The Windham County reformer. (Battleboro, Vt.) 1876-1897, 1881-03-11
The Wasting of Meats.

All the various methods OF cookery ma
be concentrated under three heads: /. tn
application of direct heat from the fire o
from hot air, as in roasting, broiling ant
baking; Q. The action of hot water O.
steam, as in boiling, stewing, braising ant
steaming; 8. The instantaneous soaring O
the surface of food by intense surrounding
heat as in frying. The actual waste in sub
stance proceeding from these differen
methods may be stated as follows: Fou
pounds of meat will lose in roasting Of
broiling before the fire, one pound and s
half; in baking in the oven, one pound anC
quarter; in careful boiling, stewing, OF
braising, one pound in frying, !. e., entire
immersion in smoking hot fat, scarcely any.
So, where at first thought, the latter meth
cd might seem the mos; economical This is
not the case, for in stews braises and thick
soups, carefully made, nearly all the nutri-
ment which the meat loses is preserved in
the broth or sauce, which both become the
vehicles for the addition of cheap and sat
isfactory ailment in the form of dumplings
or vegetables. Such addition is necessary
in order to make given quantity OF boiled
meat as nutritious as an equal bulk of roast
ed or broiled meat All broths and stews
should be cooked slowly and kept closely
covered, so that no nutriment is driven OIL
during the escape of steam caused by vio-
lent ebullition. Another source OF waste is
the removal of the scum which rises to
"a surface Of the water when the cooking
begins; this scum is composed largely OF
the albumen which the water draws out of
the meat, and it should not be removed un-
less clear soup is being made; if taken
from the broth for clear soup it should be
added to whatever thick soup or stew IS
under preparation. The ACCESSIBILITY OF
frying may be questioned, even supposing
that the frying is well done, which IS not
often the case; by bad frying dyspepsia
flourlshes, while by frying well done all the
Juices and the substance of the food are re-
tanned, but the crust produced by the action
of the hot fat cannot fail to tax weak diges-
tive powers.
Unquestonaby the broiling and roasting
of literally the least economical
ways of dressing it-present it in the most
palatable and wholesome FORM Both in
broillng and roasting the meat should be
exposed to the direct heat of a clear, hot fire,
so that light crisp crust may be quickly
formed and serve to retain the juices in
broiing, this crust will form close to a hot
fire in about three minutes for each side of
the meat; in roasting, with suitable appli
ances, the entire surface of joint may be
Drowned in fifteen minutes; in baking meat
in hot oven, about twenty minutes will be
required. Although baking resembles
roasting somewhat, the results are less de-
sirable, because the hot fat spatters from
meat and burns up ON the interior of the
oven, producing unpleasant and unwhole-
some vapors unless the oven is very well
ventilated. Slow baking, and that accom-
plished by irregular heat, are sources OF
great waste of nutriment and flavor.
AL drippings and gravy must be pre-
served, and in broiling meat over the fire,
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 the methods desirable I'm
done roasts and broils may be more savory
and possibly more nutritious tlIan those well
done, but they are less digestible, and con-
sequently less economical, for the economy
of food lies wholly in the nourishment it
furnishes the system.
The actual nutritive value of bones is
but little known; they are even relatively
valuable, the bones of the legs of animals
affording more nutriment than those OF the
back and ribs. During experiments under
taken at the instance of the English Govern
ment, DR.. Edward Smith demonstrated that
under long continued boiling the amount OF
head food produced from bones equaled
one-thrd of that contained in beef, and the
quantity of fesh-food was relatively one
sixth. From personal experience the state
ment may be made that the addition of
vegetables to bones affords the basis of
broth both palatable and wholesome. The
so called waste portions of carcass-the
head, feet, tail, cartilage and skin have
even more food value than bones. Juliet
Coyis0n,