braad

Braad is a Dutch culinary term describing a method of preparing meat that combines browning with moist-heat cooking. The process typically starts with searing the meat in hot fat to develop color and flavor, followed by cooking the meat slowly in a small amount of liquid, often in a covered pot.

The technique aims to tenderize tougher cuts and deepen the dish’s sauce through prolonged cooking. It is closely related to braising and is commonly used with cuts such as shoulder, leg, or ribs. Cooking can take place on the stove or in the oven, and it often involves deglazing the pan to incorporate browned bits into the cooking liquid.

In everyday Dutch use, braad appears mainly in compound terms rather than as a stand-alone noun. Common examples include braadstuk (a roast), braadvlees (braised meat), and braadpan (roasting pan). The broader culinary family includes related concepts such as braden, braiseren, and stoven, which describe variations of roasting, braising, and stewing.

Outside cooking, braad may appear in proper nouns or as part of place names or surnames, though such uses are not connected to the cooking method. The term is more widely used in traditional or regional Dutch contexts, while modern Dutch often emphasizes direct terms like braden, braiseren, or stoven for similar techniques.