The beef turned out tough what to do. Kiwi marinade for beef

Beef is a meat that many housewives bypass. And, I must say, completely in vain. Most likely, the reason is more than commonplace - many simply do not know how to cook beef so that it is soft. But everything is quite simple. Many years of experience of home cooks, numerous experiments and an ardent love for meat gave rise to many excellent recipes preparation of this wonderful and extremely useful product... And therefore, it takes a long time to answer the question of how to cook beef so that it is soft. Because there are more than enough such methods, and different ones. This meat turns out to be tender, juicy and soft in a pan, and in the oven, and in a saucepan. Even a beef kebab, properly cooked, will be no worse than one made from pork. The only thing that is needed is to follow the advice of experienced chefs, which we will give in our article. And at the same time we will share several recipes, we will tell you how to fry soft beef, make of it delicious barbecue, chops and bake in the oven. So let's get started.

Choosing meat

Since you cannot cook beef so that it is soft from any piece of meat, you need to be very careful in choosing it. First, it must be fresh. In no case should you take frozen. In addition, you need to buy meat only from young animals, since old beef is only suitable for long-term stewing. The color will tell you about its age. Young beef has a beautiful pink or slightly reddish hue. This meat differs from pork in that it has a lot of films and veins. Therefore, when choosing beef on the market (which is preferable) or in the store, be sure to try to take that piece where there are practically no or at least not very many of them.

Preparatory stage

If you ask any housewife who knows a lot about meat about how to cook beef so that it is soft, the answer will be unequivocal. Pre-marinate! And here you can already use your own imagination to the fullest. Marinade can be almost anything. And beef can be kept in it, intended both for baking in the oven and for frying in a pan, in one piece or cut into small pieces. Below are some of the most common pickling options.

Marinades

Peel a couple of large onions, chop them, take a large lemon, also cut it into pieces without peeling, and then pass the whole thing through a meat grinder. After that, the mixture must be squeezed out. Add any spices you like to the resulting juice (it can be pepper, both red and black or chili, thyme, mustard, coriander, etc.). It is in this marinade that the beef must be aged. The exposure time depends on the size. Big piece it is necessary to withstand longer, an hour will be enough for small ones.
Take ordinary table mustard, diligently, not sparing it, grate the meat on all sides. Place the piece in a saucepan and leave in a warm place for a few hours. The beef will need to be rinsed before cooking.
Mix half a liter of kefir with the same favorite spices, pour the mixture over the meat, let it marinate overnight. In the morning you can start cooking.
Soak the beef in a regular mineral water... The exposure time is three hours.

These are, of course, the most simple options... You can marinate meat in beer, and in red wine, or in a specially cooked marinade designed to keep beef in it for two or even three days. Create, experiment! And we'll talk further about how to cook beef so that it is soft in the oven.

Bake

For this, you can use both special dishes and parchment, foil or a sleeve. It all depends on what kind of dish is planned. So, for an inexperienced hostess, it is best to opt for the sleeve. Moreover, you don't need to do anything special. It is enough to get the meat out of the marinade, put it in the sleeve, pin it on both sides with special clamps, send it to the oven, after which you can go to rest. After two to three hours, the meat will cook (at a temperature of one hundred and eighty degrees).

You can just bake it on a baking sheet. Previously, it is only desirable - for greater juiciness - stuffed with pieces of bacon. The output will be tender and soft beef. In the oven you need to install temperature regime at the same one hundred and eighty degrees, and the meat itself must be watered from time to time with the juice that stands out. There are a great many baking recipes. Moreover, you can cook not only one beef, but immediately with a side dish. Mushrooms, eggplant, potatoes. This is a topic for another conversation. We have soft beef chops on our agenda.

How to cook

By the way, anyone who thinks that chops are prepared very simply is mistaken. Especially when it comes to beef. Yet this meat is both harsh and dry enough. And I want the dish to be juicy, so that the chop just melts in your mouth, while exuding an appetizing aroma. But nothing is impossible. True, the preparatory process will take a little time, but the result obtained will fully justify such sacrifices. We offer the simplest recipe - beef chops with cheese. For cooking, we stock up on: meat, cheese (300 g), a pack of mayonnaise, vegetable oil, salt, spices.

We cut the beef, and certainly across the fibers, into the appropriate portioned pieces. We beat back diligently. Then rub with any spices and salt. We give time for the meat to soak a little with this mixture. Grate the cheese (preferably fine), mix it with mayonnaise. And then we fry our chops, first dipping them in this kind of batter. Covered in the end outside cheese crust, the chops will be soft and juicy on the inside. As, in fact, they ordered.

