The main types of second courses and the peculiarities of their preparation. TOP 7 best recipes for chicken, pork, beef and fish lunch. Video recipes.
Second courses are an important part of any person's diet. It is the main source of proteins, fats and carbohydrates, which are the building blocks of our body. This group of culinary products has a high energy value due to the fact that meat, fish, vegetables, mushrooms, eggs, cereals, legumes, pasta and cheese are used for cooking. Further, in detail about what can be prepared for the second course at home, and several popular recipes.
Features of the preparation of second courses
Second courses are the main food for every day, most often for lunch. Traditionally served after soups. Consist of at least 3 parts: meat or fish, side dish, which is often difficult, and sauce - hot or cold.
To prepare the main product, 2 methods of heat treatment are used - boiling in water or steam and frying. Stewing and simmering also refers to boiling. Cooking time depends on the size and shape of the food. There is a fundamental difference in the preparation of second courses by the cooking method and in the composition of the broth. In the first case, meat and vegetables are dipped in boiling water so that a protective film is immediately formed on them, preventing the nutrients in the product from leaving it during cooking.
Meat, fish, mushrooms and vegetables can be deep-walled or on a baking sheet. To do this, you will additionally need a little fat or sauce. A number of recipes call for pre-roasting the ingredients. You can also bake in foil at medium temperature.
The main product is fried in several ways:
- On a baking sheet in the oven using oil;
- In the airfryer;
- Deep-fried;
- Breaded;
- No fat at high temperature;
- On an open fire.
Often in recipes for second courses, several methods of heat treatment can be used to prepare one product. For example, pre-frying followed by braising or baking, deep-frying after simmering, etc.
If the recipe involves chopped foods, they are pre-mixed with additives such as milk, flour, or eggs. From the resulting minced meat, cutlets, steaks, meatballs, schnitzels and other culinary products are formed; minced meat can also act as a filling in baked goods or as a separate layer in a casserole.
To make a delicious second course, you must definitely add a sauce - cold or hot. Broth, milk, cream, sour cream, various types of butter are used as a basis. The cold sauce can be stored for a while. Hot is prepared just before serving food.
Depending on the ingredients used in cooking, the following types of second courses are distinguished:
- From potatoes, vegetables and mushrooms;
- From cereals, legumes and pasta;
- From fish;
- From meat and offal;
- From poultry, game and rabbit;
- From eggs;
- Cheese.
Each of these types can be prepared using different heat treatment methods. For example, side dishes of potatoes, vegetables and mushrooms can be boiled, stewed, stewed or baked. Fish can be boiled, fried, stewed and baked. It is used in a split form, in the form of a cutlet mass, and dishes from non-fish seafood are also prepared. Chopped natural meat or cutlet mass, like poultry, game and rabbit meat, can be boiled, stewed, fried, stewed and baked. Cheese products can be boiled or fried.
Depending on the type of the second course, its serving method may differ. All culinary products in this category are served hot in small porcelain plates, which are preheated to a temperature of 40-50 ° C. You can use metal dishes on a countertop plate, a portioned frying pan in which the dish is cooked and immediately served, as well as a ceramic pot.
The decoration of the dishes is also different. The main product together with the side dish and the sauce can be on one plate, the side dish can be served separately from the main product and the sauce, and the sauce can also be served separately from the main part and the side dish. Hot is poured into metal dishes, cold - into porcelain.
The shape of the dish chosen also depends on the type of hot dish:
- Oval plates are used for fish dishes;
- Rectangular - for shellfish meals;
- Round - for meat products;
- Square - for poultry and game.
Main courses can be served in single and multi-portion dishes.
TOP 7 recipes for delicious second courses
We cannot imagine our diet without a second course for lunch, and you can find a lot of recipes in modern cookbooks. Most of all housewives like to use pork, chicken and beef. Fish, vegetables, mushrooms and seafood are less popular. Porridge, vegetables and salads can serve as a side dish. If you do not know what to cook for the second course, we bring to your attention several popular and popular recipes.
Chicken baked with potatoes
The second dish for every day is prepared quickly and does not require the purchase of expensive ingredients. It will equally please both adults and children. Any part of the chicken can be used, but the drumstick and thighs are best.
- Caloric content per 100 g - 124 kcal.
- Servings - 4
- Cooking time - 1 hour
Ingredients:
- Butter - 20 g
- Olive oil - 20 ml
- Chicken thighs - 4 pcs.
- Chicken legs - 4 pcs.
- Potatoes - 1, 2 kg
- Garlic - 4 cloves
- Bulb onions - 1 pc.
- Lemon - 1/2 pc.
- Chicken broth - 1 tbsp.
- Dijon mustard - 2 tablespoons
- Tarragon - 3 tablespoons
Step by step preparation of baked chicken with potatoes:
- Wash the chicken legs and thighs, remove the remaining feathers and fry in a mixture of butter and vegetable oil until golden brown on each side.
- Wash the potatoes, peel, cut into pieces.
- Remove the rosy chicken from the pan and fry the potatoes in the remaining oil until light golden brown.
- Place the chicken on the bottom of the baking dish and lightly fried potatoes on top of it.
