What’s poaching and why you should be enjoying it now / Jill Silverman Hough

What’s poaching and why should you be enjoying it now? In short, poached foods—like the salmon in this Salmon and Avocado Caesar Salad—are quick, easy, and perfect for the lighter, brighter vibes of spring and early summer.

For the (somewhat) longer answer, let’s talk about cooking methods. Generally speaking, they can be broken down into fast or slow and wet or dry.

Roasting, for example, is a slow, dry cooking method. Braising is a slow, wet cooking method. The kinds of meats best suited to slow cooking are, perhaps obviously, ones that need a longer time to cook. A whole chicken or turkey, for example, or a brisket.

Now let’s look at fast cooking methods. Grilling and pan-searing are fast and dry. Both are ideal for small, relatively juicy or fatty meats, ones that don’t need a long cook and that aren’t so lean that they’ll get tough or dried out by dry heat. A steak, for example, or a pork chop.

So what exactly is poaching?

Poaching is a fast, wet cooking method. In other words, cooking for a relatively short time in a relatively moist environment.

(Steaming is also a fast, wet cooking method but it involves—you guessed it!—steam, while poached foods are typically submerged in barely simmering liquid.)

Like grilling and pan-searing, poaching is also for small meats, but it’s best for ones that are relatively lean. Think seafood and chicken breasts—smaller foods that can become tough and/or dry if overcooked. The moist environment of poaching helps keep them tender and juicy in a way that a fast, dry cook never will.

This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t grill chicken breasts or relatively fatty fish. It is to say that if you want to avoid dry chicken or fish, poaching is a great option. Poaching, because it doesn’t involve browning, is also a great option when you’re looking for a more clean, simple flavor.

Take my Salmon and Avocado Caesar Salad. I absolutely could’ve grilled, baked, or pan-seared the salmon and it would’ve been delicious. But I wanted a lighter, more springtime vibe from my salmon, along with tender moistness. Poaching was the way to go.

Why you should be poaching now

Poaching is quick and easy. But that’s an argument for it any time of year.

It’s particularly perfect now, in spring and early summer, because of what I mentioned earlier—poaching’s lighter, simpler, and more delicate flavors. Think poached shrimp and salmon for springy salads. Poached chicken for springy picnic foods like chicken salad and club sandwiches. Even poached eggs for Mother’s Day brunch.

Fruits are also great candidates for poaching, including apricots, which are coming into season soon, and other stone fruits like peaches and plums, which won’t be far behind.

Warm weather and cooking outdoors are right around the corner. Meanwhile, make a Salmon and Avocado Caesar Salad and relish the season with something poached.

Recipes that include poaching (or could be altered to):
Dill-Poached Salmon with Herbed Yogurt Sauce
Classic Cobb Salad
Sparkling Wine Floats with Apricot-Vanilla Sauce