The French word sauté literally mean ‘jump’. As the word implies, the sauté pan or ‘sauteuse’ must be kept ‘jumping’ in order to insure the product is cooked evenly. Chefs shake the sauté pan back and forth over the heat, tossing the food without using utensils.
Sautéed foods are often coked a la minute - that is, they are not prepared until an order arrives in the kitchen. It is a versatile cooking technique and its great way to impart flavor with minimal effort.
Foods that freshly prepared are higher in nutrients, flavor, economy, and usually eye-appeal than their precooked counterparts that sit on steam tables or under heat lights or covers.
Sautéing is used when products juices are to be seared in to retain flavor and moisture. Sautéing also results in a process known as caramelizing, which is simply the release so the natural sugars which then born and add color to the product.
Caramelizing is the method of choice used by the finest restaurants and in the best cuisines because gourmet cooks everywhere known that this method really enhances flavors beautifully.
Sautéing
