Stovetop Cooking Techniques

15 min Beginner Şef Aylin Demir

The Difference Between Sautéing and Sweating

Sautéing means quickly cooking ingredients in a small amount of fat over high heat, tossing them so the outside browns lightly and develops color. Sweating means cooking over lower heat so ingredients, especially onions, soften and release moisture without browning; it is often the first step in making soup and sauce bases.

Briefly covering onions while they sweat helps them soften faster in their own steam, but leaving the lid on too long prevents evaporation and can make them watery.

Overcrowding the pot makes it harder for steam to escape and produces a result closer to boiling than sautéing; cooking the ingredients in batches gives them better color.

The Difference Between Boiling and Simmering

Boiling is cooking at close to 100 °C / 212°F, when large bubbles continuously break across the water’s surface; it is used to boil pasta and eggs. Simmering is cooking at about 85–95 °C / 185–203°F, when small bubbles appear occasionally at the surface; most soups, sauces, and stews cook at this temperature.

Stew meat cooked in boiling water becomes tough because high heat contracts its proteins quickly. The same meat becomes tender and falls apart when simmered for hours. Patience is the ingredient a pot needs most.

Boiling water may seem fast, but it does not always give the best result; simmering is a patient method that softens ingredients’ fibers over time.

Deglazing the Pot

The browned bits (fond) left in the bottom of the pot after sautéing meat add valuable flavor and should not be discarded. Add a little liquid (wine, stock, or water) to the pot and scrape the bottom with a spoon to loosen the bits and create a rich sauce base; this process is called deglazing.

The pot should still be hot when you add liquid for deglazing; in a cooled pot, the browned bits harden and stick, making them difficult to scrape up.

Order Matters in Stews and Other Long-Cooked Dishes

For a stew, sear the meat first and remove it from the pot, then sweat the onion and garlic in the same pot. This order helps keep the meat from toughening too early and lets the vegetables pick up the fond from the bottom. Return the meat to the pot, add liquid, cover, and cook over low heat for a long time.

Red stew meat usually becomes fork-tender after simmering for 1.5–2.5 hours; for more reliable results, keep the heat low and wait rather than shortening the cooking time.

Choose the Right Pot Size

Using a pot that is too large for the ingredients makes liquid evaporate faster than necessary; a pot that is too small crowds the ingredients and keeps them from cooking evenly. Choose a pot large enough to hold the ingredients comfortably without leaving too much empty space.

Technique

Technique Step by Step

Sweat the Onion

6 min

Cook the onion over low to medium heat until it softens and releases its moisture without browning.

Done right: The onion is soft and translucent, with no change in color.

Common mistake: If the heat is too high, the onion will brown and sauté instead of sweat.

Sear the Meat

5 min

Sauté the meat in a little oil over high heat until browned on all sides, then remove it from the pot.

Done right: The meat is dark brown on all sides, and browned bits (fond) have formed on the bottom of the pot.

Common mistake: Overcrowding the pot boils the meat instead of sautéing it.

Watch out for splattering hot oil.

Deglaze the Pot

2 min

While the pot is hot, add a little liquid and scrape the bottom with a spoon to mix in the browned bits.

Done right: The bottom of the pot is clean, and the liquid has darkened.

Common mistake: Trying to scrape up browned bits in a cooled pot will not work.

Return the Meat and Simmer

90 min

Return the seared meat to the pot, add liquid, cover, and cook over low heat for a long time.

Done right: The meat is tender enough to fall apart easily with a fork.

Common mistake: Keeping the heat high to shorten the cooking time will make the meat tough.

Check the Pot Size

1 min

Choose a pot that comfortably holds the ingredients without leaving too much empty space.

Done right: The ingredients fit in the pot without being crowded or leaving too much empty space.

Common mistake: A pot that is too large makes liquid evaporate faster than necessary.

Check

What Does Done Right Look Like?

TemperatureThroughout simmering, the liquid stays around 85–95 °C / 185–203°F with gentle bubbling; it does not reach a rolling boil.

Color

Sweated onions remain translucent and light in color; if they turn brown, the heat was too high.

Aroma

Scraped-up fond gives off a lightly toasted, slightly sweet aroma; a burnt smell means the heat is too high.

Sound

A simmering stew makes a gentle bubbling sound now and then; a continuous, vigorous boil means the heat is too high.

Texture

When pressed with a fork, long-cooked stew meat separates easily along the fibers and offers little resistance.

Consistency

Reduced or deglazed liquid is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon in a thin layer.

Watch Out

Common Mistakes

Trying to Sweat Onions Over High Heat

Why it happens: High heat browns the onion and makes it sauté instead of sweat

How to prevent it: Start with the heat at low to medium when sweating onions

How to fix it: Lower the heat and wait until the onion is translucent

Overcrowding the Pot

Why it happens: Steam cannot escape, so the result is closer to boiling than sautéing

How to prevent it: Fill the pot no more than halfway with ingredients

How to fix it: Cook the ingredients in batches

Cooking Stew Meat at a Boil

Why it happens: High heat contracts proteins quickly and makes the meat tough

How to prevent it: Cook the stew over low heat for a long time from the start

How to fix it: Lower the heat and continue cooking; the meat will soften over time

Adding Liquid to a Cooled Pot for Deglazing

Why it happens: Browned bits stuck to a cold surface are difficult to scrape up and remain hardened

How to prevent it: Add the liquid while the pot is still hot, as soon as you remove the meat

How to fix it: Reheat the pot, then add the liquid

Practice

Practice Task

Make a Sauce with the Fond

Sauté a piece of meat and remove it from the pot. Sweat an onion in the same pot, then add wine or water and scrape the bottom to make a simple sauce.

20 min

1 piece of meat
1 onion
Half a water glass of liquid (wine or water)

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