A Guide to Simmering Sauces
A simmering sauce infuses food with much deeper flavor than a sauce added at the end of cooking. Simply pick your favorite sauce and protein and follow the guidelines here.
Each protein amount is enough to serve 4 people.
Chicken
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts or 8 boneless, skinless thighs
Preparation: Trim
Sauce Amount: 2 cups
Cooking Instructions: Simmer, covered, over medium-low heat until chicken breasts register 160 degrees or chicken thighs register 195 degrees, 15 to 20 minutes.
2 pounds bone-in chicken pieces
Preparation: Remove skin and trim
Sauce Amount: 2 cups
Cooking Instructions: Simmer, covered, over medium-low heat until chicken breasts register 160 degrees, 20 to 25 minutes, and/or chicken thighs/drumsticks register 195 degrees, 45 to 50 minutes.
Beef
2 pounds boneless beef chuck-eye roast
Preparation: Trim and cut into 1½-inch pieces
Sauce Amount: 2 cups
Cooking Instructions: Cook, covered, in 325-degree oven until tender, about 2 hours.
2 pounds boneless beef short ribs
Preparation: Trim
Sauce Amount: 2 cups
Cooking Instructions: Cook, covered, in 325-degree oven until tender and fork slips easily in and out of meat, 2 to 2½ hours.
Pork
4 bone-in blade-cut pork chops, ½ to ¾ inch thick
Preparation: Trim; cut 2 slits about 2 inches apart through fat on edges
Sauce Amount: 2 cups
Cooking Instructions: Cook, covered, in 325-degree oven until tender and fork slips easily in and out of meat, 1 to 1½ hours.
2 pounds boneless pork butt roast
Preparation: Trim and cut into 1½-inch pieces
Sauce Amount: 2 cups
Cooking Instructions: Cook, covered, in 325-degree oven until tender, about 2 hours.
Fish
4 skinless fish fillets, 1 to 1½ inches thick
Preparation: n/a
Sauce Amount: 2 cups
Cooking Instructions: Simmer, covered, over medium-low heat until fish flakes apart when gently prodded with paring knife, about 10 minutes.
Shellfish
1 pound extra-large shrimp (21 to 25 per pound)
Preparation: Peel and devein
Sauce Amount: 1 cup
Cooking Instructions: Simmer over medium-low heat until shrimp are opaque throughout, 3 to 5 minutes.
Tofu
1 pound extra-firm tofu
Preparation: Cut into ¾-inch-thick cubes and drain for 20 minutes on paper towels
Sauce Amount: 1 cup
Cooking Instructions: Simmer, covered, over medium-low heat until heated through, 15 to 20 minutes.
