1742 The Cornell Reading Courses 



The efficiency of insulation, the quantity of food, and the rapidity of 

 the transfer from the stove to the cooker, influence the length of time 

 required for the cooking. The temperature to which the radiator is heated 

 also determines to a certain extent the length of time the food should 

 remain in the cooker. The period that gives the best results is more or 

 less definite for each food. However, since individual tastes differ, definite 

 statements in regard to the required time should be verified for each 

 household. 



Care should be given to correct proportions, because there is no oppor- 

 tunity for the evaporation of excess moisture in the cooker. 



Foods, such as pancakes, that require rapid cooking over a hot fire, 

 are not weU suited to the fireless-cooker method. Biscuits may be 

 successfully baked in the cooker, but since the heat required to raise 

 the radiators to the proper temperature will bake the biscuits in an 

 ordinary oven, there seems to be no justification for its use in this case. 

 However, for foods that require long cooking in order to be made more 

 palatable and digestible, the fireless cooker is admirably suited. 



Cereal products, such as rolled oats, cracked wheat, and hominy, give 

 excellent results when cooked in a sufficient quantity of water in a fireless 

 cooker. The first rapid cooking on the stove bursts the starch granules; 

 the long-continued, slow cooking in the fireless cooker softens the fiber 

 and completes the cooking of the starch, thereby making the nutritive 

 matter available for use by the body. 



The tough, and consequently cheap, cuts of meat are equally as nutritious 

 as are the more tender and more expensive cuts, but they require long 

 cooking at a low temperature in order to be made palatable. Intense 

 heat shrinks and hardens meat fiber. The extraction of meat juices for 

 soup, which necessitates long cooking at a low temperature, is well accom- 

 plished in the fireless cooker. If it is desired to retain the juices in the 

 meat, the outside of the meat should be seared for a few minutes at a 

 high temperature; the meat should then be cooked at a temperature 

 somewhat below the boiling point of water until it becomes tender. The 

 meat should be thoroughly heated to the ver}' center before being trans- 

 ferred to the cooker. Fowls are especially good when cooked by this long, 

 slow method. 



Steamed breads and puddings are well' adapted to the fireless-cooker 

 method. 



Hot beverages and sauces may be set aside in the cooker to be kept 

 hot for serving . 



The use of the fireless cooker for canning fruits is recommended by some 

 persons. The juices of fruits may be satisfactorily extracted for jelly 

 making. Various conditions, however, determine the practicability of its 

 use for this purpose. 



