Evening star., 1902-01-21
Table and Kitchen.
The Beauty of Good Frying and
Proper Rules to Follow.

Success does not always follow the house
wife's first attempt in this line Of culinary
work. This is generally due through neg
lect Of principles which she does not feel to
be Of sufficient Importance.
4 Cooks who know the least of these rules
which are governed by, and in accordance
with certain laws of nature, are apt to be
sef-willed In regard to accepting other
ideas that are contrary to their usual way
of doing things and they go on working
without reflection, or any attempt to trace
the daily phenomenon presented them in the
performance of their culinary duties, to the
highest abstra ctons of science. Neverthe-
less failure or success are governed by our
knowledge of natural laws or ignorance
thereof; and at the present time such ig-
norance is most ineXcusable in the major
ity of cases, as there Is an immense amount
of literature devoted entirely to all things
astronomical; setting forth very clearly
the nature Of food substances, their uses
and proper treatment, based on scientific
principles. Well proven facts not theories,
put forth to be worked out by the Jealous
but uninfor1ned housewife to her undoing
and disgust, discouraging any desire to
make second attempt to obtain desired
results. The subject of cookery is broad
and well-nigh exhaustless, and although
great minds have deemed it study worthy
lifetime labor, their efforts have not yet
this study should transcend all others In
their estimation, not from a purely ma
terial point of view, but as very patent
means to elevate the human mentally and
morally.
First, in order to do this we must learn
to rightfully employ every means at our
command. The first and most directly ef-
fective is to know how to prepare the foods
we eat in order to make them digestible.
This can hardly be rated as a secondary
consideration, even to the chemical compo
sition of the foods, as no matter what
value the latter may hold in their constitu-
ent parts before they come into me hands
Of the cook, upon her ability to make them
acceptable to the eye and taste and suited
depends their real usefulness to the body.
Knowing How to Fry.
In using this method of cooking, the first
and important point is the selection Of the
fat. Only the purest and sweetest should
be used. Cooking In fat is considered the
least desirable method because of the SEEM
ing difficulty in preventing the articles fried
from being greasy. For certain kinds of
foods and food preparations this is the pre-
ferred method, and there is no reason why
this means should not be employed If
properly done.
The beauty of this process is in the car
bombing or browning the surface of the
food or article by sudden immersion in fat
heated to just the right degree to give
what Is known as the surprise and at
the same Time COOK OF Teu6dt the mdlerlalS
to a palatable degree without OVERRIDING
any part of the Hrocess. A delicate and
not indigestible case is formed which in
closes all that is valuable, while 1t prevents
the fat from reaching this. The Juices are
retained and concentrated and havors un-
impaired and increased.
This result is easily obtained by all who
really desire to obtain 1t.
Choosing Fats.
Liquids exposed to the action Of fire be-
come charged with different amounts OF
heat, and the best fat to use for frying
is the one that can be heated to the highest
point necessary without burning. Also one
that heats quickly is to be preferred for
quick, delicate frying, as the Oil in heating
contracts and assumes darker color and
finally carbonizes the surface Of the food.
Slow fats do not give the delicacy Of color
or crust SO desirable, but are apt to make
the article greasy and tasteless. Well
selected vegetable oils that have every prin-
use as a food is the best of all fats em-
ployed. Butter should not be employed un-
less clarified while fresh and sweet, and
even then its use is so obviously and use-
lessly extravagant 1t Is not to be con-
sidered. Sweet, hard suet might be used II
1t were worth the trouble. Drippings were
put to better use in making soap. Butter
burns at very low temperature, while the
vegetable oils can be heated to a higher de-
gree than all others, while its freedom from
the propensity to soak, possessed by the
denser, less pure oils, recommend 1t to all
particular housekeepers.
Some Rules About Frying.
In using the term frying we refer to cook
ing in sufficient quantity OF fat to cover the
article or prevent it from touching the bot
tom of the utensil used. In the first place,
do not attempt to fry foods that require
much cooking. Were most raw foods put
into deep fat to be cooked the temperature
would have to be SO low to allow sufficient
time TO cook the materials there would he
especially II lard is used. before the sur