And finally, let's talk about how to cook soft kebab from beef. The recipe for its preparation, or rather, several, see below.

Shashlik

I must say that this dish is traditionally prepared from pork. True, recently they began to make it more and more often from chicken. And it is very rare to cook a shish kebab from meat such as beef. Recipes with a photo of this dish clearly confirm that beef is no less suitable for its preparation. And to make sure of this, we will tell you about several of the most common methods.

In Georgian

To prepare it, we stock up:

beef tenderloin;
onions (two or three pieces);
a bunch of fresh parsley;
bay leaf;
grape vinegar (three tablespoons);
allspice (5 or 6 peas);
salt.

Cut the meat into the appropriate portions, put in any container, generously sprinkling with chopped onions, herbs, add grape vinegar, salt and all available spices, close. And we leave it for two, or even three days. V cool place... Several times a day, the future kebab must be carefully mixed. Then everything is traditional: a warm evening, a cozy dacha, a skewer, a barbecue, good wine ...

With vinegar and wine

To prepare such a kebab, we go to the store for:

Cooking

Naturally, first we deal with the meat, that is, we cut it. Then, on the bottom of the vessel in which it is planned to put the beef, pour the peppercorns, seasoning them abundantly with bay leaves. Lay the meat in layers, sprinkling each with onions, seasonings (of your choice), salt. The top layer should turn out to be onion. We pour all the available tomato paste, don't forget about vinegar. Then you need to press down on all this with a press. Moreover, the latter should be as heavy as possible. With such oppression, but in a cool place, the shish kebab should be marinated for about a day. After that, the press must be removed, all the liquid in the vessel must be drained, and then a glass of purchased wine and lemon juice must be added. And wait another four hours. Everything. You can go to the dacha. The further algorithm of actions is the same as in the first case.

Try it. And make sure that the beef kebab is no worse than that made from pork or chicken. And in some ways, maybe even better. It is quite clear that the recipes given by us are far from the only ones, there are a great many of them. In addition, having tried once to cook a soft beef kebab, then you can make your own adjustments to the recipe by replacing or adding ingredients.

Bon Appetit!

Many housewives do not like beef due to the fact that this meat, even after long cooking, turns out to be quite tough and similar in structure to rubber. This usually happens with the wrong choice of meat, if instead of young veal, the meat of an old, already surviving animal was bought.

But even in these situations, you can make tender and soft beef, you just need to know the basic secrets of cooking.

How to choose the right beef

Before you start cooking beef, it needs to be chosen correctly. The final taste of the prepared dish will depend on how it is chosen. When choosing beef meat, you should pay attention to the following qualities:

color. Fresh beef has a bright red color. The color should not have blotches of greenish or dark shades. If the beef has a dark structure, then this will mean that it belongs to an old animal, and the old meat is cooked for a long time and turns out to be rubbery. Therefore, it is worth choosing beef of a bright red color;
fat. The fat should have a delicate white texture and be fairly dense. These qualities indicate that the beef is fresh and of high quality. In young beef, the fat may crumble a little. If fat has yellow tint, then this will mean that the beef is old;
fresh meat should have a dry surface; slight airing of the surface is allowed if it was cut several hours ago. But in any case, there should be no stains or hard crusts on the surface. Fresh beef is dry and firm to the touch;
it should smell like beef. The smell should be pleasant without additional unpleasant odors;
elasticity. To check this quality, you need to press your finger on the meat, if a hole has formed, which immediately smoothed out, then this will mean that the meat is fresh.

How to make tough beef soft: ways

How to make beef soft? There are many ways to make this type of meat much softer and juicier. If the meat is young and fresh, then it usually does not need additional softening, it is enough to properly prepare it for cooking. During preparation, the following conditions should be observed:

If the beef is frozen, then it should be properly defrosted. Defrosting should be gradual. To begin with, the meat should be transferred to a container and placed on the middle shelf of the refrigerator for several hours, then it is removed and left to defrost when room temperature... Do not defrost it with microwave oven, hot water, in these cases even young meat in the cooking process will become rubbery and tasteless;
A piece of meat should be cut into thin pieces with a thickness of 1.5-2.5 cm. Then they are rubbed with black pepper, but not with salt. Then they are laid out on a cutting board and fought off from all sides with a kitchen hammer;
Cut the meat only across the grain. It is from the direction of the cut that the degree of softness of the cooked meat depends. Long fibers become stiff during cooking due to protein folding.

You can use marinades to soften the meat. For the preparation of marinades, you can use kiwi, kefir, wine, garlic or onions.

