Searing

Searing or pan searing is a cooking technique used in grilling, baking, braising, roasting, and sautéing. It involves cooking the surface of food, usually meat like beef, poultry, pork, or seafood, at a high temperature until a browned crust forms. This technique is also similar to browning and blackening, where all sides of the meat are cooked before finishing it in the oven.

To get the desired brown or black crust, the meat’s surface must reach a temperature above 150 °C (300 °F). This means the meat should be dry, as water boils at around 100 °C (212 °F) and would prevent the crust from forming.

Even though some people say searing "locks in moisture," it actually leads to more moisture loss than cooking without searing. However, searing is still important for several reasons. The browning creates tasty flavors through the Maillard reaction. A well-browned crust also makes the food look better. Finally, the difference in taste and texture between the crust and the inside makes the meal more interesting.

In grilling, food is often seared over very high heat and then moved to a cooler part of the grill to finish cooking. In braising, the seared surface adds flavor and color to the cooking liquid.

Reverse searing

In reverse searing, the cooking order is changed. First, the food, usually a thick steak, is cooked slowly in an oven until the middle is just right. Then, the outside is cooked quickly on a hot pan to make a nice brown crust. This way, the whole steak stays evenly cooked inside while getting a crispy surface. This method works best for thicker steaks, about as wide as your hand or more.

Sealing in the juices

Many people think that searing meat "seals in the juices," but this idea is not true. This belief started a long time ago, around 1850, when a scientist named Liebig wrote about it in his book. He thought that substances in meat were very important for nutrition, but we now know this is not the case.

Experiments showed that searing actually causes meat to lose more moisture. This happens because the high heat breaks down more cells in the meat, letting out more liquid. For this reason, some cooks sear meat at the end of cooking to get the tasty flavor from the Maillard reaction while keeping the meat moister.