Choice and Care of Utensils 1333 



soap. It is important that the inside rather than the outside of the utensil 

 be smooth, polished, and consequently easy to clean. The opening should 

 be wide enough to permit easy access to every part of the utensil. Our 

 modern teakettles, made of smooth, nonabsorbent material, with an open- 

 ing large enough to admit the whole hand, are sanitary and time-saving 

 examples of this. They offer no excuse for leaving the teakettle unemptied 

 and undried, with beads of slowly condensing steam roughening and rust- 

 ing it. 



Given a well-made utensil, much of the ease of cleaning depends on 

 the preparatory care that we give before beginning to use it and on the 

 care that we take of it after it is in use. This subject will be taken up 

 with the different metals in turn. 



Is the utensil of proper size and shape for the amount and kind of cook- 

 ing to be done? The pan that makes an ideal omelet for three persons 

 would produce a very unevenly cooked dish if used for an omelet for 

 six. The breakfast cereal for a small family, if put into a large kettle 

 in the tireless cooker, would soon lose its small stock of heat and remain 

 raw. The latter contingency may be avoided in the following way: 

 Have boiling water in the kettle that fits the cooker, set a smaller kettle 

 containing the boiling cereal inside this, cover both closely, and pack 

 the cooker in the usual way. 



If a gas or an oil stove is used, the size of the bottom of the utensil 

 greatly affects economy of fuel, time of cooking, and quality of the finished 

 product. If the flame spreads beyond the edge of the utensil, heat is 

 wasted. If the flame strikes only one point, there is danger of scorching 

 food and utensil at that point ; this leaves part of the product underdone 

 unless constantly stirred into the area of heat. If utensils fail to fit the 

 burner, a thin stove-lid of the proper size may be placed over the flame. 



The time needed for evaporation, or boiling down, depends on the amount 

 of surface exposed; hence, evaporation will go on more rapidly in a utensil 

 that flares at the top than in one whose top and bottom are of the same 

 size. The contents of a utensil made of material that is a good con- 

 ductor of heat, such as aluminum, will boil down more rapidly than if 

 put into an agate-ware utensil of the same size. 



Is the utensil safe as a food receptacle? There must be no risk of form- 

 ing poisonous compounds. As an illustration: We avoid the use of an 

 iron utensil in canning and preserving, because we know that iron and 

 fruit acids together form a harmful compound. But this caution should 

 go a step further. If an enamel kettle has become chipped, so that the 

 iron foundation and the acid can combine, it is best not to use it for cook- 

 ing acid foods; even if the danger to health is slight, there remains the 

 possible economic loss through impaired flavor or through scorching, as 

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