The Meridian times. (Meridian, Idaho) 1909-1938, 1915-04-16
ID PREPARE AND
USE VEGETABLES
AGRICULTURAL DEPARTMENT
EXPERTS GIVE RESULTS OF
STUDY AND EXPERIMENT.
NUTRITIvE VALUE IN SEEDS
one OF Most important Food Groups
Man Enloys-Long Soaking of
Beans and Peas Necessary
Food Value of Peanut.


Food Value of Peanut.
prepared by the United States Depart
ment of Agricultural
Seeds constitute one of the most i'm.
portant food groups that man enjoys.
Besides the cereal grains, there are
such seeds as beans, peas and cow
peas, the oil-bearing peanut which is
closely related to the bean, such oil
bearing seeds as the cottonseed, rape,
and sesame.
All these seeds, however, are not
always considered as vegetables, but
the bean, lentil, and pea are so consid-
cred, and have been recognized in all
lands as possible substitutes for both
bread and meat. The principal objec.
ton to the more general use of these
particular seed vegetables is that their
flavor does not appeal to all. There
fore it is often wise to remove por-
ton of the taste, even II this means
loss of substance. BY occasionally
changing the water in which the beans
are soaking or during the early stages
of cooking, their natural flavor may be
toned down. A more desirable flavor
sometimes may be impaired in cook
ing by the use of mint, parsley, onion,
tomato, peppers, bayleaf, nutmeg, or
other herbs, and spices. The spices,
however, must always be added spar
ingly.
The Importance of Long Soaking for
Beans and Peas.
The long soaking of leguminous
seeds is an important factor in their
cookery. 1t took long time for the
seed to ripen and dry in the pod on
the vine and it loses rather than gains
water when kept in the store and
house. Therefore it is understandable
that considerable time will be required
to fill again with water the cells of
such dense substance. Where there
is no danger of fermentation or sour
ing" beans, ETC., may be profitably
soaked for even forty-eight hours.
Pick over, wash well, add nearly one
quart of water for one cupful of beans,
and set in the refrigerator or other
cold place. The water may be
changed, If convenient, after IL or "a
hours. This serves to remove any
rank flavor. 1t is said that in eastern
countries lentils are soaked long
time for this purpose.
After this complete filling of the It's
sues with water the time required for
cooking will not be much longer than
for ehallad haopo fraeb froY,, +ho COR
den. True, there has been some loss
of substance, but a corresponding
gain in palatability. Soft water is pre-
ferable to hard, both for soaking and
cooking.
Such beans as the navy bean and
lima bean contain relatively little fat.
They do not grow rancid so easily
as some grain products, but the old
er they are the harder it is to make
them palatable and soft and the longer
must be the processes of soaking and
cooking.
Since the proper preparations of leg
umes is long process, it is well to
cook enough to serve in two or more
fashions. Thus the baked beans often
are reheated or served cold, and the
remainder used in soup. So, too, the
dry limas or red kidney or any va
riety may appear first as plain but
tered beans, further portion pre-
pared at the same time, may
be used for salad or croquettes, and
the left-overs to be utilized as soup.
Leftover red kidney beans when
cooked like meat loaf with cheese,
bread crumbs and such seasoning as
is desired make very palatable meat
substitute. Cowpeas, valuable leg
ume better known in the southern
than the northern states, may be
cooked in the same ways as the navy
beam
Lentils are not as generally used in
this country as they deserve to be.
They may be found in the markets of
foreign sections of large cities and in
the larger groceries. Their price is
about the same as that of dry beans
and peas. They may be served like
peas or with a seasoning of fried
onions. They make a satisfactory
soup or PURGE.
The use of fresh, young peas, beans
and cowpeas is extensive, the seeds
being sometimes served alone, and
often In the case of beans and cow
peas with the succulent pod contain
ing them. The pods of peas are ordi-
narily discarded. but sometimes they
are cooked for a while, and then the
water in which they were boiled is
used for cooking the peas themselves.
There are also edible podded beans
String" or SNAP" beans, If young
and tender, may be cooked quickly.
II old and we'll grown they need long
er cooking. If overgrown they VIII
be improved by parboiling for few
minutes in water to which soda has
eeen added, about one-fourth Level
teaspoonful of soda for two quarts OF
water. They should then be drained
and cooked in fresh water. To be at
their best in flavor as well as color,