Faut-il commencer la cuisson du poisson dans une poêle chaude ou froide ?

Cook it fish without drying it out nor reducing it in crumbs is often a challenge, even for the most experienced. Everything is played on precision: soft temperature, Well -calibrated cooking timeand above all, constant attention to texture.

To preserve a pearly, melting and intact flesh, it is not necessary to never rushes the material. Raphaël Haumont, specialist in culinary sciences, recalls in Allo Doctors that success holds so much to the technique than observation.

A good fish, well cooked, is not only guessed with the smell nor to color, but also to the touch and the resistance it offers under the blade of the knife.

How to succeed in cooking fish in the pan?

The Meunière cooking has long been presented as the ideal method: a little flour, a hazelnut of butter, and voila. In reality, it is often The opposite that occurs.

By heating, the starch contained in the flour swells In contact with humidity butter and fish, forming a kind of sticky dough that ends up hanging to the pan. Result: the flesh is damaged, the visual is compromised and the texture leaves something to be desired.

To avoid this trap, it is better flourish And play on temperature. A hot pan, a drizzle of oil, and the fish placed on the skin side: this thermal shock releases from the steam under the fleshcreating a natural cushion that prevents it from getting attached.

We call it a unilateral cooking. If we cover, the heat is distributed and gently cooks the top, without ever turn the fish.

For them more fragile specieslike the skinless cod, the chefs have another tip: place the net on a sheet of slightly oiled baking paper directly in the pan. This avoids the grip while preserving the finesse of the fish.

As for the ideal moment for Remove the net from the fireit does not read either to the eye or to the ear, but to the touch. A slight pressure checks that the flesh is just taken.

At heart, 55 ° C is enough For a tender and pearly fish, a little Less for salmon. It is better to stop a little early than too late: the residual heat will make the rest.

Poach, confire or cook at low temperature: other techniques to know

Long presented as a soft and classic cooking method, the court-bouillon is not always theIdeal fish ally. As soon as the water boils frankly, the flesh may get rid of or overput. The trick is never let shudder more than necessary.

The fish must be immersed in a barely shivering fragrant brothas a delicate infusion, and cooked during a ten minutesdepending on its thickness.

The steam cooking offers an equally soft alternative, preventing the fish from bathing in the liquid: it is based on a basket, cooked in peace, without being assaulted by bubbling. But if the objective is to avoid dry fish or without holding, low temperature cooking remains one of the most reliable methods.

By heating slowly, we Limits thermal stress And we preserve both texture and humidity. It is still necessary to think of taking the fish out of the refrigerator in advance, as we do for meat, to avoid Cook it outside While leaving it cold to heart.

This approach, inspired by precision cookingallows you to better control protein coagulation: between 50 and 55 ° C, they firm up without rejecting all their water. And if we want Avoid cooking odors While ensuring a perfect texture, another technique is gaining ground: the oil confit.

It is not a question here of soaking fish with fat, but simply immerse it in an oil Heated to 60 ° C, used as a heat vector. A few herbs, a lemon washer, a clove of garlic, and the slowly cooked fish.

Fifteen to twenty minutes Sufficient for a delicate, soft and uniform result. Once cooked, a quick passage on absorbent paper is enough for remove the excess oiland the turn is played.

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