As a teen, I was confused when I read a box of taco directions.
I remember the step after cooking the ground beef was something like drain off the water.
It only took one time, and then Iknewwhat water they were referring to.
The way I do it is by dumping the ground meat into a large frying pan.
Break up the meat with the heat off, and then sprinkle on a small amount of baking soda.
Sprinkle the bicarb as widely as you’re able to to cover the most meat surface as possible.
Its impossible to cover every spot, and that’s okay, it’ll still work wonders.
When the timer is up, turn on the flame and cook as usual.
Whats the difference?
I cooked two batches of meat to show the differenceone with the baking soda treatment and one without.
For the baking soda batch, I sprinkled it on and waited 15 minutes.
The entire pan of meat was cooked in five minutes, and I crisped it for two extra minutes.
Things were looking the same for the first minute, minus the browning.
Then just before the final parts turned gray, a great puddle of liquid formed.
That liquid is supposed to beinsideyour meat, by the way.
Instead, it fills the pan before the meat can start browning and further delays that browning.
That pan took an extra five minutes and the meat pieces were noticeably tough.
Why does adding baking soda brown ground beef better?
Whether its a burger or a steak, youve probably witnessed what is acting like shrinkage.
When meat cooks, the muscle fibers contract and squeeze out liquid as a result.
The more you cook it, the more liquid squeezes out.
Thats why overcooked meat tastes dry.
That is exactly what youre seeing when you see that pool of liquid in a pan of ground beef.
Whats left behind is hard, overdone bits of meat in the pan.
Baking soda fixes this by preventing the fibers from squeezing out so much of their juices.
So instead of tightening up, they stay apart.
The liquid inside doesnt have to abandon ship, and that results in juicier meat.
More browning actually does mean your food is more flavorful.
And while Maillard reactions can happen without baking soda, they increase with a higher pH.
I find this very satisfying.
Give it a try and I think you will too.
