What's the difference between steaming something and boiling something?

Question

I literally have no idea so please include really obvious details liek ... add water first for boiling but no steaming? .. help please

Answer 1

In steaming you all a little water! Most of the vitamins are left in the vegetables. Boiling is a total submerging of vegetables in liquid and many nutrients are lost!

Answer 2

Boiling means immersing in boiling water. Steaming (if done properly) means suspending the food above the water (usually in a wire rack), so that the heat from the steam does the cooking. The food does not actually touch the water at all.

Answer 3

Boiling is accomplished by completely covering the product with water (potatoes, for instance) and cooking at high heat.

Steaming is accomplished by using a small amount of water in the bottom of a pan, use a utensil like a colander or wire seive to place on the top of the pan and put the items in the basket (Spinach leaves, for instance). Cover the pan.

In steaming, the product does not come in direct contact with the water but is cooked by the steam that is trapped in the pan by the lid.

Answer 4

Steaming is when you use little water, and let the food contact the heated steam. Boiling something, like eggs, is cooking the object IN THE WATER (so you need to flood it up).

In general chemistry, we are taught that though both 100 degrees Celcius, a gram of water steam contains far more heat than a gram of boiling water, because obviously, water takes more heat before it turns into steam.

At the Nuremberg trial, Nazi officials were accused of "steaming" Jews to death with hot steam, not gassing them with poisonous Zyklon B.

Answer 5

When you boil something it actually sits in and is surrounded by water. When you steam the food is up off the water in a basket or colander and is being cooked by indirect heat or the steam that comes off the water below it. Always add water first for either method. You can also add lemon juice, stock, wine, etc. to add more flavor whether you choose to steam or boil. Boiling is more likely to produce a softer, mushier texture.

Answer 6

When you boil something, it is immersed in boiling water...like hard cooked eggs, for example.

Steaming is used for vegetables, seafood, etc. When you steam something, it is held in a basket ABOVE the boiling water. It literally cooks in the steam.

Answer 7

Boiling is when you place the food in the hot water.
Steaming is when you place the food in a steamer over boiling water.

Boil your spuds and steam the veges over them

Answer 8

boiling means to f out