How to make beef tender when cooking

In order for the beef to be tender and soft after boiling, it must be boiled properly. To do this, you can use the following important recommendations:

in order for the beef to turn out soft during cooking, it should be dipped in already boiling water;
it is recommended to boil it in one piece. It will be possible to cut it into small slices after boiling;
to give additional aroma and taste, you can additionally boil vegetables, put spices. A good option there will be carrots and onions. To do this, the vegetables need to be washed, peeled and cut. It is necessary to lay out the vegetables one hour after the start of boiling the meat. Spices are added 15 minutes before the end of boiling.

How to cook - take note of the recipe for a delicious and healthy dish.

Read how to cook fragrant pilaf in a cauldron over a fire - Asian cuisine.

Homemade sausage - try this recipe and forget about store-bought products forever.

How to make beef soft and juicy when frying

Beef is often used for roasting. All famous steaks, fillets, chops are cooked in a pan. But it is when frying that beef is easiest to spoil.

In order for the beef to turn out soft and juicy when frying, it must be cooked correctly:

For cooking, you should use a heavy cast-iron pan with a thick bottom;
Before frying, it is recommended to preheat the pan over high heat;
Next, pour a little oil on the surface of the pan, it should only slightly grease the pan;
We spread the pieces of meat that have been previously beaten off. The meat must be laid out in a very hot skillet with butter;
Fry beef steaks quickly from both sides. Each side should be fried for no more than half a minute;
Once the steaks are crusty, they can be removed from the pan.

How to make beef soft when braised

Beef is almost never juicy when stewed, but it can be made soft and tender. The main thing is to follow several important rules:

for stewing, beef must be cut into small cubes with a size of 3-4 cm;
then you need to fry in a pan for 60 seconds, the pieces should be covered with a dry crust;
after that, the beef is placed in a cauldron or stewpan, hot water is poured to it;
it is necessary to simmer over low heat for 1.5-2 hours;
in addition to the meat during stewing, you can add various spices and vegetables - Bay leaf, peppercorns, onions, garlic and other vegetables;
you need to salt at the very end of 15 minutes before the end of stewing;
when cooked, the meat fibers should easily separate from each other.

How to make beef goulash soft

How to do:

How to make soft beef kebab: marinade recipes

Marinade with kiwi

For a kilogram of meat, you need 1 large kiwi. Kiwi must be cut into small pieces with a knife or grated. The meat can be cut into medium pieces, put in a container and the grated kiwi is distributed on top. Marinate for no more than 30 minutes, otherwise you can greatly spoil the look and taste of beef.

Caloric content - 85 kcal.

Kefir marinade

For 1 kilogram of beef you will need:

low-fat kefir - 1 liter;
vegetable oil - 50 ml;
three onions;
salt - a pinch;
some black pepper in ground form.

Cooking time - 30 minutes.

Caloric content - 78 kcal.

Let's start cooking:

The meat must be washed, cut into pieces across the fibers;
Put some of the meat on the bottom of a deep cup, sprinkle with salt and black pepper;
The onion should be peeled, cut the peeled heads into rings;
Spread the onion rings on top of the beef slices;
Next, lay out the second half of the meat, sprinkle with salt, pepper and lay out a layer of onion rings on top;
Pour everything with vegetable oil, fill it with kefir;
We set the oppression on top and send it to the refrigerator for 4-5 hours.

Wine marinade

For the marinade you will need:

dry or semi-dry red wine - 1 glass;
vegetable oil of the first extraction 100 l;
fresh lemon - ½ part;
ground black pepper - 5 grams;
allspice- a pinch;
a few sprigs of dill, parsley.

Cooking time is 25-30 minutes.

Caloric content - 86 kcal.

How to do:

Pour wine into a cup;
Squeeze juice from half a lemon and pour it over the wine;
Add vegetable oil and mix the liquid components;
Then we fall asleep two types of pepper and distribute it over the liquid marinade;
Greens need to be chopped small pieces and pour into the marinade;
Cut the meat into medium pieces and put in the marinade;
We put in the refrigerator to marinate for 4-5 hours.

Garlic marinade recipe

For 1 kilogram of meat, the following components are required:

large lemon - 1 piece;
garlic cloves - 3 pieces;
bow - head;
red chili pepper - a pinch;
water - ½ glass.

Cooking time - 35 minutes.

Caloric content - 89 kcal.

Let's start cooking:

The lemon needs to be rinsed and cut;
Squeeze juice from each part of the lemon and pour it into a cup;
Add water and dilute;
Peel the garlic cloves and cut into small pieces;
Peel and chop the onion into small squares;
We wash the meat, cut into portions;
Stir the garlic, onion and red pepper;
We spread the garlic-onion mixture to the meat and stir;
Next, put the meat in a bowl and fill it with marinade from lemon juice and water;
We remove the marinate in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours.

