Cooking Temperatures
Heat is what causes all the changes that take place in foods when they are cooked. Because different temperatures and cooking times lead to different results, temperature control is a key element in Chinese cuisine.
Chinese recipes call for three kinds of heat: high heat, used in stir-frying, quick-frying, and deep-frying; medium heat, used in sauteing, slippery-frying, and deep-frying coated foods; and low heat, used in steaming, simmering, braising, and stewing.
Chinese recipes also often specify three levels of flame (or heat, on the electric ranges which are common in the West) to regulate the levels of heat of water.
High flame or heat is used to produce a fast boil, in which the water or liquid is kept bubbling rapidly. The fast boil is used to reduce and thicken broths or stocks and in hot-plunging and quick-boiling.
Medium flame or heat keep liquids
at a moderate boil and is used in
some types of braising.
Low flame or heat is used to keep
liquids at a slow boil or simmer in
stewing, simmering, and flavor-potting.