The Tibetan plateau has and average altitude of 14,763 ft, anything above 3000 feet is considered high altitude cooking. Altitude seems to create a number of complicating factors in cooking which wee need to think about:
- The boiling point of water is 188.07 °F or 86.71 °C at approx 15,000 ft or 4572 m above sea level, verses 212°F or 100°C at sea level. This means water and other liquids evaporate faster and boil at lower temperatures
- Leavening gases in breads and cakes expand more.
- Foods prepared by boiling cook at a lower temperature, and take longer to cook. Cooking time increases. Turning up heat does not help things cook faster. Water cannot exceed its own boiling point — unless if using a pressure cooker.
- Covering food while cooking can help keep things from drying out.
- Because of the longer cooking times and increased evaporation it is very easy to dry out meat while cooking. pressure cooking may be a possible solution.
- Heavy cookware with tight fitting lids can be very helpful in cooking under these conditions.
- Slow cooking simmers at a lower temperature, making it more difficult for the food to reach a safe temperature and for bacteria to be destroyed. A safe temperature of at least 160 °F needs to be reached.
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