Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences

“ Unfortunately, thorough cooking affects the digestibility of meat unfavorably; but it is doubtless a wise procedure in some cases because, as is definitely known, some of the parasites that attack man find their way into the system through the meat that is eaten. These are carried to meat from external sources, such as dust, flies, and the soiled hands of persons handling it, and they multiply and thrive. It is known, too, that some of the germs that cause disease in the animal remain in its flesh and are thus transmitted to human beings that eat such meat. ”

“ Even in its first and minor purpose, the important part that soup plays in many meals is not hard to realize, for it is just what is needed to arouse the flagging appetite and create a desire for nourishing food. But in its second purpose, the real value of soup is evident. Whenever soup contains enough nutritive material for it to take the place of some dish that would otherwise be necessary, its value cannot be overestimated. ”

“ As is generally known, a stock of anything means a reserve supply of that thing stored away for future use. When applied to soup, stock is similar in meaning, for it refers to material stored or prepared in such a way that it may be kept for use in the making of certain kinds of soup. In a more definite sense, soup stock may be regarded as a liquid containing the juices and soluble parts of meat, bone, and vegetables, which have been extracted by long, slow cooking and which can be utilized in the making of soups, sauces, and gravies. ”

“ Some one has said that soup is to a meal what a portico is to a palace or an overture to an opera, while another person, who evidently does not appreciate this food, has said that soup is the preface to a dinner and that any work really worth while is sufficient in itself and needs no preface. ”

“ In addition, much of the food that animals, which are warm-blooded, take into their bodies is required to maintain a constant temperature above that of their surroundings, so that not all of what they eat is used in building up the tissues of their bodies. With fish, however, it is different. As they are cold-blooded and actually receive heat from their surroundings, they do not require food for bodily warmth. Practically all that they take into the body is built up into a supply of flesh that may be used as food for human beings. ”

“ Proper cooking is just as essential in the case of meat as for any other food, for a tender, digestible piece of meat may be made tough and indigestible by improper preparation, while a tough piece may be made tender and very appetizing by careful, intelligent preparation. The cheaper cuts of meat, which are often scorned as being too tough for use, may be converted into delicious dishes by the skilful cook who understands how to apply the various methods of cookery and knows what their effect will be on the meat tissues. ”

“ As in the case of meat, fish is lacking in carbohydrate. Because of the close similarity between these two foods, fish is a very desirable substitute for meat. In fact, fish is in some respects a better food than meat, but it cannot be used so continuously as meat without becoming monotonous; that is to say, a person will grow tired of fish much more quickly than of most meats. The similarity between the composition of fish and that of meat has much to do with regulating the price of these protein foods, which, as has already been learned, are the highest priced foods on the market. ”

“ EXTRACTIVES IN MEAT.--The appetizing flavor of meat is due to substances called extractives. The typical flavor that serves to distinguish pork from beef or mutton is due to the difference in the extractives. Although necessary for flavoring, these have no nutritive value; in fact, the body throws them off as waste material when they are taken with the food. In some methods of cookery, such as broiling and roasting, the extractives are retained, while in others, such as those employed for making stews and soups, they are drawn out. ”

“ FRYING AND SAUTÉING.--When meat is fried or sautéd, that is, brought directly in contact with hot fat, it is made doubly indigestible, because of the hardening of the surface tissues and the indigestibility of the fat that penetrates these tissues. This is especially true of meat that is sautéd slowly in a small quantity of hot fat. Much of this difficulty can be overcome, however, if meat prepared by these methods, like that which is broiled or roasted, is subjected quickly to intense heat. In addition, the fat used for cooking should be made hot before the meat is put into it. ”

“ STEWING OR SIMMERING.--The cheap cuts of meat, which contain a great deal of flavor and are so likely to be tough, cannot be prepared by the quick methods of cookery nor by the application of high temperature, for the result would be a tough, indigestible, and unpalatable dish. The long, slow cooking at a temperature lower than boiling point, which is known as stewing or simmering, should be applied. In fact, no better method for the preparation of tough pieces of meat and old fowl can be found than this process, for by it the connective tissue and the muscle fibers are softened. ”

“ Persons who believe in the strictest food economy use a stock pot, since it permits left-overs to be utilized in an attractive and palatable way. In fact, there is scarcely anything in the way of fish, meat, fowl, vegetables, and cereals that cannot be used in soup making, provided such ingredients are cared for in the proper way. Very often the first glance at the large number of ingredients listed in a soup recipe creates the impression that soup must be a very complicated thing. ”

“ CARE OF FISH IN THE HOME.--If fish is purchased in good condition, and every effort should be made to see that it is, the responsibility of its care in the home until it is presented to the family as a cooked dish rests on the housewife. ”

“ While it is probably true that most of the methods of cookery render meat less easy to digest than in its raw condition, this disadvantage is offset by the several purposes for which this food is cooked. Meat is cooked chiefly to loosen and soften the connective tissue and thus cause the muscle tissues to be exposed more fully to the action of the digestive juices. Another important reason for cooking meat is that subjecting it to the action of heat helps to kill bacteria and parasites. In addition, meat is cooked to make it more attractive to the eye and to develop and improve its flavor. ”

“ But since much of this prejudice is due to the fact that the soup served is often unappetizing in both flavor and appearance, sufficient attention should be given to the making of soup to have this food attractive enough to appeal to the appetite rather than discourage it. Soup should not be greasy nor insipid in flavor, neither should it be served in large quantities nor without the proper accompaniment. A small quantity of well-flavored, attractively served soup cannot fail to meet the approval of any family when it is served as the first course of the meal. ”

