Few things are more frustrating in the kitchen than spending time cooking meat from scratch, only for it to turn out a dull grey colour. If you regularly use mince for dishes such as spaghetti bolognese, you may have noticed that it can sometimes look unappetising when cooked, leaving the pan swimming in excess water.
Fortunately, viral chef Andy Hearnden, widely known as Andy Cooks on TikTok, has shared a straightforward solution. In a recent video, Andy said: "If your beef mince ends up looking like this, all grey and watery. This is how you fix it." The key step begins before the meat even reaches the pan: thoroughly preheat the pan. To check whether the pan is sufficiently hot, simply flick in a small drop of water – it should sizzle and skate across the surface, evaporating almost instantly.
Once the pan has reached the right temperature, add an oil with a high smoke point. Rather than adding all the mince at once, introduce it gradually, then season generously with salt. Leave the mince to sit undisturbed for a couple of minutes, resisting the urge to stir. Once the edges have browned, you can begin breaking it apart with a spatula. The goal is a deep, rich brown colour, achieved through the Maillard reaction – a chemical process between amino acids and reducing sugars that creates hundreds of flavour compounds.
Andy's video has racked up 4.1 million views and 177,300 likes. One foodie commented: "People never preheat their pans, it's crazy to me, and then they wonder why their meat is grey and boiled." Another said: "People who don't know the Maillard reaction have never had good beef." Andy himself admitted: "Does it take longer? Yeah, it does. Is it messier? Absolutely. But is it worth it? Well, for me, 100%."
