Why the secret to the world's most tender stews is never actually boiling
In short: Simmering is the art of cooking food in liquid just below the boiling point. By maintaining a temperature between 71 and 100 degrees Celsius, you avoid the harshness of a rolling boil. This gentle, steady heat transforms tough ingredients into succulent meals, a technique perfected across global culinary traditions.
At its core, simmering is a precise thermal balancing act. To achieve it, a cook first brings liquid to a boil before reducing the heat to a constant, low intensity. This ensures the liquid remains above the poaching threshold—typically cited between 71 and 80 degrees Celsius—but safely below the 100-degree boiling point. While some chefs debate the exact lower limit, with some suggesting 82 degrees Celsius, the goal remains consistent: gentle heat that prevents food from toughening or disintegrating.
This technique is foundational to global comfort food. In Japanese cuisine, it is one of four essential methods. Across Iran and Afghanistan, it is the primary way to prepare dishes like khoresh, abgoosht, and bozbash, often requiring hours of slow heat. Similarly, Dutch and Flemish cooks rely on it to transform tough beef cuts into carbonade flamande, often using thick-bottomed cast iron pans to distribute heat evenly. In Bulgaria, extended simmering is the standard approach for tenderizing meat in stews and soups.
The method also serves unique cultural and religious functions. Jewish law, which forbids cooking from Friday evening to Saturday evening, led to the development of overnight stews like cholent, hamin, and t'bit. These dishes are brought to a boil before the Sabbath begins and kept at a simmer on a heat-diffusing device called a blech. Whether using a modern slow cooker, a specialized simmering burner on a gas range, or a traditional low flame, the principle remains the same: time and steady, low-intensity heat are the ultimate tools for culinary transformation.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: Simmering
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