Marinade with tomato sauce

For cooking you will need:

A glass of tomato juice;
grape vinegar - 100 ml;
carrots - 2 pieces;
Bulgarian pepper of a dark red hue.

Cooking time is 35-40 minutes.

Caloric content - 74 kcal.

Let's start cooking:

Peel the onion and cut into thin rings;
We wash the carrots, peel and cut into circles;
Rinse the pepper, clean the seeds and cut into squares;
Cut the beef into medium pieces and put it in a container, sprinkle with salt;
Put onion rings, carrot slices and pepper slices on top;
Next, fill in the grape vinegar;
Then fill in tomato juice and mix everything thoroughly;
Close the container and put it in the refrigerator for 5-6 hours.

Making beef soft is not so difficult, the main thing is to use all the tips and tricks correctly. It is also important to choose the right meat, the whole result of the prepared dish depends on this. With all of the tips above, you can make delicious, tender, and soft beef at home.

A source of iron, protein and minerals - beef is always a safe bet for tasty and healthy dinner... Therefore, today's master class is devoted to how to cook beef so that it is soft and juicy in a pan. Let's reveal the secrets delicate dish: from a selection of products to unique recipes.

Choosing meat for cooking in a pan

The taste of the whole dish depends on the freshness and juiciness of beef. What to look for? How not to be mistaken in choosing the right piece? Let's list the main criteria for a suitable meat.

Rules for buying fresh beef

Intense red tint, the absence of unnecessary dark inclusions - speaks of the freshness of the meat. The beef of an old animal is brown; it is unlikely to make a juicy dish from it.
Quality meat has dense snow-white fat, which may crumble slightly. Mustard shade of fat has tough beef... The reference is considered - marbled meat, the structure of which is penetrated with small layers of fat.
Fresh beef has dry surface... Only the edges of the cut remain wet. In order not to be wrong, stick to simple advice: choose slightly aerated meat, not something that lies in the blood.
Smell quality product should not have additional impurities. Any hint of bad smell speaks not in favor of the purchase.
Another criterion is elasticity... Surface fresh meat smoothes almost immediately after slight pressure.
Price plays an important role in the choice of products. Good beef domestic farmers are not a cheap pleasure.
Soft roast beef in the pan it turns out from the sirloin, thin and thick edges, or rump can be used.

Choosing the right frozen meat

Not every housewife can boast of the opportunity to buy fresh beef on the market. Many supermarkets and hypermarkets offer a wide range of frozen meat. The rules for choosing such a product are slightly different:

Beef color at proper freezing does not change significantly or becomes lighter by several tones. When using vacuum packaging, the meat can have a rich burgundy hue, but when thawed at home it turns red again.

Frozen beef should not be stored for more than 10 months (from the date of packaging). Therefore, pay attention to the production time.

The abundance of ice indicates that the meat has been frozen more than once: the conditions for transporting or storing the product have been violated. Is it worth the risk? Ice is allowed only on the surface of the package. By the way, the packaging itself must remain intact: without unnecessary breaks.

In conclusion, we recall that beef is defrosted only in the refrigerator. Of course, it would be more convenient to leave the meat in the kitchen sink overnight. But defrosting so quickly can be detrimental to the quality of the main course.

Secrets of soft and juicy meat

If the ability to choose the right beef comes with experience, then even novice cooks can make the dish tender. It is enough to adhere to simple recommendations.

Marinate

It is better to start preparing for frying meat in a pan in advance. Do not neglect prolonged soaking of the product in the sauce. There are several ways:

Dip each piece in vegetable oil, sprinkle with salt, pepper and other spices on all sides. Place in a deep bowl, cover and refrigerate for 2-2.5 hours.
For tough meat, soaking in soy sauce with the addition of a spoonful of mustard, honey and 2-3 teaspoons of squeezed lemon is suitable. Let marinate for 3 hours.
Gourmets will love the marinade based on dry wine or in combination with soy and lemon juice.

We beat off the beef

Before starting cooking, it is advisable to beat off the meat well.

Choosing a frying pan

Many housewives note that instead of frying, they manage to stew meat. To minimize selection a large number it is better to lay out the liquid in a preheated frying pan with a ribbed surface.

We lay out the meat correctly

It is important that the pieces do not come into contact with each other in the pan. They should be at a short distance, since a long distance will cause fat or vegetable oil to burn.

How much to fry?

