Home Cooking in Breckenridge, Colorado

Consider timing.
Cooking at any altitude higher than 3,000 feet may warrant a change in your recipe as well as cooking time and temperature. The decrease in air pressure at high altitudes means that water, as well as other liquids, evaporate more quickly and boil at a lower temperature. How does this affect you? Well, any foods that you boil or simmer will cook at a lower temperature, meaning that you'll need to plan for longer cooking time (increasing the heat won't make liquid boil faster in this case). Additionally, high altitude environments mean drier climates. It's evident that climates with lower humidity levels leave our skin dry, but food's moisture levels are also depleted. A good tip is to cover food while cooking to retain its moisture.

Don't dry your meat.
Meat and poultry, especially when lean, is comprised of high water content, making it more susceptible to drying out while being cooked at high altitudes. Since oven temperatures aren't affected by altitude change, alterations need to specifically be made when simmering or braising meat. One tip is to cook with heavy pans and to use tight-fitting lids to prevent water from evaporating. Also try covering the cookware with foil before securing the lid; this will keep the utmost moisture in the meat. As you begin to cook meat at higher altitudes, it might be worthwhile to use a meat thermometer to check the inside temperature of the meat.

Bake with care.
At high altitudes, the rising time of bread is shortened. Because flour is also drier, it is able to absorb more liquid in higher climates; therefore, you might want to decrease the amount of flour for the right dough consistency. Most cake mixes also provide a high-altitude recipe, which should be followed for best baking results. While you might find your sea-level cookie recipes sufficient in high-altitude environments, most can be improved with slight adjustments. Experiment with a small increase in oven temperature, a decrease in baking powder, soda, and sugar, and a slight increase in flour and liquid ingredients. However, just because you're at a high altitude doesn't necessarily mean your sea-level recipe won't work. It's a good idea to try it first, then adjust accordingly as your baking is perfected.

When it comes down to it, cooking will always be a learning process. Experimenting with slight baking adjustments in the high altitude of Breckenridge will lead you closer to just the right recipe with each try. So, rather than spending your entire vacation letting someone else do the cooking, put on that apron and spend an evening in the kitchen. Home cooked dinners are quite often the most memorable.