Roasting bags are becoming increasingly popular, and cooking in the oven or under the grill using these practical bags is a technique with an increasing number of fans. The reason? It is a clean recipient that is easy and comfortable to use since it has been designed as a disposable utensil.
However, let’s not make a mistake. Not all plastic bags can be used for roasting, we are talking about a special type of bag which can withstand high oven temperatures (of up to 200ºC) and which can be found in the cooking product aisle of large supermarkets.
These polyester bags are perfect for roasting meat and poultry since the natural juices that they release when roasting remain inside the bag and retain all of their flavour, making the roast much more tender. Likewise, when boiling vegetables, roasting bags retain all of their flavour and vitamins, which are normally lost in the cooking water.
It is also a highly useful product since it means that we do not have to clean the oven once we have finished cooking. Not only that, their numerous purposes include using them for oven roasts, grilling and microwave cooking, but also for freezing or as a simple storage method, since you can subsequently use these bags for boiling or roasting. One last point: they are suitable for both gas and electric ovens.
How do you use them?
They are very easy to use. You just need to place the food that you have decided to roast in the bag, close it using a special seal that comes with the bag and trim the surplus plastic that remains once you have sealed the bag. Then the bag is ready to put in the oven. You must then make a few small holes near the top of the bag using a fork so that the ingredients can breathe during cooking. This step is important since it prevents the bag from exploding inside the oven. Furthermore, you must also remember to only make holes on one side of the bag since if it is pierced too much, the roasting juices will spill out into the roasting tray.
When the food is cooked, we remove the roasting bag from the oven using some oven gloves. Take care not to burn yourself, since the bag will be very hot.
Roast chicken, a good choice
If you are still not convinced about the advantages offered by this new way of roasting food, we propose a simple recipe that may encourage you to try it out for yourself and see just how easy it is to use these bags. We have opted for a roast chicken, an ideal dish to cook in the oven which everyone likes.
In order to make it, in addition to the abovementioned roasting bags and a chicken we will need: salt, pepper, olive oil, garlic, wine, onion and lemon. We pre-heat the oven to 180ºC, season the chicken with salt and pepper and place it in the bag, also adding the rest of the required ingredients; make sure that the garlic cloves are whole, and that the lemon peel has been removed. We then close the bag tightly using the metal ties provided and trim the surplus plastic, as explained above, before piercing the bag with a fork or cocktail stick. We place the bag in the oven at a temperature of 160ºC and leave it there for two hours. Once this time has passed, we increase the oven temperature to 200ºC for a further half an hour.
The result is a perfectly roasted and seasoned chicken, with crispy skin and tender meat which retains all of the aroma and flavour of the best roasts. In short, it is a very easy technique for people who are not cooking experts, which is also ideal for ovens without pyrolytic self-cleaning (since this system does not dirty the oven) and highly suitable for saving energy, since the heat is perfectly distributed and roasting times are reduced.
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