The roasting time depends on the shape of the meat pieces. If you prefer to cut the product in the form of plates, then it is enough to fry on each side for 7-8 minutes. Small bars are fried for a total of a quarter of an hour. Pieces of meat weighing 35 g are also fried for about 20-25 minutes with the lid open.

Juicy Roast Beef Recipes

Delicate and fragrant beef appreciated all over the world. Therefore, we suggest trying several simple recipes from various countries.

"Flemish beef" - a step by step recipe with a photo

Belgians know a lot about meat delicacies... Therefore, the beef according to their recipe simply melts in your mouth. The dish cooks equally well both in a cauldron and in a frying pan.

The following ingredients are required:

Beef ( sirloin) - 800 g;
White bread - 1 slice;
Mustard - 2 tsp lies .;
Onions - 3 pcs.;
Bay leaves - 3-4 pcs.;
Dark beer - 1 bottle (or 300-400 ml);
Olive oil;
Butter - 50 g;
Salt;
Pepper, spices (to taste).

	Chop the meat and onion into large pieces.
	Put in a preheated pan with butter onion and fry it until amber.
	While the onion is being prepared, it's time to start the meat. At the bottom of the cauldron (or deep frying pan), pour olive oil and add a small piece butter that will reveal the aroma of the whole dish.

Beef meat is considered "capricious" among many housewives. Still - with most cooking methods, it turns out to be tough and dry, receiving the epithet "rubber" and comparison with shoe soles. However, beef can still be made juicy, tender and soft, it is important to know about the peculiarities of its preparation.

Product selection and preparation

The preparation of this type of meat begins with its selection. Parts of the mascara vary chemical composition and taste characteristics... In other words, there are parts of the carcass that, in principle, are not intended for baking, stewing, frying.

Films and tendons give the meat stiffness. For example, almost 80% of the neck consists of such connective tissues, so it is better not to fry this part, but to boil it, make chopped cutlets out of it.

For frying, roast beef, steak, roasting whole, it is better to use a tenderloin, front or back part limbs. The meat will cook quickly and will be soft and juicy.

The softest part of the carcass is the fillet. A tenderloin is made from the middle of the sirloin, such a piece is also called chateaubriand. The thinnest part is the tournedo, and the sharp edge of the fillet is called filet mignon. The best part of the fillet is the medallions. However, even beef shoulder (a rather tough part of the carcass) can be a great steak if you cut the meat properly and know how to cook it.

For frying and baking in the oven, it is best to use young meat. Veal is usually soft to the touch and lighter in color. If you look closely, you will find that it has thinner fibers and lighter fat. The meat of an adult and even more so an old cow is not suitable for these purposes, since the dish will be dry and tough. But it is good to cook broth from it, however, this will take a lot of time. You can visually distinguish older beef by the dark red shade of the pulp and yellow fat.

The easiest way to determine tenderness and juiciness is fresh rather than frozen meat. The presence of bruising and crusting is unacceptable, only slight winding is possible. Before buying, you should press on the pulp, as soon as you remove your finger, the dent should straighten out. This indicates the juiciness of the beef.

If frozen meat is used, defrost it properly before cooking. Remember that the process must be gradual. Beef removed from the freezer should first be placed on the middle shelf of the refrigerator, and after a few hours left at room temperature. If the meat is defrosted by placing it in hot water or in the microwave, despite all the tricks, after cooking it will become tasteless, rubbery.

Preparing meat involves removing films, veins, tendons and further rinsing the piece under water. After that, it should be blotted with a towel. In this way, beef is prepared for almost all dishes. The exception is steaks. It is not recommended to wash the meat before cooking, but it is imperative to get it wet with a napkin. It is better to pre-soak tough meat in the marinade for softness.

General cooking rules

If you need to cook small portioned pieces, then it is recommended to cut the meat across the fibers. Thanks to this, the pieces are less deformed, which means they remain more juicy. In addition, this method of cutting provides faster preparation of the dish.

If you have to fry old meat, then it is recommended to marinate it first. There are many recipes for marinade, but almost all of them contain acids - this will soften the tough meat fibers. Marinade can be prepared on the basis of kefir, lemon juice, wine, sour cream. You can immediately add spices, garlic, onions to the marinade.

The tougher the meat, the longer it should be marinated. Usually, minimum time pickling is 2-3 hours, the maximum is a day.

If you intend to fry a piece of beef, then as little action as possible should be done with it. Ideally, rinse, dry and chop thinly, then immediately fry in a hot pan. On the other hand, when stewing, the meat can be slightly beaten. reverse side knife (mild), finely chop and fry the pieces in oil for half an hour. Then pour in the liquid and simmer.

