Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1889-04-05
Che Pouseholo.
HOW 10 COOK MEAL.

of lectures before the Womens Union
yesterday afternoon, says the Mail and
Express, with talk on "rhe Chemistry
of Cooking Meats"
"The type of meat is the egg" said
Prof Pohlman in beginning his remarks.
There is a peculiar substance in the egg
which resembles every form of meat the
difference is so small that chemists can
detect it only with difficulty. In the pro-
cess of boiling the egg it coagulates. The
whole philosophy of cooking ;vpd frying
meats depends upon this same coagula-
ton. If coagulated properly the meat
will be of the best. If we take our meat
raw the stomach must do Just so much
more work. By cooking it we aid the d-
gestion, and it is the proper method of
preparing it that | would have you un-
dorstand."
BY way of Illustration Prof. Pohlman
took four eggs and placed two of them in
boiling water, and allowed them to re-
main there the regulation three minutes
for boiling. Then he removed them. and.
as Is ordinarily the ease. on opening them
the yolk flowed freely and the white
stuck to the she'll, and had to removed
with penknife. Two other eggs were
placed in water heated mp to 100 degrees
and allowel to remain ten minutes. On
being opened it was found that the yolk
and white mixed freely i'm one mass,
| shaving that tha h,,,t L.,I al; Ia. ,,J
~ into every portion. This latter meth
Cd Is what Prof. Pohlman advocates as
the proper one. In explaining the pro-
fessOr said: "When the white of the egg
reaches G0degrees it begins to coaguate,
and if it is allowed to go any further it
harden> and becomes injurious as regards
the digestion. The same refers to the
cooking of meats. When you cook the
egg IN the manner | first showed YOU.
the albumen is coaguated into hard
substance, and you have really the hard
boiled egg, which everybody knows is cX-
cecdingly hard of digestion.
Meat overdone is stringy, 1t looks
all right aud tastes all right, but you have
broken down the connections, which is
all there is to benefit the body. and leaves
simply the separated tibers in between.
The secret of preparing it properly con-
,istS of infusing a similar degree of heat
into every part of it, which is done on
the same principle as the egg is boiled in
water at 100 degrees"
Meat was said to oe fried. boiled or
cooked according to Ihe time it was al
lowed to remain on the stove. When
subjected to great heat certain changes
take place in the elements. Subject it to
very high temperature and combinations
of the elements take place that are not
desirable. These changes, if properly
adduced. help the digestion and stimulate
the appetite. Much heat will form a
crust on the outside and if this crust can
be formed quickly. only certain amount
of heat is allowed to enter. Meat that
resembles sole leather has been simply
heated instead of fried. The natural gas
flame Is capital means of cooking meat.
Any open fire will serve the purpose.
1t produces these chemical changes
quicker and better. Only about one
third of meat is real meat substance.
The rest is water. The desirable thing
in cooking meat is to have the heat
thrown on all parts at one time and in
thi, way retain the water. An oven may
be made red hot and big pieces of meat
put in it, and in this way the outside
crust will be formed quickly. The so
called ventilating oven is of no use at II
1t drives of all the the water. The oven
should be closed rs tightly as possible.
Because meat retains Il reddish color i:
no sign it isn't done. As had been be
fore remarked, it was best done at l6(
degrees and then the inside would yet b,
of that tint.
, What so many people turn up theil
noses at as raw meat is generally the rare
healthy article Raw meat and rar,
meat are two different things. Boarding
house cooks know nothing about sucl
matters. If the cooking is overdone tn,
digestion is just 50 much impaired ant
, the body feels like going on a strike. ant
very often 1t would be we'll if such /
: strike were permitted. Man can contro
his stomach, but only too often is tn,
stomach abused Anything eaten ain
hurry" without masticating, passes righ
through the stomach.
!: If the body is to be built up it must b,
; on meat substances. "Don't give SOU
to the sick man." said Prof. Pohlman
: "IIe cannot live on that. He wants
in the soup"
y The peculiar flavor attaching to meats
d of too long standing can be destroyed by
=, roasting, not by boiling.
II