What limitations are there to sauteeing with water?
I was recently helping with some recipes and was instructed to use water for "sauteing" onions, celery, garlic, etc. in place of oil (scare quotes on "saute" since it involves frying in oil or other fat by definition).
The technique is meant to parallel sauteing in oil, water is measured by the tablespoon in a large pan, and although you replace water as it evaporates the vegetables are never submerged in water. Only enough water is ever used to inhibit sticking of the vegetables to the pan.
The results were good and light but I haven't had much of a chance to push it further and experiment with the upsides and downsides (the three dishes meant to just soften the onions, garlic, celery and I had to follow the directions). Obviously, using oils imparts that flavors that you otherwise won't have present if using water. More importantly though, I would like to know which reactions would be inhibited in some way; for instance, would browning and caramelizing happen at a different rate, or at all? Are there any other preparations that would be impossible without a fat to saute in? What are the limitations when using water to saute?
Best Answer
The big difference is that oil can get to a higher temperature than water can. Water turns to steam at 212F, while most oils won't start smoking until 300-400F. Caramelization doesn't happen until 320F (for sucrose and glucose, 230F for fructose), while browning (the Maillard reaction, to be specific) doesn't happen until 375F. Now when you "saute" like that in water, you'll also be using the steam to cook, and the steam will be somewhat hotter than 212F, but probably not enough hotter (or in enough quantity) to get to those reaction temperatures. You might get high enough temperatures via direct contact with the bottom of the pan, but that's a recipe for uneven cooking, as the part of the food actually in direct contact are likely to be quite small.
Pictures about "What limitations are there to sauteeing with water?"
Can you sauté with water?
A basic cooking technique used in some recipes is water saut\xe9ing. This is used instead of cooking with oil. Water saut\xe9ing is simple and good for stir-fries, sauces, and many other dishes. To water saut\xe9, heat a skillet on high heat until water sputters when dropped in the pan.Can you saute onions with water?
Cooking without oil is easy (and delicious)! You can still caramelize your favorite veggies, like onions, without oil - just use water!Can you sauté garlic with water?
It is important that the garlic cloves are completely dry before you chop them and add them to the oil. Water will cause the hot oil to splatter; this can cause burns. You can pan-cook fresh garlic without boiling it first, but this will take longer to cook.How to Water Saute
More answers regarding what limitations are there to sauteeing with water?
Answer 2
An Italian friend of mine always adds some water to the olive oil when sweating onions. The idea is that she doesn't want the onions to brown, nor the oil to disintegrate, and by adding some water the temperature is kept down. (She also turns the heat down almost all the way.)
I sometimes do it myself, if I've got enough time. It takes much longer for the onions to go soft, but I think that the result tastes better.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: PNW Production, TRAVELBLOG, cottonbro, cottonbro