It is important to use a sharp knife for cutting, cutting off films and cartilage with it. It is important to completely clean the flesh from the veins, since when heated they shrink, which makes it difficult to fry or bake the meat properly.

When frying

Before frying the meat, it is usually lightly beaten on both sides with a special hammer. This helps to make the piece thinner and therefore speed up cooking. The prepared pieces must be dipped in a paper towel. This will remove excess moisture and grease from the surface. When frying, the meat will not “shoot”, and a uniform crust will form on its surface.

Salt the meat during frying towards the end of the cooking process. The fact is that when salt is added, intensive juicing begins, so a steak or other dish will turn out tough. The addition at the end of frying will help preserve the juices as they will be "locked" inside the piece thanks to the crispy crust on both sides.

Another important point- to prevent the leakage of juice from the meat. First, you need to quickly achieve a crust on both sides, and only then make sure that the piece is completely fried. That's why you need to spread the beef in a well-heated pan, while making the fire more intense.

When the meat is covered with a crust, reduce the heat and cover the pan with a lid. If the meat starts to burn, you can pour in a little water or broth, sauce. It is important that the liquids are hot, otherwise the taste ready meal will resemble the proverbial sole.

The time to fry the beef depends on the recipe and the size of the slices. If we are talking about steaks, which are cut 2-4 cm thick and fried in a frying pan with a ribbed surface, then the frying time on each side is from 30 seconds to 5 minutes. It is the duration of the roasting that determines the large variety of steaks - strong roast, low roast, with blood, and so on.

The chop is usually cooked for 4-5 minutes, on average it takes 2-2.5 minutes to cook one side. The meat cut into pieces is fried for 20-30 minutes, stirring the dish from time to time.

If steaks are cooked at home, then first rub each side a little with vegetable oil. The pan should also be greased with oil, it is better not to pour it out of the bottle, but to use a culinary brush.

When cooking

You can get soft boiled beef meat by dipping a raw piece in boiling water. The larger the piece, the juicier it will be when boiled and the richer and tastier the broth will become. If a large piece fits into the pan, then it is in this form that it should be cooked without cutting it into pieces.

Do boiled beef spices and vegetables will help you taste better and more aromatic. The latter (usually onions and carrots) are put in a peeled form in the broth after an hour of cooking the meat. You do not need to grind them - at most, you can divide them into 2-4 parts. Spices are added to meat a quarter of an hour before the end of cooking.

It is important to cook the beef under the lid without allowing oxygen to reach it.

After the meat is cooked, there is no need to rush to get it out of the broth. Leave the piece to cool in the same broth. If you do not follow this advice and remove the meat on a plate, it will quickly become crusty, making it feel dry and tough.

If you come across an old piece of beef, then, of course, it is better to boil it. But first - soak in a marinade of 100 ml of vodka and 10 tablespoons of soy sauce. Even an hour in such a marinade will help the meat soften after boiling. You can also add a little vodka, half a teaspoon of sugar, or a well-washed banana peel to the water. These ingredients will help soften older meat.

When extinguishing

Stew the beef to make the dish juicy and soft is not an easy task. You better chop it up small pieces... After that, they should be fried on hot skillet smeared with a small amount of vegetable oil. Do this for a short time - a minute and a half, stirring the pieces all the time or shaking the pan. As a result, a dry crust forms on the surface of the meat.

Now you can transfer the pieces to a saucepan or cauldron (it is important that this is a thick-walled dish) and pour hot water.

Get more flavorful and appetizing dish spices will help, as well as bay leaves. But salt beef stew follows 15-20 minutes before the end of extinguishing. On average, the whole process takes 1.5-2 hours.

Another trick for a soft stew is to add a little to the beef while cooking. grape juice... It is poured in an hour after extinguishing begins.

When baking

It is better to bake the meat in one piece, so it will remain juicy. Almost all good recipes cooking baked beef involves pre-marinating it. The duration of the process is 2-3 hours.

After marinating, the beef should be wrapped in foil, preferably in two layers, so the steam will definitely not come out. The dish is prepared for 1-1.5 hours at rather high (200-220C), but constant temperatures. After the beef is done, you can open the foil and let the meat brown.

If the beef turns out to be tough after cooking in the oven, you can try to remedy the situation by holding the piece over boiling water.

And a few more options delicious dishes from beef.

In sour cream sauce

The dish according to this recipe can be made in pots or a small cauldron. Thanks to sour cream and a long stewing in the oven over low heat, the beef turns out to be incredibly soft, with a pleasant creamy aftertaste.

Ingredients:

1 kg of beef pulp;
4 onions;
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil;
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon flour;
2 tablespoons of low-fat sour cream;
salt, spices.

