Pan Frying

Pan frying usually starts with chopping ingredients. For harder vegetables, thinner strips or smaller cubes in are usually preferred for stir frying as smaller pieces cook through quicker.

Meats can be cooked whole or in pieces. Whole chunks of meat, like steaks are sometimes pounded to make them thinner (this is also so that they will cook through quicker).

You can pan fry at a variety of heats depending on how big you’ve cut your ingredients (lower heat for larger chunks or they will burn before they cook through, but medium high is usually quite versatile). The oil should be hot before you put the other ingredients in.

You could say that pan frying is the fastest cooking method (If you don’t count microwaving as a cooking method). It’s important to keep an eye on the pan during the entire process, so that you can adjust the heat. You want to hear a sizzling sound, but not see any burning.

The length of time and heat you fry a particular ingredient will depend on its thickness and also on how done you want it (this is especially true for meats). You can even use the high temperature of the pan to get a crispy crust on something, then finish the dish in the oven.

Pan-fried dishes are usually served as accompaniment with a starchy component, like potato, rice and pasta, but you can fry starches in a pan too. Starches are usually pre-cooked before frying, or simmered with liquid after.