Henderson daily dispatch., 1936-08-21

/ naise or a cooked dressing Ore one
| of the many variations of these?
OF the three types of salad dress
| ings, says the Bureau of Home Eco
nomics of the U. S. Department or
| Agriculture, French and mayonnaise
are essentially combinations of fat
and dilute acid, with seasonings. In
other words, despite the saying that
oil and water will not mix, every cook
knows they will and the uncooked
salad dressings are a proof. The fat
in these dressings is usually vegetable
oil of some kind. The acid is vinegar
or lemon juice, both largely water
Beaten together, the oil and the water
thicken and form an emulsion-which
is to say, the tiny globules of fat are
dispersed all through the water and
held there in suspension" to use the
chemical term.
The cooked salad dressings come in
another class. They are thickened
with eggs, or with eggs and flour or
cornstarch, and are more nearly re-
lated to custard and white sauce than
to the uncooked dressings.
UncOOlked Dressings.
French dressing, which contains
just oil, acid, salt and pepper or
paprika, separates after standing ID
few ninu.cc, on must La stirred or
shaken thoroughly before using again.
1t is a temporary emulsion of oil in
water, says the chemist. But is more
stable then just Oil in ordinary water
because the dissolved acid makes it
easier to form the oil globules, and
the dry seasonings, which do not dis
solve, help to hold the globules apart.
To make French dressing is of
course very easy. The proportions of
Gil vary with taste and also with the
acidity of the vinegar or lemon juice.
Four parts Of oil to one of vinegar is
a good proportion, but three to one,
or even two to one are used. Season
ings may be salt, paprika, onion juice,
tabasso, sugar, horse-radish, or many
others. Beat the ingredients together
in a bowl or shake them in a bottle
until they mix thoroughly and thicken
somewhat.
French dressing is varied by almost
countless seasonings, but one of the
favorites is roquefort cheese crum-
bled into the mixture of oil and acid.
Chiffonade dressing calls for chopped
parsley, chopped onions, chopped hard
! cooked eggs, chopped cooked beets, in
French dressing. Anchovy dressing is
I French dressing seasoned with an
! chovies chopped fine.
| Mayonnaise dressing, according to
one story, originated centuries ago in
the French city of Bayonne, famous
| for salad oils, and the dressing was
| says it was originally made with
cream instead of oil, and in its pre-
sent most familiar form was invented
| by the chef to the Duke of Mayenne,
on a festive occasion when the cream
| turned sour. So the new dressing was
| called "mayonnaise" Whatever the
| origin, this dressing as we know it
is made with eggs in addition to the
ingredients of French dressing, and
if kept cool, does not seperate after
| it is well beaten. The chemist calls
! this a permanent emulsion, because
the egg forms a film around the oil
| globules and keeps them apart
Mayonnaise is more difficult to
make than French dressing, but here
| is good way to do it: Mix the egg,
| seasonings, and part of the acid thor
| oughly by beating, and then add oil
drop by drop at first, until the mix
ture begins to thicken, then gradual
ly more. When the dressing becomes
quite thick, add the rest of the acid,
then the oil. Have the oil at room tenn
perature when beating, but put the
! dressing away in cold place. Not in
! the coolest part of the refrigerator,