I don't get the point of unbrowned meat

[markk]

If you put browned meat in the chicken salad it would probably be disgusting. Flavoring unbrowned meat with pan juices is a different scenario.

If we're talking about the meat of a roasted chicken with the skin removed, is that still disgusting?

[Fat Guy]

It's not disgusting. It's also not browned.

Stepping back from the specific examples -- because I think there are many to refute the hypothesis -- I think the big problem with the browning-is-better hypothesis is that it's a one-size-fits-all hypothesis whereas cuisine is not a one-size-fits-all world. It's like taking a condiment -- chimichurri sauce, ketchup, whatever -- and saying that because that condiment is good it should be used on every dish in the world.

[markk]

When I first read the initial question, I agreed that everything is better browned, because I thought of how many things I like that are browned, seared, crisped and such. But then I realize that I also love a lot of boiled foods, and I think that this just adds to the variety of life.

For sure, if somebody made me a steak, I'd want it with a substantial crust on the outside, and I do love my crispy things. But then for variety, I'll crave a pot of boiled meats.

So I'm changing my initial vote - there are plenty of boiled dishes that are not improved by browning them, and I'm thankful for the variety.

[Shalmanese]

My assertion was not that we should forever ban all unbrowned meat dishes and that this would result in a better world for all. I acknowledge that some of the oldest and most classic dishes in the world are made with unbrowned meat and that many people enjoy them immensely.

But when I see quotes like this (original thread):

It works. The resultant [pot au feu] broth is so clear, but resonates with so much flavor. If you think really hard when you taste, you can pick out every single flavor component. I could taste the veal behind the beef, I could taste the carrot separately from the turnip and parsnip. I could pick out the clove, the thyme, and the bay. It's an amazing taste from such a clear, delicate appearing broth - so much so that the consommé was the funnest thing to eat out of the whole pot! If you eat it without thinking hard - the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

I know that if I were to eat the same dish, I would be underwhelmed and wanting the browned flavor.

For example, soup. Chicken soup with skin -- particularly browned skin -- just wouldn't be right.

My way of making chicken soup is to first brown a batch of skin on chicken thighs, remove the skin as a snack for the chef and then brown again the newly exposed meat on the skin side for maximum brownage.

In short, every time I've taken on faith the recipe writer's exhortation that such a dish simply HAS to use unbrowned meat and that browning would change the characteristics of the dish COMPLETELY, the resulting unbrowned dish never ends up tasting as good as what it would have been if it were browned.

[HungryC]

I totally get the point of unbrowned meat...just try a nice bowl of pho ga (chicken pho, made with meltingly tender poached chicken) or pho tai (beef pho with raw thin sliced eye of round added to the bowl, cooked by the heat of the boiling broth). Both are made with unbrowned meats, and both are delicious. The unbrowned, lightly cooked meats/poultry have a silky texture and full flavor.

Typical pho broth/stock is made with browned stuff---but it is the ginger and onion that are charred before they are added to the stock. So caramelized things are present, just not the meat.

And I really, really love boiled beef brisket or pork roast with horseradish sauce, possibly the most un-browned meats around.

[JohnnyH]

If you put browned meat in the chicken salad it would probably be disgusting.

←

What about chix salad made with grilled chicken? Do we not consider that "browned"?

[fmed]

I'm a fan of traditional roast chicken (which I make almost weekly), but I often have a hankering for Hainan Chicken. Hainan Chicken is poached (though there are roasted and BBQ'd variants). The best ones are made by poaching the whole chicken in stages (simmer/ice water/simmer/ice water...etc.) to achieve a silky texture.

[jkim]

I can name a million dishes that taste better with meat that has NOT been browned.

Sam Gye Tang

Sul Leong Tang

Jok Bal

Bo Ssam

just to name a few.

Also another category (i.e. uncooked):

Yuk Hwe (korean style steak tartare?)

Yuk Hwe Bi Bim Bap

Think of the bigger picture.

The world has a lot more different kinds of food than just Chinese and Western.

[patajec]

Hainanese Chicken isn't browned. There's a balance between the subtlety of the chicken in contrast to the sharp green onion-ginger sauce and light chili sauce that makes it ethereal. I've tried browning the meat and it just doesn't work.

[fmed]

Hainanese Chicken isn't browned. There's a balance between the subtlety of the chicken in contrast to the sharp green onion-ginger sauce and light chili sauce that makes it ethereal. I've tried browning the meat and it just doesn't work.

←

Traditional HC is not browned. The roasted version in rare and probably shouldn't be called Hainan Chicken. Prima Taste (the chain from Singapore) makes it as do a number of stalls in Singapore...they all seem to call it "roasted Hainan Chicken'" or similar.

I definitely prefer the white poached version for the exact reasons you gave.