Middletown transcript., 1915-04-10
TO PREPARE AND
USE VEGETABLES
AGRICULTURAL DEPARTMENT
EXPERTS GIVE RESULTS OF
STUDY AND EXPERIMENT.
NUTRlTIVE VALUE IN SEEDS
One Of Most important Food Groups
Man EnIoys-Long Soaking Of
Beans and Peas Necessary
Food Value of Peanut.

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-
tion to the more general use Of these |
particular seed vegetables is that their
flavor does not appeal to all. There |
fore 1t is often wise to remove a por- |
tion Of the taste, even If this means a
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 1t loses rather than gains
water when kept in the store and
house. Therefore 1t is understandable
that considerable time will be required
to fill again with water the cells of
such dense substance. Where there
ts no danger of fermentation or sour
Sng," beans, ETC., may be profitably
soaked for even forty-eight hours.
Pick over, wash we'll, add nearly one
quart Of water for one cupfHl of beans,
and set IN the refrigerator or other
cold place. The water may be
changed, II convenient, after 12 or "a
hours. This serves to remove any
rank favor. 1t is said that in eastern
countries lentils are soaked long
time for this purpose.
After this complete filling of the tis-
sues with water the time required for
cooking will not be much longer than
for shelled beans fresh from the gar
den. True, there has been some loss
of substance, but a corresponding
gain in palatability Soft water is pre-
terable to hard both for soaking and
cooking
Such beans as the navy bean and
lima bean co3tain 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 ralatable and soft and the longer
must be the processes of soaking and
cooking.
Since the proper preparations Of leg
umes is a long process, 1t 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 toe, the
dry hmas or red kidney or any va
riety may appear first as plain but.
tered beans, q further portion pre-
pared at the same time, may
be used for salad, or croquettes, and
the left-overs to be utilized as a soup
Leftover red kidney beans when
cooked like a meat loaf with cheese
bread crumbs and such seasoning al
Is desired make very palatable meat
Substitute. Cowpeas, a valuable leg
ume better known in the southern
than the northern states, may bt
cooked in the same ways as the nav!
bean.
Lentils are not as generally used ii
this country as they deserve to be
They may be found in the markets o
foreign sections of large cities and ii
the larger groceries. Their price
about the same as that of dry bean
and peas. They may be served lik
peas OF with a seasoning of frie
onions. They make a satisfactor
soup or puree.
The use of fresh, young peas, bean
and cowpeas is extensive, the seed
being sometimes served alone, an
often in the case of beans and COW
peas with the succulent pod contain
ing them. The pods of peas are ord
narily discarded, but sometimes the
are cooked for a while, and then til
water in which they were boiled
used for cooking the peas themselves
There are also edible podded beans
String" or snap" beans, If youn
and tender, may be cooked quickl
If old and we'll grown they need lon
er cooking. If overgrown they wi
be improved by parboiling for fe
minutes in water to which soda hf
been added, about one-fourth lev
teaspoonful of soda for two quarts
water. They should then be draint
and cooked in fresh water. To be
their best in favor, as well as colo
string beans should be cooked on
long enough to make them tende
They are most delicate If cooked
salted water, drained. A combinatiC
Of string and shell beans is a pleasiI
change from either alone. StriI
beans, it has been claimed, are le
likely to cause digestive disturban
II cooked uncovered.
The large green pods of the red
cranberry beans remain tender un
the seeds are nearly full grown, ma
ing them among the best types
string beans.
In the southern states cowpeas
field peas have been grown for ma
years as food for man and anima
and also to increase soil fertilit
These have a distinctive, pleasant (
yor, are used green and dry, and a
cooked like other peas or beaps