A puzzle ?

Let me know if you have heard this one before 

Like most health conscious folk, we tend to grill meat, as opposed to frying, so that the fat runs off and is caught in the metal pan underneath.

In order to minimise the washing up we line the grill pan with alumininium foil which can just be thrown away after cooking.

So, no matter how tightly we fold the foil over the sides of the grill pan, we always get a thin layer of grease between the foil and the pan.  What is the mechanism going on here?

Mike

madswitcher said:

Let me know if you have heard this one before 

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I have been paying attention to this for a long time, so a few comments/observations.

Like most health conscious folk, we tend to grill meat, as opposed to frying, so that the fat runs off and is caught in the metal pan underneath.

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Health conscious??  :  Grilling meat is done because it tastes good. 

google sez said:

the Maillard reaction (which occurs most readily when the surface temperature of food is more than 300 degrees Fahrenheit) and caramelization (which kicks in at about 320 F).* These chemical reactions not only bring about a color change, they also produce hundreds of flavor compounds that create the rich, savory notes and appetizing aromas we associate with roasted, grilled, and seared dishes

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Perhaps google "heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons". Cooking (muscle) meat at high temperature cause changes in DNA that can lead to cancer.

In order to minimise the washing up we line the grill pan with alumininium foil which can just be thrown away after cooking.

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There is a lot of (mostly) fake health news critical of cooking with aluminum.

Tightly wrapped meat in aluminum foil will probably reduce surface temperature and reduce formation of cancer causing chemicals, but will similarly thwart the good tasting Maillard reaction.

So, no matter how tightly we fold the foil over the sides of the grill pan, we always get a thin layer of grease between the foil and the pan.  What is the mechanism going on here?

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perhaps a surface tension thing... I slow cook my meals (long and low, actually <200' overnight) in a slow cooker. I drain the liquid gravy from a few pound roast into a fat separator that allows me to decant the non-fat portion to reuse for cooking rice (tastes really good). I discard the fat. I notice near the end of pouring off the gravy a thin layer of fat clings to the inside surface of the cooker. 

Mike

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I haven't browned meat for a few decades (too many close relatives including immediate family have died of cancer).

Over the last couple years I have started experimenting with smoking meats but apparently that suffers from contamination with carcinogenic PAH and HCAs just like grilling. But I only fire up my smoker a few times a year.  I suspect burning meat is OK a few times a year, a few times a week not so much.  :'(

JR

madswitcher said:

So, no matter how tightly we fold the foil over the sides of the grill pan, we always get a thin layer of grease between the foil and the pan.  What is the mechanism going on here?

Click to expand...

Just a guess: it's probably because of the high heat inside the grill, that the fat becomes vapor, and the bottom of the pan is cooler than the surface that faces the burners, causing the fat to condense between the pan and the foil.

Good guess Matador,

but even when we crimp the foil up very tightly against the pan rim, we still get the layer of fat. ???

Mike

I like to braze pork ribs by wrapping in foil, and adding some liquids into the foil packet (like beer, dissolved sugar, etc).  The wrapped ribs go in a flat cookie pan (with sides), and are baked at 230 degrees for about 5-6 hours.

Even after double wrapping, invariably, there is dried liquid in the pan after cooking is done...which sucks, because the entire point of cooking in an enclosed foil container is that the resulting liquid can be put in a cast iron skillet and reduced down to BBQ sauce.  So if half the liquid leaks out and then flashes to steam then it's less sauce for the ribs later.

I just think it's nearly impossible to completely seal with foil, as no matter how tightly it's wrapped, it's never air-tight.

Cheap thin present day foil has/gets perforations and the greeze leaks through. 
Ya still gotta wash the pan!
Mike