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7. Cooking Techniques
Stove Top Cooking and Heat Zones
You can use Evo’s cook surface similar to the burners on
your kitchen stove top. Adjust Evo’s burners to control the
temperatures of the cook surface “heat zones.” Evo’s circular
grill top is divided into two distinct zones. The centre control
panel knob controls the “inner heat zone,” which is also the
inner circle of the cook surface. The outer control panel knob
controls the “outer heat zone,” which is the outer circle of the
cook surface. Because the cook surface is made of heavy
steel, it takes 5-8 minutes from a cold start to completely
heat the surface. With a pre-heated cook surface, if you
adjust one of the burners, you will have to wait momentarily
before the heat zone adjusts to temperature. However, if the
heat zones are set to different temperatures you can move a
pot or pan from one zone to the other and instantly change
the cooking temperature beneath your cookware.
Oiling the Cook Surface
A hand pump spray bottle or a squirt bottle filled with
cooking oil is perfect for applying an even, thin coat of oil on
the cook surface. Another way to oil the cook surface is with
an inexpensive terrycloth cotton towel that has been doused
with cooking oil. When the cook surface is hot, hold the oiled
towel with a pair of tongs to prevent being burned. Having
cooking oil readily available allows you to oil the grill easily
and quickly at any time.
Cooking Meats
Meats are perfect to sear, roast or braise on the grill. Searing
and Roasting techniques are described in more detail below.
Braising requires a tightly covered pot or pan placed on the
grill surface. Braise as you would for a stove-top braising
recipe, adjusting the burners to control the cook surface
temperature. Meats can also be sliced and put on skewers,
added to a stir-fry or used in hot sandwiches. Veal and Pork
are often made into cutlets or scallopini. Create small slices
that have been lightly flattened with a meat mallet, seasoned
and then dusted with flour. Scallopini and cutlets are usually
seared in butter until golden brown and served with a sauce
or lemon juice and fresh parsley.
Cooking Poultry
Boneless cuts that have been flattened to an even thickness
with a meat mallet cook more evenly and more quickly.
Poultry that has been prepared in this way can then be
marinated, breaded or rubbed with spices before searing on
the grill. Poultry can also be roasted, braised, sautéed, fried or
poached on the Evo grill. Roast as you would in your kitchen
oven placing the roast in a roasting pan with a rack and using
the hood to contain the heat from the grill. To sauté, slice
the meat into thin strips and sauté, turning with a spatula
directly on the cook surface. Use pots and pans for stove-top
cooking techniques. Fill a pot with stock for poaching. Use a
tightly covered pot or pan to braise. Small game birds such
as quail are small enough that they can be sear cooked all
the way through without having to use the hood to create
an oven. In the case of duck breast, it is best to sear the skin
side of the duck breast first and to continue cooking until the
skin becomes crispy and much of the fat has been rendered
away. This way the duck meat won’t get over cooked before
the skin is crispy.
Cooking Fish
Lean fish such as Flounder, Sole, Sea Bass, Cod, Monk Fish
and Red Snapper are usually purchased in the form of fillets.
Fillets of fish are ideal to cook on the Evo grill because they
are flat and will cook quickly and efficiently. Because lean
fish tends to flake apart easily, using Evo’s flat top grill makes
handling and cooking fish much easier than open-flame
grills. For additional flavour and texture, you can also lightly
dust the seasoned fillets with flour or use a breading mixture
before searing. Oily Fish such as Swordfish, Tuna, Sturgeon,
Striped Bass, and Salmon are usually purchased in steaks or
fillets. Marinate them, rub them with spices, or simply season
with salt and pepper. Sear the fish on a lightly oiled hot
cook surface till golden brown and cooked to your desired
doneness.
Searing
Sear cooking is the most common cooking technique used
on the Evo flat top grill. Searing is done by placing food
directly onto the hot cook surface and allowing that food
item to develop a flavourful “seared” or browned exterior.
Searing imparts flavour to food and also helps seal in natural
juices. Searing can be done with vegetables, meats, fish,
poultry. One nice feature of the Evo grill is its convex cooking
surface. The convex shape allows fats to flow away from
your food and into a drip pan. This minimizes flavours from
mixing on the cook surface and also helps cut down on fat in
your food. Once the food is seared on one side, flip to sear
the other side and allow it to finish cooking. Some foods
take longer to cook and will require that you reduce the cook
surface temperature to finish cooking without over cooking
the exterior. With foods that take longer to cook you can also
adjust one of the two heat zones to a lower temperature
and move food to the lower temperature zone after it has
been seared over the high temperature zone. The lower
temperature will allow the food to continue cooking while
retaining a perfectly browned exterior. For non-stick cooking
it is essential that the cook surface be hot and lightly oiled
before searing, and that you allow the food to sear before
you attempt to move it with your spatula or tongs. Overall,
cooking on Evo’s flat-top cook surface does not involve the
same charring of food that is typically done with an open-
flame grill. Cooking with the Evo grill involves a controlled
“sear” that develops perfectly browned foods.
Using Marinades and Spice Rubs
When using spice rubs and marinades it is important to be
aware of the sugar content in the recipes. If a marinade is
high in sugar you will find that when placed on a hot cook
surface, the sugars will “caramelize” on the cook surface:
similar to what will happen to a pan on your stove top.
Caramelized sugars are sticky and will eventually burn off,
however to ensure easy clean up, it’s encouraged that you
use oil based marinades that are low in sugars. Your cook
surface will be easier to clean and you will achieve a better
quality sear on your meats, poultry, fish and vegetables.
