Q: How do I keep meats like pork chops and steaks juicy and tender?

A: Step 1: When buying, look for meat with an even distribution of thin veins of fat, which help to moisten the meat as it cooks; a nice red color indicating freshness; and 1/2- to 3/4-inch thickness because anything thinner can easily be overcooked.

Step 2: Before cooking, marinate to add flavor. You can marinate with any ingredients you like—just avoid oil and salt. Oil seals the meat and can prevent it from absorbing flavors, and salt extracts essential juices that keep the meat moist during cooking. Allow the meat to marinate in a zip-top bag placed in the refrigerator for about two hours.

Step 3: When cooking, sear the meat first to keep in the juices. Cook your cut at a high temperature for about one and a half minutes per side, and then move it to a cooler spot on the grill or pan, and lower the temperature for the rest of the cooking.

Q: Which are the best cooking methods for tougher cuts of beef?

A: Tougher cuts, which come from the leg, shoulder, or ribs of the animal, are usually cheaper than more tender varieties, such as flank or sirloin. Because they contain more muscle, they require low heat and longer cooking times, which makes them great for cooking applications that use lots of liquid, such as braising or stewing. When you braise, you submerge three-quarters of the beef in a liquid-—think pot roast. Stewing requires the beef to be completely submerged.

—Cooking Light Executive Chef Billy Strynkowski

Have a question for Chef Billy? Send it to ask_chefbilly@timeinc.com. If we choose your query, you’ll find the answer in a future version of this column and receive a Cooking Light T-shirt.

Check out more great Cooking Light tips in our Cooking 101 archive.