Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1928-03-11
Tasters Determine Palatability of Table Products

| as there are many steaks and roasts
In beef carcass. Almost 50 per cent
Of the housewives declared their DEAL
ers handle either the best or a very
good quality Of meat when. In fact,
only approximately per cent Of the
cattle slaughtered are OF these quail
| ties.
The departments survey showed that
/ approximately 5 per cent OF American
| whites do not eat meat, and that
there Is notable tendency for more
men and fewer women to eat meat,
as the standard OF living Of the house.
hold becomes higher. The relative
number OF persons in the colored and
foreign groups who do not eat meat
IS less than In the American white
group. Health and diet reasons were
stated by almost three-fourths Of the
adults Of the American white group
who said they do not eat meat.
Beef is preferred In two-thirds Of
American households, followed by pork,
lamb and veal, the preference for PORK
decreasing and the preference for lamb
increasing as the standard Of living
increases. The popularity Of fish and
poultry also is greater where there is
| high standard Of living. Selling
meats by grades is recommended by the
I
advertising. substitution and deception.
| and to increase knowledge Of meats
| among both the retail trade and the
| buying public.
THE departments paIatability tests
show that successful results n
roasting beef are obtained by a pre-
liminary soaring at $50 degrees Cent?
grade and then lowering the tempera-
ture to 1875 degrees Centigrade for the
remainder OF the cooking period. The
time Of cooking may be shortened by
cooking at $50 to IT'S degrees, but the
evaporation and dripping losses in
crease and there Is less uniformity Of
"doneness" as compared with meat
cooked at the lower temperature.
Since lamb is generally liked better
done than beef, 1t has been found bes:
to cook 1t at a temperature Of 80 de-
grees Centigrade at the center OF the
roast, using meat thermometer for
this purpose. When the cooking Is
completed at 125 degrees. from IS TO
so minutes per pound are required. In
creaslng the temperature to IT'S de-
grees decreases the time per pound TO
approximately 20 minutes, but In
j, creases the evaporation loss and yields
! a less palatable product.
The palatability tests disclose that
the various davors-bland sweet. spicy,
acid, savory-in meat must be not
only pleasant IN themselves, but also
well blended or skillfully contrasted.
In the meal that satisfies the taste
: there IS usually a background OF CON-
, paratiyely nild-favored foods, such as
bread. butter. cereals and milk. and
; against this background and Offset by
II the savOrineSs Of meat or vegetables
or the mild acidity Of fruits. There Is
also a variety OF textures. including the
; richness OF fats, the starchiness Of ce-
reals, the crispneSS Of salad vegetables
or the succulence Of fresh fruits.
Time may come when Uncle Sam
will pass upon the quality OF all foods
for human consumption. His Job now
Is limited largely 10 determining wheth-
er foods are fit or unfit for consump-
ton. but more recently he has been
extending his activities, through the
Department OF Agriculture, 10 saying
whether foods are good. poor or excel
lent, from the standpoint Of quality
Department inspectors. for example.
are grading beef carcasses according 20
, prime" choice" or good" and stamp
the meat 50 that consumers may have
, Uncle Sans certificate that the meat
/, they buy IS as represented.
The department for several years has
been grading meats boUgh. BY the
United States Navy. the Shipping
Board. large steamship lines, chain
restaurants and hospitals. Similar
service is rendered On butter. eggs and
poultry. Government certificate Of
quality accompanying each purchase
The famous navy bean was giving the
Navy Department trouble recently be-
cause o. excessive moisture in the bean,
and the agricultural experts found
better beam that would not become
uloldy II storage
Thousands Of carloads OF fruits and
vcget" bieS are inspected BY the de-
partmeIt annually for quality. but the
system OF grade certificates on these
products has not yet been extended 70
the consumer.