Heat
How to sauté
Cook small pieces of food quickly in a little fat over fairly high heat, stirring now and then.
Step by step
- Heat the pan over medium-high heat for a minute or two.
- Add a thin layer of oil or butter and let it get hot (the oil shimmers, the butter stops foaming).
- Add the food in a single layer, without crowding.
- Stir or toss every so often so the pieces brown on more than one side.
- Turn the heat down if it smokes or the bits on the pan start to blacken.
How you know it's done
The food is browned in spots and tender, with a little sizzle the whole time.
Common mistakes
- Crowding the pan, so the food steams instead of browning.
- Adding food to a cold pan.
- Stirring constantly, which never lets it brown.
Simmerbee recipes that use it (0)
None of our recipes names it in the steps yet; it's here because it comes up in cooking all the time.
In those recipes the word is underlined in the steps; tap it for the short version. In hands-free cook mode, ask “How do I saute?”