Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1873-08-28
Cooking Eggs.

EGGs bear relation to other animal
food similar to that which seeds bear to
other vegetable food. They are the de
positories of vitality, stored up to form
new link in the continuation of the spe-
cies. They are probably the purest form
of animal food, though they compare I'M
favorably with seeds in several respects.
They lose their vitality sooner, and they
partake more or less of whatever impuri-
ties may have belonged to the animal that
produced them. They are not so nutri-
tious as some of the seeds, and they re-
quire more care in cooking
Like seeds, one of their principal ingre-
dients is albumen, which is nearly pure
in the white; but, unlike vegetable albu-
men, it coagulates with heat. If the heat
is great, it becomes SO hard as to be ex-
tremely difficult of digestion. Hence
eggs are more easily digested raw than
cooked, and hence also the objection to
hard boiling. DIR. Beaumont found bits of
hard boiled egg-white, no larger than a
pea. sometimes remained in the stomach
after everything else had yielded to the
action of the gastric juice. Such logic is
unanswerable. He deduced from it the
importance of careful masticatiOn. We
women can go step further, and find in
it an Intelligent reason for so cooking the
eggs that they will not require this extra
care. Fried eggs are still worse than
those which are boiled both because sub
jected to a greater degree of heat, and
because of cooking fat into them.
Even in the common method OF boiling
them rapidly, "three and a-half minutes"
the albumen next the shell is quite too
hard. 1t should be uniform and custard-
like, and this is secured by the method,
now becoming quite common, of merely
letting the eggs stand from seven to ten
minutes in hot water. This should be
boiling hot at first, but the cool eggs re-
duce its temperature somewhat The
exact time required will vary with the rel
alive proportions of eggs and water, with
the size of the eggs, with the heat and
thickness of the utensil used, with the
warmth of the place where it stands, and
with the weather also; little more time
being required in dull weather. The cook
will soon learn what allowance to make
for her utensils; and for the rest, she
must use her judgment every time. They
are not so easily spoiled, however, as in
boiling If left in little too long, they
can Ike plunged into cold water for a
minute or two. Ii even kept hot until
the yolks stiffen, the whites will not be
hard. The yolk hould be cooked just
enough not to break rapidly when turned
out. These are, properly speaking, not
"boiled eggs" but "curdled eggs"
These curdled eggs make an admirable
dressing for many breakfast dishes-boil-
ed samp, oatmeal mush, cracked wheat,
and especially for small hominy. The
gentle method of cooking eggs may also
be observed in making egg-toast. Have
the milk almost boiling in fiat dish, and
break in the eggs one by one, cooking a
few at time, and being careful not to let
them run together Sprinkle in little
salt, and let them stand hot and covered,
until firm enough to take up without
breaking. Then have ready some split
batter-biscuit gems, softened in hot milk
and laid on platter, and when the eggs
are done, dish them one on each half Of a
biscuit, and serve warm. This is hand
some dish, and though rot quite so diges-
tibe as hominy dressed with eggs curdled
in the shell, it is still far better than the
fried potatoes and griddle-cakes that form
the staple of SO many reakfasts.-Scieace
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