Braising · FFET10499
Men (covered braising)
Simmering food under a lid over low heat, cooking it in liquid and steam.
Cooking in a moderate amount of liquid: red, white and dry braising and covered braising.
Men is a cooking technique in which food simmers with liquid under a lid over low heat. Its boundaries with shao and red-braising vary, with some descriptions distinguishing men by lower heat and more liquid. Historical accounts use men for covered or sealed cooking and also record men as a popular name for red-braised chicken, duck, pork, and mutton.
What
Men means simmering food with liquid in a covered pot over low heat, allowing it to cook in the liquid and steam.1,3
When
Historical preparations of gualu duck and pig's head include covered or sealed cooking steps written as men. Another account uses men for red-braised meats. These records do not establish when men, as understood today, began.4,5,6
Where
Men is a Chinese cooking technique; the accounts used here do not clearly identify a particular region of origin.1
How
One description of men-shao starts by cooking the food through, then simmering it under a lid with a little liquid. Other descriptions distinguish men from shao by lower heat and more liquid, so liquid quantity does not provide a consistent boundary across these methods.1,2
Impact and influence
A historical account records men as a popular name for red-braised chicken, duck, pork, and mutton, and also mentions a temple kitchen's braised pig's head. The term thus covered several meat preparations.6