On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 315

surface.Inshallow-fatfrying,piecesofmeat
arecookedinenoughmeltedfatoroilto
bathethebottomandsidesofthemeat;in
deep-fatfrying,there’senoughoiltoimmerse
themeatcompletely.Heatistransferredfrom
thepantothemeatbywayofconvection
currentsinthefatoroil.Thesematerialsare
lessefficientthanbothmetalandwaterat
transferringheat,andyetmorethantwiceas
efficientasanoven.Thisthermalmoderation,
togetherwiththeabilitytocontactthemeat
evenlyandintimately,makesfatfryingan
especiallyversatiletechnique.It’sused
primarilyforpoultryandfish,everything
fromthinfilletsandchickenbreaststowhole
15lb/7kgturkeys,whichtakesomethingover
anhourtocook(comparedtotwoorthree
hoursintheoven).Theusualcooking
temperaturerangesbetween300and
350ºF/150and175ºC.Theoilstartsoutnear
350º,coolswhenthemeatisintroducedand
itsmoisturebeginstoboilandbubbleaway,


thenheatsupagainasmoistureflowslows
andtheburnerheatcatchesup.The
temperatureishighenoughtodehydrate,
brown,andcrispthesurface,whilethe
gradualmovementofheatintothemeatgives
thecookareasonablewindowoftimein
whichtostopthecookingwhilethemeatis

stillmoist.
TheKeystoCrispSkin
One of the special pleasures of a wellcookedbirdisitscrisp,richskin.Theskin
ofbirdsandotheranimalsismainlywater
(about 50%), fat (40%), and connectivetissue collagen (3%). In order to crisp the
skin, the cook must dissolve the leathery
collagen into tender gelatin in the skin’s
water, and then vaporize the water out of
the skin. The high heat of a hot oven or
fryingpandoesthismosteffectively;slow
cooking at a low oven temperature can
desiccate the skin while its collagen is