Rinse the beef, dry it and cut into cubes with sides of 3-4 cm. Cut across the fibers. Chop the onion into half rings, mix with the meat.

Pour oil into a cast iron pot or pot, put meat and onions and place in a cold oven. Cook for 1.5-2 hours at 180C.

At this time, make a sauce: mix flour, mustard and spices. Add sour cream, if necessary (if the mixture is too thick) pour in a little water. Remove the pots from the oven - by this time the meat will be almost completely cooked in its juice, and the onion will become transparent. Now you need to add the sauce to the dish and put it in the oven for another half hour.

Baked in foil with carrots

Beef baked in foil is almost a classic culinary arts... However, the dish will sparkle with new colors (in the literal sense, too, it will become brighter and more festive), it will turn out soft and tender if stuffed with carrots.

Compound:

1 kg beef tenderloin;
2 tablespoons soy sauce
5-6 cloves of garlic;
2 carrots;
salt pepper.

Prepare the beef, rub with salt and pepper. Cut the washed and peeled carrots into cubes, make cuts in the meat and stuff it with vegetables.

From the sauce and garlic passed through a press, make a marinade and pour over the beef. Leave for a couple of hours.

After the specified time, wrap the dish in 2 layers of foil or a baking sleeve and place in the oven, heating it to 220C. Cook for 2 hours, and then unfold the foil and leave the beef for another quarter of an hour in the oven. This will give the food a golden brown crust.

This important question worried housewives from time immemorial. Well-cooked beef has a delicate flavor and high taste... In order for a beef dish to turn out soft and juicy, it is necessary not only to choose a piece of meat, but also to properly prepare and cook it.

For cooking we need:
Fresh piece of beef, kefir, spices, onions, kiwi, mineral water, mustard, soy sauce, foil, baking sleeve, stew pan, kitchen hammer, knife.
1. Before cooking, it is better to marinate the meat.
Pickling options:
a) Grease the whole piece of meat with plenty of mustard and let it stand for an hour or two. After that, the meat is ready for frying. Wash the mustard off the meat before frying. This option is suitable for tough and aged beef.
b) Cut the meat into pieces. Perpendicular to the fibers! Peel the kiwi and cut into slices. Stir meat with kiwi, marinate for 15 minutes. Do not overdo it, otherwise the meat will be too soft. Suitable for medium-firm beef.
c) Prepare kefir marinade with spices. Place pieces of beef in it and leave overnight, in the morning the meat can be baked or fried.
d) Soak the beef in mineral water, leave for a couple of hours. This option is suitable for soft to medium-firm beef.

