go?

Ben Cole · 15 Jun 2011 at 16:00

Pink OR Brown, I don't mind either way

Skidder · 15 Jun 2011 at 16:02

Ben Cole said:
Pink OR Brown, I don't mind either way

just don't go back to pink after brown

I tend to let it cook all the way through without stirring (usually having piled the onions or garlic, veg etc that are already softened on top) and let it brown a bit, before adding wine or whatever, a bit of browning does seem to enhance

Participant · 15 Jun 2011 at 16:05

I brown each part of the batch to a different degree. I.e., I'll lightly brown all of it all over, remove 50% and brown the remainder a bit more, then remove 50% of that and really brown the final 25% so that it's crispy and adds more flavour and texture.

imb4tman · 15 Jun 2011 at 16:09

Get the fry pan nice and hot. Add the mince followed by a glass of wine. When the wine is down to half the volume take off heat.

Participant · 15 Jun 2011 at 16:30

Then you have boiled mince :/.

Glaucus · 15 Jun 2011 at 17:02

Depends how rushed I am, darker is generally better though.

Agree stewing in wine, isn't going to add any flavour.

HeadlessChicken · 15 Jun 2011 at 17:06

Needs to be caramelised to make an epic bolo

Jegethy · 15 Jun 2011 at 17:29

I generally brown it until all the liquid in the meat has evaporated and the meat is cooked through and caramelized by it's juices. Then use some wine or beef stock to deglaze the pan. Transfer it to a slow cooker and leave it for about 8 hours. Perfectly flavoursome and tender every time.

Applies to stews, bolognese and pretty much everything else I make with minced or diced beef.

Snakedoctor · 15 Jun 2011 at 17:30

The mince must be pounded and mixed and fully brown. There must be no traces of "beef worm" and must be like a fine powder. No-one I know does mince beef as well as I.

j.col · 15 Jun 2011 at 21:37

HeadlessChicken said:
Needs to be caramelised to make an epic bolo

this^^^ i always put around 250g at a time into a hot pan or pot and then flatten, so it looks like a big burger and cook it until it starts to burn, then flip it over and repeat. breaking it up
then just remove from pan and repeat with the rest of mince in small batches, do not add too much meat, or it will boil and become horrible.
this burning (caramelizing) really improves the flavour

Maximum Triceratops · 15 Jun 2011 at 22:49

I use a wok, easier to cook without it boiling and brown it until nearly crispy.

Stupot_ · 16 Jun 2011 at 00:04

Maximum Triceratops said:
I use a wok, easier to cook without it boiling and brown it until nearly crispy.

My housemate uses a wok for everything. Pasta? Wok. Spag bol? Wok. It's now burnt to a crisp. People should use the right tools for the job! Grrr :mad:

Participant · 16 Jun 2011 at 08:39

I think it's the cooking process rather than the use of the wok that's the problem there. I personally don't use a wok for spag bol, but I can't see anything wrong per se with cooking pasta in a wok. You only burn stuff if the heat's too high.

Stupot_ · 16 Jun 2011 at 14:00

Yeah but a decent woks designed to get really hot isn't it? That's why they're so thin, they don't dissipate the heat around the pan. Either way, housemates a tard

memyselfandi · 16 Jun 2011 at 14:11

I would agree with Robbie G, I would say that the housemate can't cook more than anything else ... I use a wok when I'm making spag bol, (only thing I've got which is big enough), and have never had issues with things burning at all ...

Raikiri · 16 Jun 2011 at 14:17

Snakedoctor said:
The mince must be pounded and mixed and fully brown. There must be no traces of "beef worm" and must be like a fine powder. No-one I know does mince beef as well as I.

I do this as well,but I just chop it up nice and fine with a knife. It's quicker than mashing it all together

Jolteh · 16 Jun 2011 at 15:39

Stupot_ said:
My housemate uses a wok for everything. Pasta? Wok. Spag bol? Wok. It's now burnt to a crisp. People should use the right tools for the job! Grrr

Woks are meant to blacken over time. There's a chinese saying that is something like "The blacker the wok, the better the chef."

Totally agree on the points here on the mince worms. Seriously hate it when I have to eat something like chilli or spag bol and the mince in it is in supermarket mince style worms.

Stupot_ · 16 Jun 2011 at 16:05

Jolteh said:
Woks are meant to blacken over time. There's a chinese saying that is something like "The blacker the wok, the better the chef."

Totally agree on the points here on the mince worms. Seriously hate it when I have to eat something like chilli or spag bol and the mince in it is in supermarket mince style worms.

To clarify, it's not just blackened. There are lumps of burnt on stuff that will not come off. It's destroyed the bottom of the pan which has now gone rusty

soullessfire · 16 Jun 2011 at 16:15

Like it's been said above, browning the meat is just so the sugars caramelise and add to the flavour. I'd definately do it until there's a residue on the pan itself and possibly even little dark flecks on the meat. At that point use some wine or some stock or something to deglaze the pan and get all that flavour into the sauce.

Regarding the wok, it shouldn't really matter. I know woks are meant to have high heat in the center with cooler areas up the sides to stack cooked food, but it should be fine (if incorrect) for quickly cooking other things. The main issue may well just be the quality of the pan. If it's a £5.99 job from a supermarket, you could probably burn water in it half the time.