- Peel the onion and garlic cloves. Finely chop the onion. Place chopped onions and whole garlic cloves on top of the potatoes.
- Drizzle all the ingredients with lemon juice, sprinkle with tarragon and lightly salt.
- Bake the second course in the oven for half an hour at 220 ° C.
- While the chicken and potatoes are cooking, make the sauce. To do this, pour the chicken stock into a thick-walled saucepan. In the heated broth, drain the juices formed during cooking the poultry, add the Dijon mustard and cook until boiling, and then another couple of minutes.
After baking the second course of chicken and potatoes, pour over the sauce, sprinkle with fresh tarragon and serve.
Beef stroganoff
This is a classic beef second dish, which got its name in honor of the Russian Count A. G. Stroganov. It is prepared very quickly and easily and consists of slices of veal in sour cream sauce. The indicated amount of ingredients is enough for 4 servings. For the dish, fresh beef flesh without veins or a good tenderloin is used.
Ingredients:
- Beef - 500 g
- Onions - 1 pc.
- Sour cream - 150 g
- Flour - 1 tablespoon
- Tomato paste - 1 tsp
- Water - 150 ml
- Salt, black pepper - to taste
Step by step preparation of beef stroganoff:
- Rinse the meat in running water and place on a paper towel to dry.
- Cover the beef with cling film and beat lightly with a wooden rolling pin.
- Cut the meat across the fibers into 0.5 cm thick slices, then each of them into thin strips. The thinner it is, the less time it takes to fry.
- Peel the onion and cut into quarters.
- This second dish is being prepared in a frying pan, so it must be preheated. Pour some vegetable oil into a calcined frying pan and fry the meat. Spread in one layer to keep it browned well without losing its juice. Transfer the finished product to a plate.
- On the juice left over from frying the meat, sauté the onion until golden brown.
- Add flour to it, mix everything and cook for another minute.
- Pour sour cream, tomato paste, water to the contents of the pan and mix everything.
- Put the meat in the onion mass, salt and pepper, mix and simmer for 5 minutes under a closed lid.
This second dish is prepared quickly, so it is often found in the daily diet. As a side dish for meat in Stroganoff style, as beef stroganoff is also called, rice or buckwheat porridge, fried, mashed potatoes or pasta are served.
Baked pork with mushroom sauce
Despite the fact that this is a festive second dish, it is very easy and quick to prepare. The main challenge is choosing the right meat. It should be selected tenderloin or pulp without veins and fat. Pork acquires a special aroma and unsurpassed softness due to the fact that it languishes for a long time in the oven at a sufficiently low temperature. The delicate milky mushroom sauce gives the dish a pleasant aftertaste.
Ingredients:
- Pork tenderloin - 1 kg
- Butter - 30 g
- Salt, pepper - to taste
- Champignons - 500 g (for the sauce)
- Vegetable oil - for frying (for sauce)
- Milk - 500 ml (for the sauce)
- Flour - 50 g (for sauce)
- Butter - 30 g (for the sauce)
- Salt, pepper, nutmeg - to taste (for the sauce)
Step by step cooking of baked pork with mushroom sauce:
- Wash the meat, dry it, sprinkle with pepper and salt.
- Melt the butter in a skillet and fry the pork in it on all sides.
- Place the meat in a saucepan or deep baking dish, pour in a little water and close the lid.
- Simmer pork in an oven at 180 ° C for at least 1.5 hours.
- Rinse the mushrooms, dry, cut into cubes or strips. Fry them in vegetable oil.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan, add flour to it, stir and lightly fry the mass.
- Stir constantly and pour the milk into a saucepan. Boil the sauce until thick. At the end of cooking, season with salt, pepper and add nutmeg.
- Add mushrooms to the sauce, mix everything.
Remove the meat from the oven and cut into portions. Serve the second course of pork hot, after having sprinkled each portion with a fragrant mushroom gravy.
Uzbek pilaf
This recipe for a delicious second course in Uzbekistan is one of the most beloved, it is used not only in everyday life, but also prepared on very big holidays. Traditionally, Uzbek pilaf is made from lamb, but if desired, it can be replaced with pork. To make the rice crumbly, it is important to prepare the second dish step by step, strictly observing the sequence of the ingredients. First there are carrots, then onions, meat and finally rice.
Ingredients:
- Lamb - 500 g
- Rice - 1 tbsp.
- Carrots - 2 pcs.
- Bulb onions - 2 pcs.
- Barberry - 2 tablespoons
- Water - 2 tbsp.
- Turmeric - 1 tsp
- Vegetable oil - 4 tablespoons
- Salt to taste
- Garlic to taste
- Hot chilli pepper - 1 pc.
Step-by-step cooking of Uzbek pilaf:
- Wash the carrots, peel and cut into strips.
- If you don't want the pilaf to burn, cook this second dish in a slow cooker, for this, pour vegetable oil into its bowl, put the carrots in it and turn on the "Fry" mode for 15 minutes.
- Peel the onion, chop finely and add to the carrots. Set the "Fry" mode in a multicooker for 10 minutes.