Beef marinades
Spicy lemon marinade for beef.
1 - 2 teaspoons of salt, juice of 1/2 medium lemon, 2 teaspoons (no top) red hot ground pepper... Mix the salt together lemon juice and red hot ground pepper. Grate the pieces of meat for frying with the resulting spicy mixture and let stand for about an hour.
Lemon garlic marinade for beef.
Juice of 1 lemon, 1 - 2 medium onions, 1 tsp. ground black pepper, 2 - 4 cloves of garlic, 1/2 tsp. salt, 0.5 cups of water. Mix lemon juice with cold boiled water... Add finely chopped onion, black pepper and garlic cloves, ground with salt. Pour the prepared beaten pieces of meat with cold marinade and leave for 2 - 2.5 hours.
Lemon marinade for beef with onions.
1 large lemon, 1 large onion, 3 - 5 large lobules garlic, 1 tsp salt, 2-3 bay leaves, 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper. Prepare a mixture of freshly made lemon juice, finely chopped onion, pounded garlic with salt, chopped bay leaf and ground black pepper. Mix the mixture well with pieces of meat or poultry, place them in a bowl and compact with your hands. Marinate the meat under a light press for 2 - 3 hours.
Marinade for tough beef.
0.5 liters of water, 0.5 liters of 3% vinegar, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of sugar, black allspice, black pepper, bay leaf, cloves to taste, juniper berries to taste. Cook the spices in water for 8 - 10 minutes, add salt, sugar, vinegar, let it boil, then strain and cool. Pour marinade over the meat and place in a cold place for 2 - 3 days. This marinade can be poured over large game meat, and also, tough meat old animals or the carcass of an old bird.
Beef kebab marinade.
2 pcs. onions, 1 tsp. coriander seeds, 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp. ground black pepper, 2-3 tbsp. l. wine vinegar. Prepare a mixture of finely chopped onion, salt, ground black pepper, ground coriander seeds, taken to taste and diluted in wine vinegar... Stir the prepared meat with the marinade mixture with your hands and compact slightly. Close the dishes with a lid and keep in a cool place from 12 hours to 2.5 days.
Marinade for beef with kiwi.
Beef -0.5 kg, kiwi - 1 piece, a mixture of peppers " Santa maria"- a mixture of peppers: black, white, chili; paprika, coriander, mustard seeds, garlic, sea salt(21%), onions, tomatoes, turmeric) - 0.5 tsp, Salt, Garlic (heads) - 1.5 pcs, mayonnaise - 2 tbsp. l., mustard - 2 tbsp. l, Sauce (tkemal) - 2 tbsp. l. kiwi - 1 pc. Put 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise + 2 tablespoons of mustard + 2 tablespoons of tkemali in a separate bowl. Cut kiwi into small slices. Squeeze out the garlic. Add spices and mix thoroughly. Knead kiwi with your hands. We rub the meat thoroughly with this marinade, trying to get into all the cuts. Place in a pickling container and refrigerate for 12 hours. Then the meat can be cooked.
Beef marinade with red wine.
0.5 kg. beef, red dry wine- 1.5 cups, carrots - 1 pc., Onions - 1 pc., Parsley - 1 bunch, bay leaf - 5 leaves, cloves - 4 buds, rosemary - to taste. Coarsely chop the peeled carrots and onions. Finely chop the parsley, break the bay leaf with your hands. Add all of the above to a pot of meat, plus rosemary and cloves. Pour in wine and, covering with a lid, send it to the refrigerator for 12 - 18 hours.
Beef marinade with soy sauce and wine.
0.5 kg. beef, soy sauce - 200 gr., olive (or vegetable) oil - 200 gr., lemon juice - 5 - 6 tbsp. spoons, garlic - 1 head, ground black pepper, salt - to taste. Squeeze the garlic through a press or grate on coarse grater... Mix it with pepper and salt. Pour oil and lemon juice into soy sauce, send garlic and pepper there. Pour the resulting mixture into a piece of meat in a saucepan and refrigerate for 3-4 hours.
Beef marinade with soy sauce, ginger and wine.
1. Meat 0.5 kg, soy sauce -2 tbsp, lemon juice - 1 tbsp, corn starch - 1 tbsp, dry red wine - 1 glass, ginger (ground) - 1 tsp. l., garlic - 1 clove. Rinse the meat and cut into thin slices. Mix all the ingredients for the marinade and pour over the prepared meat. Refrigerate for 3-4 hours. Fry the meat in a frying pan in oil heated to 180 ° C until brown.
2. In the oven, meat can be cooked in several ways: - put the pickled meat in foil, pack tightly, bake in the oven. - for beginners in the kitchen, it is very convenient to cook meat in a roasting sleeve. To do this, remove the meat from the marinade and place it in the sleeve. Pinch the edges of the sleeve with special clips and bake in the oven.
3. Meat in the oven can be baked on a baking sheet. Place a layer of chopped onions in a baking sheet. Lash a piece of beef with pieces of bacon, put on the onion. Bake in the oven. While cooking, often pour the juice over the piece of meat.
4. Pieces of beef can be braised. - cut the meat into small pieces, add spices and beer, simmer over low heat for 1.5 hours. - put pieces of meat in a saucepan, add spices, hot broth or water. While stewing, add a little cognac or dry red wine.
Please note: Beef is best cooked big chunk... If you are in doubt whether the finished meat is tender enough, then cut it into very thin slices across the fibers.
Some useful tips:
1. Fry a large piece of meat in a frying pan before roasting in foil. Over high heat and without oil. Meat juices will remain inside the beef, making it juicy and soft. This method is for gourmets and for increasing male potency.
2. A way to fry meat from soft and fresh beef. Put prepared pieces of meat, 1-2 cm thick, in a very preheated pan and fry on high (maximum) heat until crusty (10-15 seconds for each side), without oil. It is possible with the addition of wine (about 1 tablespoon for each piece of red semi-sweet - although semi-dry and dry wine is also possible). Then reduce the gas and simmer the meat for 2-3 minutes for each side in the resulting juice. At the very end, salt.
3. If you have a hammer and are short on time, beef portions can be beaten off before cooking. Those. make chops. Hammering is the most common way to "soften" beef.
To do this, cut the meat into pieces 1-3 cm thick across the fibers. The cutting direction is extremely important for the softness and juiciness of the dish. When beating, the meat can be pepper, but not salted.
When frying, the meat is salted, usually at the end.
Cooking tips for marbled beef: - marble beef does not require marinade, as high-quality meat has natural delicate taste and prepares quickly.
It must not be overcooked, otherwise the meat will become tough and lose juice.