How to braai red meat from our program
SIRLOIN
How to braai red meat, The steak should be at room temperature by the time it goes onto the fire. If it’s in the fridge, take the steak out 20 minutes before you want to braai it, and leave it in the shade or indoors.
Prepare a good bed of hot coals for your braai. Season the sirloin by rubbing it with sea salt, freshly ground pepper and melted coconut oil.
Place on the grid, fat side down and at least 15cm above the coals for a good 10 minutes to render the fat. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t blacken, pulling it away from the heat a little if necessary. The meat should be dry when it goes onto the fire; do not baste until both sides of the meat have been over the coals for 2 minutes each. Use braai tongs, not a fork, to turn the meat. A fork will make holes in the meat, and you might lose some juice.
Once you’ve rendered the fat, lower the grid right over the coals and cook your meat on all sides, turning frequently. We recommend rare or medium rare, which means it’ll require a total cooking time of about 15 minutes.
VEAL
Veal should be seared over high heat for three minutes per side and then moved to the side to medium heat until it is done. Veal should never be overcooked to preserve its tenderness and delicate flavour. The meat can be marinated or simply flavoured with herbs and spices. It is precisely to preserve its delicate flavour that mild herbs like sage are recommended with veal.
When using a charcoal barbecue, arrange the charcoal around the sides and grill the meat in the center of the grill, with the cover down.
Once the meat is cooked, it should be wrapped loosely in foil and left standing for 5 minutes or so. This allows the fibres to relax and the juices to circulate through the flesh for maximum taste and tenderness.
GAME
The first thing to bear in mind is that game meat is considerably leaner than beef. Game meat doesn’t have quite as much fatty tissue, as the animals aren’t confined to pens while being fattened like cattle. Game is very healthy, lean meat. Since game meat is almost fat-free, an important tip to keep in mind is not to overcook it. To prevent this, make sure that you cook the game meat medium-rare. The meat should still be slightly pink and juicy. And brining is highly recommended for this type of meat.
Brining may be considered time-consuming and a little old-fashioned, but it really does wonders for game meat and would be worth the effort and time. Brining involves soaking meat in a salt solution to improve its moisture content and flavour. Submerging game meat in brine does not destroy the protein bonds, instead through osmosis; water is transported to the cells where it’s trapped. The result is a plump, juicy steak that won’t dry out during cooking. To create the brine, simply add two tablespoons of salt to four cups of water.