- Rinse the meat, dry it, cut into medium-sized cubes and throw it over the vegetables. Set the "Fry" mode for another 15 minutes.
- Salt the finished frying, add barberry, turmeric to it, mix everything with a wooden spatula and turn on the "Fry" mode for the same time.
- Rinse the rice and place it on a clean towel to dry out.
- Spread dry rice evenly on the meat, on top place the washed, but not peeled head of garlic and a pepper pod.
- Set the "Rice / cereal" mode on the multicooker for 1 hour.
If your slow cooker does not have the "Fry" mode, vegetables and meat can be fried in a pan with the addition of all seasonings and spices. Then put them in the bowl of the device, pour water in a ratio of 2: 1 with cereals and cook in the "Pilaf / buckwheat" mode. The multicooker will signal the readiness of this incredibly aromatic and tasty second dish.
Rice casserole with minced meat
Many housewives refuse to cook casseroles, believing that they are very time-consuming, difficult and requires a large number of ingredients. This is actually a quick second course. It can be prepared both from the remnants of pilaf and from ordinary rice porridge, hastily cooked in a slow cooker or saucepan. Depending on the season, instead of celery and bell peppers, you can add other vegetables to the casserole, or cook without these components.
Ingredients:
- Rice - 200 g
- Olive oil - 2 tablespoons
- Bulb onions - 2 pcs.
- Carrots - 1 pc.
- Sweet green pepper - 1 pc.
- Celery - 1 pc.
- Minced beef - 400 g
- Hard cheese - 150 g
- Salt to taste
- Ground black pepper - to taste
Step by step preparation of rice casserole with minced meat:
- Boil the rice until tender, cool slightly.
- Wash carrots, peel and chop on a coarse grater.
- Peel the onion and chop finely.
- Preheat a frying pan, pour oil into it, fry the onions and carrots in it.
- After 10 minutes, add finely chopped bell peppers and celery stalks to the vegetables. Cook everything for 5 minutes.
- Add minced meat to the fried vegetables, cook with constant stirring for 5 minutes until the color changes. Salt and pepper the mass. If you want to make a second course of minced meat without adding vegetables, you can simply fry it in vegetable oil and onions.
- Grease a saucepan with oil, spread a layer of rice evenly on the bottom. Place the meat roast on top.
- Fill the dish with grated hard cheese and bake it in the oven for half an hour at 180 ° C.
As you can see, the casserole is a simple and delicious second course. It can be served directly in a saucepan or cut into portions and put on a plate for everyone, garnished with a sprig of fresh herbs.
Crucian carp in the oven with potatoes
According to a simple recipe for the second course, the fish and the side dish are prepared for it at the same time. Incredibly delicious baked fish with potatoes will appeal to both adults and children. Optionally, instead of crucian carp, you can use a less bony sea fish.
Ingredients:
- Fresh crucian carp - 3 pcs.
- Potatoes - 700-1000 g
- Mayonnaise - 150-200 g
- Garlic - 1-2 cloves
- Spices for fish - 1 tablespoon
- Salt, ground black pepper - to taste
Step-by-step cooking of crucian carp in the oven with potatoes:
- Remove the scales from the crucian carp, gut its belly and cut out the gills. Rinse cleaned carcasses in cold water.
- Rub the fish with spices and salt and leave to marinate for a few minutes. Sprinkle it with lemon juice if desired.
- Prepare the sauce. To do this, mix mayonnaise with garlic pressed through a press, salt, pepper and mix the sauce thoroughly.
- Peel, wash and dice the potatoes.
- 1/2 of the sauce, spread the outside and inside of the fish carcasses. Pour the rest into potatoes, mix everything thoroughly.
- Grease a baking sheet with sunflower oil, put the crucians in the sauce in the center, distribute the potatoes evenly on the sides.
- Bake the dish at 180 ° C for about 40 minutes.
Crispy baked fish and aromatic potatoes are the perfect homemade second course. It can be served immediately on a baking sheet or transferred to portioned plates.
French meat with potatoes
This is perhaps the most popular second meat dish. It can be seen on almost every festive table. It is prepared simply and quickly, but it turns out to be incredibly tender and at the same time very satisfying.
Ingredients:
- Pork - 500 g
- Bulb onions - 3 pcs.
- Potatoes - 1 kg
- Cheese - 200-250 kg
- Vegetable oil to taste
- Mayonnaise to taste
- Salt, ground pepper - to taste
Cooking French meat step by step with potatoes:
- Peel, wash and cut the potatoes into thin slices.
- Grease a baking sheet with oil and spread all the potatoes evenly over it.
- Peel the onion, cut into thin rings and lay on the potatoes in an even layer. Season everything with salt and pepper.
- Wash the meat, dry it and cut into 2x2 cm cubes. Season with salt, pepper and put on top of the vegetables.
- Sprinkle the dish generously with mayonnaise and cover it evenly with a thick layer of grated cheese.
- Roast meat in French with potatoes for about 1 hour at 180 ° C.
In order not to overdry the cheese layer, you can sprinkle cheese on the dish 10 minutes before cooking. French meat prepared according to this recipe will become a real decoration of any festive table.
