Braised Beef.

General Cooking tips

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snooky
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Picked up a pack of beef in Costco and I didn't look at what cut it was,it looked great,and it turned out to be Flank so I have used it in a Braised Beef recipe.The gravy which I have had left over I freeze and would use on other dishes;such as sausage and mash.Question is could I use the leftover gravy to braise a Flank steak in for 1-2 hours or would it be better to make fresh?
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Stravaig
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Hi Snooky,

I'm kinda assuming you're asking from a hygiene/safety point of view.

In which case I don't see any reason why you shouldn't use your leftover gravy for braising another dish. You've kept it properly, ie not lying around for hours in warm temperatures (what's know as the "danger zone" where bacteria multiplies rapidly). If anything it'll add depth of flavour. That said, I would be wary of then using the leftover gravy from that second braise to yet another dish, because it can get a bit risky when you keep adding new to old indefinitely.

You can't taste or smell bacteria (unless something has actually gone off) so it helps to know the rules. When I cook for other people, from my home kitchen, I always apply professional catering standards. That said, when cooking just for ourselves I do what makes sense at the time, ie we maybe take a risk that's acceptable. It's entirely up to you and what you feel comfortable with.

Going off at a slight tangent, but still about risk, every darned thing you buy from a supermarket says "do not refreeze". This is nonsense. It's a "cover your @rse" clause intended for the lowest common denominator. Refreezing isn't always dangerous - but they can't take the chance that someone might do something stupid and then sue them, so they say never to do it. If you then do it, the risk, if any, is yours. (CYA)

You can get a food handlers course online for not much money, maybe £25 or even less. I also wrote an eBook on the subject.

If you were asking from a "how will it taste?" POV, then it's a great idea. Waste not want not. No reason to start from scratch when you already have something tasty to use. If the gravy is very thick, then "let it down" with water.

That reminds me of an old kitchen story, which I'm not even sure is true. The head chef told a commis to "let the sauce down gently" so the commis then went and said to the sauce, "I'm so very, very sorry, but I can't take you out on Saturday night". Perhaps you had to be there...

Another thing to think about is the temperature of gravy/stock/water you use for your braise. When making a stock or something where you want to extract the flavour and goodness of the meat to your stock, then use cold water. If you want the meat to retain its flavour then add the liquid hot so it doesn't take goodness away from the meat.

Hope this helps and if I can be of any further assistance to you or any other forum member I'm very happy to be of use.

Happy New Year to everyone!
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snooky
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Hi Stravaig,
Thank you for your interesting and entertaining answer to my question.I probably was boggling about putting a lump of raw,but sealed,beef into a pre cooked gravy and you gave the confidence to do it.My daughter, with whom I live ,had her misgiving which put the doubt in my mind ,hence the question.
Regards snooky

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Primrose
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S ooky, ot quite the same thing but I save left over gravt or casserole juices and freeze them quickly and then reuse in making beef type broths or soups and it has always been fine. The secret is to freeze quickly after use and then be sure, after defrosting that everything gets to a good boil and then ai. Wrong temperature to kill any potential bacteria.
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