cold meats 7 chapter copyright © 2011 by john wiley & sons, inc. all rights reserved

Cold Meats7Chapter

Copyright © 2011 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Cold Meats

Before reading this chapter, you should already:• Have read “How to Use This Book,” pages xxviii-xxxiii, and

understand the professional recipe format.• Be familiar with standard cuts of meat and poultry.• Know how to determine tenderness or toughness in a cut of meat or

poultry.• Have mastered basic meat and poultry cooking methods used for

hot service.• Know how to judge the internal doneness of meat and poultry by

both touch and temperature.• Know and observe food safety practices for protein-based foods to

be served cold.

Chapter Pre-Requisites

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Cold Meats

After reading this chapter, you should be able to:• Prepare attractive, profitable deli trays.• Roast, grill, and poach meats and poultry for cold

presentations.• Carve roasted meats and poultry correctly and efficiently.• Fabricate cold meats and poultry for use in sandwiches,

complex salads, and other garde manger preparations.• Prepare cold meats and poultry for formal buffet

presentations.

Chapter Objectives

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Cold Meats

Cold Meats for Sandwiches• Cold meats are most frequently used as a filling for

sandwiches. • Sandwiches may be made with industrially produced

luncheon meats or with meats cooked in-house. • In this chapter, we:

– focus on how to roast, poach, and otherwise cook meats to be used in cold sandwiches.

– discuss the various ways in which both types of sandwich meats may be presented.

Applications for Cold Meats

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Cold Meats

Deli Trays• Can be thought of as a portable do-it-yourself sandwich station.

• Deli trays usually consist of:– Industrially-produced luncheon meats.– Cheeses sliced thin by machine.– Vegetables.– Spreads and condiments.

Hand-Carved Meats• To carve: to fabricate large cuts of cooked meat into pieces/portions.

• Most cooked sandwich meats are carved in the kitchen, out of guests’ sight.

• However, some buffet operations feature carving stations or displays at which chefs slice hot or cold meats to order.


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Cold Meats

Guidelines for Making Deli Trays• Line deli trays with lettuce leaves before placing

meats and cheeses.• Provide about 4 oz (120 g) total meat and 1 oz (30 g)

total cheese per serving, plus about 10% extra.• Provide 1–1.5 fl oz (30–45 mL) total spreads and

condiments per serving. • Separate slices of meat and cheese, and fold/roll them

into attractive shapes before placing on tray. • Slice rolls and breads before service.• Wrap the deli tray and all accompaniments airtight to

prevent drying-out or staling. • Provide the appropriate utensils for serving the meats,

spreads, and condiments.


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A well-prepared deli tray is attractive and designed for easy service.

Cold Meats

Cold Meats for Buffet Presentation• To function as a décor item, a roast must remain largely

intact and attractive throughout the service. – Plan ahead to have enough meat both for service and display.– For a smaller number of guests, the chef prepares a large roast

and slices one-half to two-thirds of it.– The remaining section is placed on the platter as the focal point

of the presentation. – This large, intact section is referred to as the grosse pièce

literally “large piece.”


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Cold Meats

Cold Meats for Buffet Presentation• When arranged on a platter, with or without a grosse pièce, slices

should be arranged in straight or curving lines in attractive patterns. – Sequencing: keeping slices in order as they are cut.

– When the food item being sliced has a tapered shape, the arrangement will look best if the slices are sequenced.

– Sequenced slices can be reassembled into the original shape of the item before it was sliced.


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Reassembled slices

Cold Meats

Platter Décor• For formal buffet presentations,

one or more types of décor may be added to cold meat platters:1. Herb bouquets: typically

placed on the platter or carving board around the base of the roast.

2. Carved vegetables and fruits: often added to the platter or carving board as decoration.


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Cold Meats

Platter Décor• Attelets : Skewers with an ornamented top.

– They are used to create height in the presentation of a cold roast, pâté, or other garde manger item.

• Garnitures: Small, attractive composed food items that are self-contained and freestanding on the platter; the French term garniture simply translates as “garnish.” – They are often arranged on a platter of roasted meat or poultry to provide

both décor and accompaniment.

• Aspic and chaud-froid: The most classic of all décor types. – A coating of aspic gelée or chaud-froid creates an attractive

presentation and prevents the meat from drying out.


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Cold Meats

Principles of Cooking Meats to Be Served Cold• Minimize Fat

– Remove as much visible fat as possible from meats/poultry served cold.

– When fat cools to room temperature it becomes more solid, and when chilled, it further solidifies into a dense, slick mass.

• Season Liberally– Cold temperatures dull the taste buds.

– You must season meats/poultry intended for cold service more than you would the same product intended for hot service.

• Achieve the Appropriate Internal Temperature– Cold preparations of beef, lamb, and game meats should be cooked to

a medium rare or medium doneness.

