Dry frying

[Fat Guy]

In a recent discussion of mushrooms, reference was made to an earlier post, by Chufi, about "dry frying" mushrooms. Since discussion of this interesting technique has heretofore been buried as an aside in other topics, I thought I'd elevate it to full-topic status by starting this one.

By "dry frying" we mean sauteeing in a skillet, but without any oil. To recap, here's Chufi's description of the method as applied to mushrooms.

Put mushrooms (whole is best, but you can chop them up if you are in a hurry) in a large frying pan. They should be in a single layer. Don't add any fat. Put pan on high heat and fry the mushrooms over high heat until they are completely brown, collapsed, and wrinkled. Shake the pan occasianally (which is when you will hear that funny squeaky sound of the evaporating liquid).

So, dry frying. Any thoughts? Brilliant innovation? Other applications?

[slkinsey]

I think it works well, but only with certain foods -- those being ones that have a pronounced tendency to weep liquid. Mushrooms and scallops come immediately to mind as candidates. The technique works especially well with mushrooms because it concentrates the mushroom liquid directly back into the mushrooms. Not so sure there are that many other candidates for dry-frying, though.

ETA: I think what makes dry-frying work for mushrooms is that it actually reduces the amount of thermal transfer to the mushrooms. So, since the mushrooms aren't getting hit with a ton of heat, the liquid exuding from them evaporates more or less immediately (that's the squeaking noise) and they slowly dehydrate and Maillardize.

Edited November 29, 2007 by slkinsey (log)

[Fat Guy]

Slightly different -- just spinning some thoughts out here -- but bacon is usually cooked in a skillet without the addition of fat.

[slkinsey]

Steven: I'd call the beginning of the frying process of any fatty food that is expected to cook in its own fat "rendering" followed by "frying in its own fat."

This is fundamentally different from what happens when one dry-frys mushrooms or scallops, which give off water but no fat. To me, anyway, "dry frying" involves cooking a food that does not render its own fat.

[Pam R]

Do you heat the pan up before adding the mushrooms?

[Fat Guy]

I'm really tempted to take a whole bunch of things and dry fry them, but I'm afraid the results will be crazy-disastrous.

[tino27]

Eggplant is also notorious for soaking up oil when pan-frying ... might this also be a good candidate?

[slkinsey]

Do you heat the pan up before adding the mushrooms?

Yes. This is crucial.

[Pam R]

Do you heat the pan up before adding the mushrooms?

Yes. This is crucial.

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Thanks. That's what I assumed but the quote above says to put the mushrooms in the pan then fry on high.

[Allura]

I've done this with summer squash, yellow & zucchini. I've only tried in a nonstick pan, though; does that matter? The squash gets quite sweet, actually.

[JimH]

Bell Peppers?

[OliverN]

Dry-fried eggs anyone?

[rooftop1000]

Does anyone remember the Low Cholesterol Gourmet....maybe Discovery Channel? She started everything in a non-stick pan with a splash of water.....quite disturbed woman

tracey

[Doodad]

Dry-fried eggs anyone?

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Yeah good luck with that. My wife used to try that all the time. We had a lot of bacon and toast breakfasts.

[OliverN]

Dry-fried eggs anyone?

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Yeah good luck with that. My wife used to try that all the time. We had a lot of bacon and toast breakfasts.

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haha. It's all a matter of how you present it: "Succulent, Fat-Free Fried Eggs with a side of Frying Pan"

[OliverN]

On a more serious note though, I suppose it's a question of asking why do we saute with oil in the first place?

Is it a question of heat conduction? A question of adding flavor to the dish? Or, as with eggs, to just keep the damn things from sticking?

Once we've figured that out, then we can talk about which foods don't require one, or both, of the above.

I suppose the obvious one, which may not even count, is 'dry'-roasting nuts. Since you're not really looking to 'cook' anything, just brown the surface a little bit, and since they don't stick, you don't need oil......

[_john]

Chinese long beans in a hot wok with a little salt works great. you have to keep them moving though. A lot of things I do in the wok receive no oil.

[dockhl]

Dry-fried eggs anyone?

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Hah! My (almost-ex) husband used to do that as a passive-aggressive attempt to show me that he was a healthier eater than I (no doubt).

Sucked..............

[C. sapidus]

In Mexican cooking, tomatoes, garlic, onions, and fresh chiles are often roasted in a dry griddle to enhance and concentrate their flavors. The charred skin is typically peeled before use. Similarly, spices and dried chiles are often toasted on a dry griddle.

[dockhl]

In Mexican cooking, tomatoes, garlic, onions, and fresh chiles are often roasted in a dry griddle to enhance and concentrate their flavors. The charred skin is typically peeled before use. Similarly, spices and dried chiles are often toasted on a dry griddle.

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Bruce, you are right, and I love the flavor it imparts !

[pat_00]

Chinese long beans in a hot wok with a little salt works great. you have to keep them moving though.  A lot of things I do in the wok receive no oil.

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Try sichuanese dry fried green beans (gan bian si ji dou, i think) that is awesome.

Although the chinese method of dry-frying does use a little oil.

[paulraphael]

On a more serious note though, I suppose it's a question of asking why do we saute with oil in the first place?

Is it a question of heat conduction? A question of adding flavor to the dish? Or, as with eggs, to just keep the damn things from sticking?

yes, yes, and yes.

[eskay]

I've done mushrooms this way twice since I saw it mentioned in the mushroom thread, and I have both scallops and a hunk of red pepper kicking around....I suspect more experiments are in order.

[dockhl]

Tonight's dinner was a pan-fried steak with shallots and mushrooms. I did the vegetables first, and tried to totally dry-fry them but found that it helped to have just a little bit of butter.

[Milagai]

Dry-fried eggs anyone?

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Yeah good luck with that. My wife used to try that all the time. We had a lot of bacon and toast breakfasts.

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Actually I manage this with decent results.

I have an ancient cast iron frying pan, a tiny one, that's superbly seasoned

because of age and heavy use.

I need almost no extra oil for most things, and I have tried dry fried eggs

in this and it works. Not trying to be extra healthy or anything,

just being lazy.

The pan is a little too small to try mushrooms or peppers .....

I've managed with mushrooms that I put into a skillet that I had just

finished sauteeing something else in. No extra oil, but there must

have been enough residue, they came out beautifully.

Edited November 30, 2007 by Milagai (log)