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My GF has been cooking from recipes for only a couple years now, and everytime it comes to meet, even veggies sometimes, it is under cooked....electric, gas... and she gets mad at "me" because I don't want to eat it half raw. If the recipe calls for 350 for 1.5 hrs for a whole chicken, than that is how long she cooks it and I have started refusing to eat it till it cooks longer. This could cause a break up! Do those who make up the recipes intentionally have you under cook things, just so it won't be over cooked? This question is for those who have been cooking for years and have run across.
Suggested cooking times are just a reference. All ovens are different, so cooking times have to be adjusted to make sure the product is fully cooked. Most recipes state "or until internal temperature is 165°."
Need more info. Is it actually undercooked, as measured by a thermometer? When you say veggies are undercooked, what do you mean?
And, assuming it is undercooked is the oven actually at temperature? I know ours will say preheated to 350 for example and still be actually under 300 as measured by an oven thermometer. We adjust times accordingly.
Undercooked vegetables are not a problem and are probably better for you. Get a meat thermometer to check your meat which can be dangerous if undercooked. I do it every time I cook meat.
My SIL is the same way, while she cooks savory food fine, even very good..
She really needs to keep away from baked goods, sweet and casserole type dishes..
She follows cooking times to the tee, often resulting in undercooked or somewhat slightly charred..
I think this is also a function of personal preference and what you're used to. My grandmother lived with us growing up, and my mother had to cook vegetables into total and complete submission before she could eat them - I was an adult before I realized that you didn't cook vegetables until they were gasping for whatever life they may have left - they COULD be somewhat crunchy and that was a GOOD thing.
Thank goodness that my parents liked rare beef - that was always good. Pork chops, not so much - the first time I cooked them to around 145 it was like a light bulb went on - no more dry pork chops!! All meat does NOT need to be cooked to 165 degrees internally - in some cases, that is quite overdone. This comes with experience.
Have you considered getting involved in the meal prep as well? Perhaps that way you'd also be able to tell where things aren't working out right for you all - and also, GET AN OVEN THERMOMETER!!! If your chicken isn't done after 1 1/2 hours in a 350 degree oven, it was either still partially frozen, or your oven is way off.
My GF has been cooking from recipes for only a couple years now, and everytime it comes to meet, even veggies sometimes, it is under cooked....electric, gas... and she gets mad at "me" because I don't want to eat it half raw. If the recipe calls for 350 for 1.5 hrs for a whole chicken, than that is how long she cooks it and I have started refusing to eat it till it cooks longer. This could cause a break up! Do those who make up the recipes intentionally have you under cook things, just so it won't be over cooked? This question is for those who have been cooking for years and have run across.
Thanks.
How one likes their food is very subjective, but more and more people want their foods cooked less. In the olden days and on the farm it wasn't unusual to have veggies cooked til they were almost mush. Now, crispt tender in the trend. Maybe it is you and how you prefer meat and veggies cooked. I for one, would rather undercook. I can always add to the time if it isn't right, I can't make it less cooked. Of course I was raised in a family that did eat their foods, specially beef and vegetables barely cooked. Chicken is a different story and as for pork, even it is often over cooked. the more something is cooked the more it becomes dry or can lose its flavor. You would have loved the way my mother in law cooked, I am sure. Do have your girlfriend use a meat ther. and cook meats according to the suggested time on he ther.
I use a meat thermometer and undercook by 5 to 10 degrees. It finishes coming up to temp while resting. I was fifty before I discovered (on the internet) letting the meat "rest" for five or ten minutes after cooking. What a difference!
Get yourself a decent thermometer and a chart like this one and quit guessing.
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