Preparing Cold Meat Products

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Cold Meats

Principles of Cooking Meats to Be Served Cold• Retaining Moisture

– Meats and poultry for cold/room temperature service must be cooked ahead of time, cooled, and then held for a time before being served.

– Once exposed to the air, their surfaces easily dry out.

• Methods to prevent surface drying and ensure a moist mouthfeel:

1. Once cold meats are carved or otherwise fabricated, baste their surfaces with a small amount of an appropriate stock.

2. Store poached meat submerged in its cuisson, or poaching liquid.

3. Keep prepared platters covered with plastic film until service begins.


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Cold Meats

Principles of Cooking Meats to Be Served Cold• Serving at the Proper Temperature

– Optimal temperature for cold service of meat/poultry is not actually cold.

– Both meats and poultry are best when served at cool room temperature, 60°–75°F (16°–24°C), at which the meat’s flavor is most pronounced and its texture is softened, ensuring the best mouthfeel.

• Observing Food Safety Procedures– Cold meats and poultry are protein foods that undergo a lot of handling,

making them susceptible to contamination by harmful microorganisms.

– Be vigilant about sanitation and observing food safety procedures.


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Cold Meats

Cooking Methods for Cold Meats• Of the many methods that can be used to cook meats and poultry,

only a few are typically used to prepare them for cold service.– Roasting: The method most frequently used to cook meats and poultry

for cold presentation is roasting.

– Grilling: Meats and poultry for grilling are sometimes marinated before they are cooked.

– Poaching: Lean white meats and white-meat poultry are frequently poached for cold service.


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Cold Meats

In many of the world’s cuisines, raw meat dishes play an important role.

• In Korean and Southeast Asian cuisines, raw beef is featured in salads and snack foods.

• In Ethiopian cuisine, chopped raw beef flavored with hot spiced butter is a favorite dish.

• Middle Eastern cuisines boast raw lamb mezze as appetizers.

Raw Meat Dishes

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Cold Meats

Western cuisines feature only two important dishes in which meat is served uncooked (both use beef):

1. Steak tartare : Hand-chopped, raw beef filet mixed with raw egg yolk and various spicy seasonings and condiments.

2. Carpaccio : Consists of very thin sliced raw beef filet accented with a mustard mayonnaise sauce.

Raw Meat Dishes

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Carpaccio

Cold Meats

Guidelines for Preparing Raw Meat Dishes• Do not serve uncooked pork or poultry due to the risk of

food-borne illness associated with these foods. – Only beef, lamb, and farmed venison are considered safe for

raw service.

• Use tender cuts only. – Even after undergoing the physical tenderization of chopping or

slicing, tough cuts are unpleasantly chewy when served raw.

• Keep the meat very cold at all times. – This is necessary both for food safety and to keep the meat firm

for easy cutting.

Raw Meat Dishes

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Cold Meats

Guidelines for Preparing Raw Meat Dishes• Trim off all connective tissue and fat from the meat

before chopping or slicing it. If any remains, the meat will be unpleasantly stringy and greasy.

• Always fabricate the meat by hand—do not attempt to chop beef for steak tartare in a meat grinder.

• Even a cleaned and sanitized grinder can harbor harmful microorganisms. In addition, a grinder does not create the proper texture.

Raw Meat Dishes

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Cold Meats

Guidelines for Preparing Raw Meat Dishes• For à la carte service, chop or slice the meat to order. • For hors d’oeuvre work or buffet service, prepare the

meat at the last possible moment—do not plan to hold the finished dish very long.

• Chopped or sliced raw meat can easily become contaminated by harmful microorganisms. – Exposure to air destroys the red pigments in the meat, causing it

to quickly change from an attractive red color to an unattractive shade of brown.

Raw Meat Dishes

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Cold Meats

Guidelines for Preparing Raw Meat Dishes• Add acidic ingredients, such as lemon juice, to raw meat dishes at

the last minute before serving.• Prolonged contact with acidic ingredients gives the meat a cooked

texture and discolors it.• Use only freshly thawed pasteurized egg yolk in steak tartare.• Be vigilant in your sanitation practices when serving raw meat. In

some areas, food-service operators are required by law to post warnings about the risks of consuming raw meat.

• Be sure to know and comply with local regulations.

Raw Meat Dishes

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Cold Meats

Liver Parfaits• Once cooked, cooled poultry livers are puréed with softened butter

to create a smooth spread that is more rich and dense than a standard liver mousse.

• Additional ingredients, such as aromatic vegetables, herbs and spices, spirits, and cream may be added to the mixture.

Meat-based Mousses

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Cold Meats

Liver Parfaits• Due to their high fat content, liver parfaits

freeze well.

• Liver parfaits are less perishable than liver mousses, as they do not contain raw egg whites.

• Parfaits are served as appetizers much in the same manner as smooth liver pâtés.

• Crackers or bread typically accompany small molded forms or ramekins of liver parfait.

• Alternatively, liver parfait may be used as an hors d’oeuvre component when piped onto a canapé or into a savory profiterole.

