642 Journal of Agricultural Research vol. vi, no. 17 



could not be minced in this way. Accordingly it was decided to cook 

 the palates before trying to mince them, and tests showed that after 

 boiling for two or three hours they could be easily minced with a meat 

 cutter and that so prepared the texture as well as the flavor was not 

 disagreeable, particularly if the palates were combined with other food 

 materials. 



The average composition of the cooked palates was found to be as 

 follows : Water, 7 1 . 1 per cent ; protein (N X 6.25) ,21.8 per cent (or protein 

 by difference, 22.3 per cent) ; fat, 6.3 per cent; and ash, 0.3 per cent. The 

 material used for analysis weighed before cooking i$}4 ounces and after 

 cooking 14 ounces, the total loss therefore being only i}i ounces. As 

 will be noted by referring to "the percentage composition of the raw 

 material, the boiled palates had, in round numbers, only one-half the 

 fat, one-half the ash, and nine-tenths the protein content of the fresh 

 material. As found by analysis, 50.0 per cent of the ash, 46.6 per cent 

 of the fat, and 11.3 per cent of the protein originally present were 

 removed by cooking. In general, the observed effects are in accord 

 with Grindley's observations 1 that, except for a lowered fat and ash 

 content and the removal of some soluble nitrogenous material, cooked 

 meat has very much the same proximate composition as it has raw. 



The water in which the palates were boiled did not look at all like 

 that in which beef is cooked, but was white in color and not unlike milk 

 in appearance. The character of the nitrogenous constituents present 

 was not studied in detail, but preliminary tests indicated that gelatin 

 predominated, with traces of coagulable albumin, globulin, and primary 

 proteoses. 



Some attention was given to the hard palate fat which floated to the 

 top of the liquor in which the palates were boiled. This hardened on 

 cooling and was purified by remelting several times to remove the sedi- 

 ment. The product had a deep-yellow color, a mild flavor, and an 

 appearance suggesting butter, though rather more granular. It was 

 found to have a melting point of 34 C, an iodin number of 52.53, and 

 a refractive index of 1.4586. 2 The amount obtained was not sufficient 

 for further study. 



The cooked palates had a mild and not unpleasant flavor and in 

 appearance resembled cooked gristle or connective tissue rather than 

 lean meat, this resemblance being noticeable even when the material 

 was finely ground. It was apparent that the cooked palates would be 

 much more acceptable as the principal constituent of the experimental 

 ration if prepared in some savory form, and meat cakes and meat 

 loaf naturally suggested themselves as possibilities. The meat cakes 



1 Grindley, H. S., and Mojonnier, Timothy. Experiments on losses in cooking meat, 1900-1903. U. S. 

 Dept. Agr. Office Exp. Stas. Bui. 141, p. 94. 1904. 



2 Information regarding the structure and composition of the hard palates and the chemical nature of 

 the material extracted during cooking was supplied by the Bureau of Animal Industry. 



