Sharp County record., 1881-05-05
Wasting OF Meats.

ono fellow can find OUT" but it IS pos
sihIe TO designate few OF the ways q
waste. At the top of the list STANDS
the practice of washing meat, not with
SOAP and water, as one of our tar-aWay
correspondents claims to attend the ao-
Iutions of such unfortunate chickens as
fall into her hands, but with "plenty
Of clean. cold water" Of course the
DAUGHTER of neat New England ought
to know better than to set aside all the
precepts of her cleanly ancestry but
here ,he takes her stand with vigorous
nratcst against the meat-washing OF any
save smoked or over-salteu vlands' ohe
persists in wiping flesh and fowl with a
clean wet cloth, which will remove any
mildly Objectionable substance. II such
GENTLE means are insufficient she deals
no more with the butcher who sent her
more than her fair share of that "peck
of dirt" She insists that the Washing
of meats wastes their nutriment with
every drop of animal tiuld that the
water attracts to itself, unless the same
water be used for soups, stews or sauces.
for when the meat is exposed 10 tne
action of water there is an instantane-
ous interchange of fluids unless the
water be at the boiling point and there
maintained. Once the actual cooking
of meat is commenced the unavoidable
waste of its substance may be estimated
at about one-third in bulk, except IN
irving. All the various methods Oh
cookery may be concentrated under
three heads. l. The application OF dl-
rect heat from the fire or from hot ar,
as in roasting, brOiling and baking, 2.
The action of hot water or steam, as IN
boiling, stewing, braising and steam
inc. The instantaneous soaring OF the
surface of food by intense surround;
inc heat, as in frying. The actual
waste in substance proceeding from
these different methods may be stated
as follows: Four pounds of meat will
lose in roasting or broiling before the
fire one pound and half; in baking in
the oven one pound and quarter; in
careful boiling, steWing or braislng one
pound; in trying, I. g., entire immersion
in smoking hot fat scarcely any. So,
at the first thought the latter method
might seem the most economical. This
is not the case, for III stews, braiSes and
thick soups, carefully made, nearly all
the nutriment which the meat loses is
preserved in the broth or sauce, which
both become vehicles for the addition
of cheap and satisfactory aliment in the
form of dumplings or vegetables. Such
addition is necessary in order to make
given quantity of boiled meats as nul-
tritious as an equal bulk OF roasted or
broiled meat. All broths and SteWS
should be cooked slowly and kept
closely covered, so that no nutriment is
driven off during the escape OF steam
caused by violent ebullition. Another
source of waste is the removal of the
scum which rises to the surface OF the
water when the cooking begins; this
scum is composed largely of the albu-
men which the water draws out OF the
meat, and it should not be removed un-
less a clear soup is being made; if taken
from the broth for a clear soup it should
be added to whatever thick soup o.
suew Is uud0I preparation. rho r'ro0ofl
of braising is closely allied in methods
and results to that of stewing, and pre-
sents food in an exceeding palatable
and digestive form. 1t is at this point
that the advisability of frying may be
questioned, even supposing that the
frying is we'll done, which is not often
the case; by bad frying the dyspepsia
fourishes, while by frying we'll done all
the juices and the substance of the food
are retained, but the crust produced by
the action of the hot fat can not fail tc
tax weak digestive powers.
Unquestionably the broiling and
roasting of meat-lterally the least
economical ways of dressing it-present
it in the most palatable and wholesome
form. Both in boiling and roasting the
meat should be exposed to the direct
heat of clear hot fire, so that light
crisp crust may be quickly formed and
serve to retain the juices OF the meat
in broiling, this crust will form close to
hot fire in about three minutes for
each side of the meat; in roasting, with
Joint, may be Drowned in fifteen min,
utes; in baking meat in hot oven,
about twenty minutes will be required.
Although baking resembles roasting
somewhat, the results are less desirable,
because the hot fat spatters from meat
and burns up on the interior of the oven
producing unpleasant and unwholesome
vapors unless the oven is very well ven
tilated Slow baking and that accom-
plished by irregular heat, are sources OF
great waste of nutriment and flavor.
To avoid waste in broiling and roast
ing, the fire must be clear, hot and
steady, and the meat exposed directly
TO its heat until its surface is Drowned.
1t may then be set little away from the
fire, but a regular heat must be main
tanned. All drippings and gravy must
be preserved and in broiling meat over
the fire a grooved gridiron must be used
TO keep the fat from falling on the
Goals and blazing up against the meat
The free circulation of air renders both
these methods desirable, and very little
change takes place in the chemical con.
sttuents of the flesh. Underdone roasts
and broils may be more savory and pos.
sibly more nutritious than those well
done, but they are less digestible, and
consequently less economical, for the
economy of food lies wholly in the
nourishment it furnishes the system.