A STUDY OF FOODS 53 



roasting, boiling, or frying. Frying involves the use of fats. 

 Since the average American is said to eat too much fat, and 

 since frying tends to make foods indigestible, this is doubt- 

 less the poorest method of preparing meat, and hence we 

 shall not discuss it further. 



Reasons for cooking Meats. The reasons for cooking meat 

 are these : (1) proper cooking loosens and softens the fibers, 

 thus preparing the meat for mastication and for the action 

 of the digestive juices ; (2) heat kills the bacteria and other 

 parasites (tapeworms and roundworms or trichina) that are 

 sometimes found in foods of animal origin; (3) cooking 

 makes the meat more attractive in appearance and often 

 improves its flavor ; and (4) cooked meat is more completely 

 digested. It is probably true, however, that raw or partly 

 cooked meats are more easily digested ; for this reason rare 

 meat is usually given to invalids. 



Soups. If we wish to obtain nutritious soups, the meat 

 should be cut into rather small pieces and first put into 

 cold water to which a little salt has been added. A small 

 proportion of the albuminous substances, and large amounts 

 of so-called "extractives," or flavoring matters, are drawn 

 out by the water and salt, and since the meat is in small 

 pieces, a considerable proportion of the mineral matters is 

 thus dissolved. When we warm the mixture, we cause the 

 fats to melt, and when it is boiled, much of the tough con- 

 nective tissue is made more or less soluble by being turned 

 into gelatin. The soups thus obtained, which are rich in 

 proteids, fats, and mineral matters, are made more palatable 

 by the addition of vegetables and condiments. 



The meat which is left after the soup has been prepared 

 is, of course, more or less tasteless. Only small percent- 

 ages, however, of the nutrients have been withdrawn ; hence 

 the soup meat should not be thrown away, but should be 

 used for making hash, as described on p. 59. 



Boiling Meats. When the meat itself is to be eaten, and 

 the broth is not to be used, the whole piece should be plunged 



