Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1872-11-14
How to Cook Meats.

How to Cook Meats.
Evcry household should DO able TO cool
in tho most satisfactory manner. For THU
reason. we commend the careful reading
Of the following from tho Boston Journa
Of Chem istry:
Cookery iu all its branches is both ,
science and anart; Frenchman woult
perhaps rank it among the fine arts
There can be no doubt that much valuable
nutriment is wasted, owing to the imper
feet and irrational methods Of preparing
it which prevail in many households. Ii
tact, the processes to which food is sub
jected are often precisely such as chem
list might adopt, If his object were to &c
rid Of it's really valuable constituents, ant
obtain only what is worthless for purpose'
Of nutrition or such us come maliciou.
demon might devise in order u tantaliz.
his victims with the empty semblance o
nourishment, while he was destrcyin.
them BY. slow starvation. Vegetable food
Us rule, suffers loss in this respect thal
animal, and we therefore restrict our at,
tentlon in the present familiar essay t.
some suggestions with regard to the cook
ing Of meats.
The most economical way of using nsat
is to cook it in hot water, and serve it ur
in its own gravy. If it is boiled for pre-.
pairing soup, tho water should not be toe
quickly raised to the boiling point, since
this tends to coagulate the albuminous
portions and to prevent the juices from
passing into the water. The meat should
be chopped or cut as fine as possible, and
stepped for s6me time in cold, water, which
should then be gradually heated up to a
temperature not exceeding $50 degrees
Fahrenheit, or 65 degrees below it's boil.
ing point, At the last moment the SOUP
may be allowed to reach the boiling point.
The bones should be crushed or broken up
into email pieces, and boiled, or rather
simmered, for eight or ten hours, in order
thoroughly to extract their nutrilive mat.
ter.
Soup contains the greater part of the
saline matter, with the creatine, creatinine,
kindred compounds, some Of the albumen
and fat, aud an amount Of gelatine, that de-
ponds upon the duration of the boiling
process Cold water extracts from one.
sixth to one.fourth Of the weight of the
solid constituents of the meat; and this
watery extract contains nearly all the
savory, saline and crystalline ingredients.
After long continued boiling, meat be.
comes hard mass, composed of tough,
muscular fbers, the areolar tissue connect.
ing them, and parts Of the nerves and blood.
vessels. This is difficult to mast;cate, more
difficult to digest, and 10 devoid of flavor
that it is impossible to tell from what an.
imal it came, As Liebig remarks, even a
dog will reJectit.
For invalids, beef soup is by far the best
That made from mutton is loss digestible
and ia seldom free from fat. The remarka'
BILE restorative properties Of soup are due
to tho presence Of large quantity Of highly
heterogeneous principles. Very strong bee
tea may almost be classed with such slim
ulants as brandy and tea. Creatine, creati
nine, and other similar substances in meat
bear close resemblance to the theme O
tea and coffee, and the theobrominc o
cocoa.
II we wish to cook meat in such a., wa,
as to preserve the maximum of nutrimon
in the most digestlble form, we should
place it in large pieces in boiling watc,
and keep it there for five minutes. TIL
hig h temperature coagulates the albume1
1T the surface Of the meat, stops up it
pores, and thus prevents the juices from
escaping. After this boiling Of i've min
utcs, add cold water to reduce the heat t,
about $50 9 Fahrenheit, and keep it at tina
temperature until the meat is sufficient,
cooked. 1t will then be found to be ten
der, juicy, ga worry and nutritious. Saltet
meat, intended to be eaten cold, should b.
allowed to cool in the water in which j
has been boiled.
In roasting meat, as in boiling it, tn,
first object should be to coagulate tn
albumen at the surface, in order to pre-.
vent the escape of the juices. The inca
should at first be placed close to the fire
kept there for ten or fifteen minutes, ant
then Withdrawn to greater distance from
the heat. If cooked in the oven of o stow
OF range, the oven should be very no
when the meat Is first put into it, kept q
the same heat for short time, then coole,
down partially (by opening the door O.
checking the fre), and tho roasting shout,
then no allowed to 60 on very slowly, O.
that the inner parts may he thoroug hl,
done: The loss Of well ht (mostly waite
and tat) is nearly one third more in roast
ing than in boiling. Roast meat has tn
richer flavor. because certain aromati
principles are developed by) this mode G
cooking. Tho occasional = dredging" q
-four over the surface Of the meat help
stop up the pores and check the escape
tho fat. Roasted meat is not so wei
suited for invalids and dyspept,cs rs ooile
meat, since it is apt to contain acrid sui
stances formed out Of the highly heate
fat. Broiling is species Of roasting
but it ordinarily produces somewha
more digestible food tor the dyspepti,
Frying is the worst possible mode
cooking meat, especially for person
whose digestive powers ore not vigorou
as it almost invariably develops y yer
acrid substance known US acrolcinc, an
,, suodry fatty acids that are nearly q
unwholesome.
. Stews and hashcs are often very SAVIOR
but seldom agree with weak stomach
They are for better when made from fres
meat than from that which has airead
been cooked. The repeated cooking
any kind Of food detracts materially fro