Meat-based Mousses

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Cold Meats

Foie Gras• Foie gras is defined as the enlarged liver of a goose or

duck that is the result of accelerated feeding of a high-calorie diet.

• The French term foie gras literally means “fat liver.”• Foie gras ranks along with caviar and truffles as one of

the Western world’s most expensive and luxurious foods.

Foie Gras

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Cold Meats

Foie Gras• When geese and ducks consume many calories over a short period, much

of the fat also forms within their livers—these grow abnormally large and acquire an unusually pale color.

• When the livers are harvested and correctly prepared, they have a delicious, mild, buttery flavor and a rich, smooth mouthfeel.

• Accelerated feeding of geese and ducks is accomplished by utilizing a method known by the French word gavage.

• Gavage : Translates from the French as “force-feeding,” although that is not necessarily an accurate description.

Foie Gras

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Cold Meats

Fresh Foie Gras• Due to the extreme perishability of the product, most all foie gras

sold outside its immediate production area was originally cooked by a processor prior to sale.

• Even after refrigeration became the norm, restaurants purchased prepared foie gras because of the difficulty of cooking it correctly.

• During the nouvelle cuisine era, chefs began to serve foie gras hot, slicing and pan-searing raw foie gras to order.

• Today, most chefs agree that fresh, domestic foie gras correctly cooked in-house is far superior to processed foie gras in cold presentations.

Foie Gras

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Cold Meats

Fresh Foie Gras1. Grade A Foie Gras:

– is firm in texture.• The firm texture results in a higher melt point, making it less difficult

to cook correctly.

– is pale and even in color.– is rounded oval shape. – weighs at least 11⁄2 lb (700 g). – has large amount of interior veining, yielding large, intact slices.

Foie Gras

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Cold Meats

Fresh Foie Gras2. Grade B Foie Gras:

– is flatter in shape.– is smaller than a Grade A liver. – has more interior veining and lower melt point.

3. Grade C Foie Gras:– is small and may contain visual imperfections. – is typically used for puréed preparations, such as mousses and

sauces.

Foie Gras

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Cold Meats

Procedure for Cleaning and Seasoning Fresh Foie Gras1. Place the opened foie gras in a bowl set under a gentle stream of

room-temperature water. – Flush the foie gras about ½ hour, or until the water runs clear and the

foie gras warms enough to become pliable, but not breakable.

2. Blot the foie gras dry and place it on a freshly sanitized work surface.

3. Slowly and gently pull the two lobes apart.

Foie Gras

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Cold Meats

Procedure for Cleaning and Seasoning Fresh Foie Gras4. Use your fingers or a small, sharp knife to remove any visible

membrane and surface blemishes from each lobe.

5. Lay each lobe on the worktable so the smooth side is down and the rough side is up. – Starting at the narrow, top end of each lobe, slit open the lobe about

halfway to the other end and about halfway into its depth.

Foie Gras

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Cold Meats

Procedure for Cleaning and Seasoning Fresh Foie Gras

6. Use your fingers and, if necessary, sanitized tweezers or needle nose pliers to remove the interior veins. – Grasp the thick top part of the vein

network and pull gently while holding back the meat of the liver.

– Your goal is to extract the veins without breaking or disturbing the structure of the liver.

Foie Gras

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Cold Meats

Procedure for Cleaning and Seasoning Fresh Foie Gras7. Sprinkle the interior and exterior of each lobe with the desired

seasoning ingredients.

8. Wrap each lobe in plastic film, and then seal the wrapped lobes in a plastic bag.

9. Bury the bag of foie gras in ice and refrigerate 24 hours.

Foie Gras

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Cold Meats

Procedure for Poaching Fresh Duck Foie Gras

Foie Gras

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Prepare the torchon Lower the torchon into simmering cuisson Roll it into a uniform cylinder

Remove the yellow fat from the foie gras.

Slice from the torchon of foie gras.

Cold Meats

Processed Foie Gras and Foie Gras Products• Foie Gras Cuit, Entier: Whole lobes of cooked, seasoned

foie gras vacuum-packed and refrigerated or frozen.• Foie Gras Cuit, Morceaux: Pieces of cooked, seasoned

foie gras vacuum-packed and refrigerated or frozen.• Bloc de Foie Gras: Foie gras puréed and emulsified with

water, and then heat-processed in a can. – Must be at least 98% total foie gras– May contain both goose and duck foie gras.

Foie Gras

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Cold Meats

Processed Foie Gras and Foie Gras Products• Parfait de Foie Gras : Puréed and cooked with cream

and butter, then canned and heat-processed. – Must contain at east 75% foie gras. – Some varieties contain up to 3% truffles.

• Pâté or Mousse de Foie Gras: Similar to parfait, with the addition of chicken livers or unfattened duck livers. – May contain as little as 50% foie gras.

Foie Gras

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cold meats 7 chapter copyright © 2011 by john wiley & sons, inc. all rights reserved

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