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EN
1 / INFORMATION FOR THE USER
STEAM COOKING
General comments
Steam cooking presents nothing but advantages if you follow the instructions for use. Healthy
and natural, steam cooking preserves the full flavour of foods. A delicate sauce or aromatic herb
seasoning adds that something extra that makes the difference.
This kind of cooking produces no cooking smells. There is no need to season the cooking wa-
ter with herbs or spices; however, you can flavour a fish by placing it on a bed of seaweed or ma-
ke a savoury poultry dish by adding a bunch of rosemary or tarragon.
You can cook meat, fish and vegetables simultaneously.
Steam cooking gently reheats pasta, rice and mashed potatoes with no risk of food sticking or
drying out.
It facilitates cooking creams, tarts and rice pudding...covered with aluminium foil, food is not
wetted by condensation water.
There is no need to add salt before cooking, nor even cooking water.
To make meat look more appetising, quickly brown it on all sides in a frying pan using hot butter.
Compared to boiling, steaming offers only advantages:
It is quick: cooking starts immediately whereas for food in a water-filled dish, the cooking time
only really starts once the water returns to a full boil.
It is healthy: vitamins (those that are water soluble) and minerals are well preserved because
they hardly dissolve in the condensation water that touches the food.
Moreover, no fats are used for this type of cooking.
Steam maintains the taste of food. It does not add odours, nor the taste of the grill or the pan.
Furthermore, it takes nothing away because the food is not diluted in the water.
Words of advice: there is no point in using this cooking method to prepare fish that is not fresh
or vegetables left in the refrigerator for a week: the results will be catastrophic!
Steam does not spread tastes or odours therefore do not hesitate to save both time and money
by cooking items side by side, but not touching. For example, you can cook fish next to a dessert.
Steam is also suitable for blanching, defrosting and reheating or even keeping warm, especially sauces.
First use a very small amount of fat to heat meats like poultry, veal and pork so that they take on
an appetising browned appearance. Then finish cooking them using the steam method.
Cut into pieces, food cooks faster and more evenly than if left whole.
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