“ The increase of age in a chicken is to some extent an advantage, because with age there is an increase in flavor. Thus, a year-old chicken will have more flavor than a broiler. However, after more than a year, the flavor increases to such an extent that it becomes strong and disagreeable. With the advance of age there is also a loss of tenderness in the flesh, and this after 1-1/2 or 2 years becomes so extreme as to render the bird almost unfit for use. As the age of a chicken increases, the proportion of flesh to bone also increases up to the complete maturity of the bird. ”

“ As is generally known, BEEF is the flesh of a slaughtered steer, cow, or other adult bovine animal. These animals may be sold to be slaughtered as young as 1-1/2 to 2 years old, but beef of the best quality is obtained from them when they are from 3 to 4 years of age. Ranging from the highest quality down to the lowest, beef is designated by the butcher as prime, extra fancy, fancy, extra choice, choice, good, and poor. In a market where trade is large and varied, it is possible to make such use of meat as to get a higher price for the better qualities than can be obtained in other markets. ”

“ However, the flesh of carnivorous animals--that is, animals that eat the flesh of other animals--is so seldom eaten by man, that the term meat is usually restricted to the flesh of all animals except these. But even this meaning of meat is too broad; indeed, as the term is generally used it refers particularly to the flesh of the so-called domestic animals, and does not include poultry, game, fish, and the like. It is in this limited sense that meat is considered in these Sections, and the kinds to which attention is given are beef, veal, lamb, mutton, and pork. ”

“ An understanding of the physical structure of meat is essential to its successful cooking. Meat consists of muscular tissue, or lean; varying quantities of visible fat that lie between and within the membranes and tendons; and also particles of fat that are too small to be distinguished except with the aid of a microscope. The general nature of the lean part of meat can be determined by examining a piece of it with merely the unaided eye. On close observation, it will be noted that, especially in the case of meat that has been cooked, innumerable thread-like fibers make up the structure. ”

“ With poultry, as in the case of meats of any kind, it is the composition that determines the method of cookery; and, as the structure and composition of the tissue of poultry do not differ materially from those of meats, the application of the various cooking methods is practically the same. Young and tender birds that have comparatively little flesh, such as young chickens, squabs, and guinea fowl, are usually prepared by such rapid methods as frying and broiling. ”

“ Frying is not a difficult cookery process. To prepare chickens, which should be young ones, for this method of preparation, draw, clean, and cut them up in the manner previously explained. When they are ready, wash the pieces and roll them in a pan of flour, covering the entire surface of each piece. Then, in a frying pan, melt fat, which may be chicken fat, bacon fat, part butter, lard, or any other frying fat that will give an agreeable flavor. When the fat is thoroughly hot, place in it the pieces of floured chicken and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. ”

“ The age of the animal from which pork is cut can be determined by the thickness of the skin; the older the animal, the thicker the skin. To be of the best kind, pork should have pink, not red, flesh composed of fine-grained tissues, and its fat, which, in a well-fattened animal, equals about one-eighth of the entire weight, should be white and firm. Although all cuts of pork contain some fat, the proportion should not be too great, or the pieces will not contain as much lean as they should. ”

“ Soups in which stock is utilized include all the varieties made from beef, veal, mutton, and poultry. If clear stock is desired for the making of soup, only fresh meat and bones should be used and all material that will discolor the liquid in any way carefully avoided. For ordinary, unclarified soups, the trimmings and bones of roast, steak, or chops and the carcass of fowl can generally be utilized. However, very strongly flavored meat, such as mutton, or the fat from mutton should be used sparingly, if at all, on account of the strong flavor that it imparts. ”

“ The length of time required for cooking various kinds of meat is usually puzzling to those inexperienced in cookery. The difference between a dry, hard beef roast and a tender, moist, juicy one is due to the length of time allowed for cooking. Overdone meats of any kind are not likely to be tasty. Therefore, it should be remembered that when dry heat is used, as in baking, roasting, broiling, etc., the longer the heat is applied the greater will be the evaporation of moisture and the consequent shrinkage in the meat. ”

“ Also, as a large part of the surface of a pork roast, especially one cut from the shoulder, loin, or ribs, is covered with a layer of fat, pork does not have to be seared to prevent the loss of juice, nor does it have to be put into such a hot oven as that required for beef. In fact, if the temperature of the oven is very high, the outside will finish cooking before the heat has had a chance to penetrate sufficiently to cook the center. While this makes no difference with meat that does not need to be thoroughly cooked, it is a decided disadvantage in the case of pork. ”

“ After a chicken has been killed, the first step in its preparation, no matter how it is to be cooked, consists in removing the feathers, or plucking it, as this operation is called. Plucking can be done dry by simply pulling out the feathers. However, a bird can be plucked more readily if it is first immersed in water at the boiling point for a few minutes. Such water has a tendency to loosen the feathers so that they can be pulled from the skin easily. Unless the chicken is to be used at once, though, dry plucking is preferable to the other method. ”

“ Therefore, since, weight for weight, the food value of fat is much higher than that of protein, it follows that the fish containing the most fat has the highest food value. Fat and protein, as is well known, do not serve the same function in the body, but each has its purpose and is valuable and necessary in the diet. ”