676 MISCELLANEOUS FARM SUBJECTS 



becomes plump and crisp. "With new vegetables this will be only a 

 matter of minutes, while old roots and tubers often require many 

 hours. All vegetables should be thoroughly cleaned just before being 

 put on to cook. Vegetables that form in heads, such as cabbage, 

 cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts, should be soaked, heads turned 

 down, in salted cold water, to which a few spoonfuls of vinegar may 

 be added. If there are any worms or other forms of animal life in 

 these vegetables, they will crawl out. To secure the best results all 

 vegetables except the dried legumes must be put in boiling water, and 

 the water must be made to boil again as soon as possible after the 

 vegetables have been added, and must be kept boiling until the cook- 

 ing is finished. Herbaceous vegetables should boil rapidly all the 

 time. With tubers, roots, cauliflower, etc., the ebullition should not 

 be so violent as to break the vegetables. Green beans and peas when 

 removed from the pod must also be cooked gently, i. e.. just simmer. 

 When the pods and all are used they are to be cooked rapidly, like 

 the herbaceous vegetables. 



To secure the most appetizing and palatable dishes, only fresh 

 tender vegetables should be cooked. If, however, green beans, peas, 

 etc., have grown until a little top old and it still seems best to gather 

 them, a very small piece of baking soda added to the water in which 

 they are boiled makes them more tender, it is commonly believed, 

 and helps to retain the color. Too much soda injures the flavor, and 

 an excess must be carefully avoided. A little soda may also be used 

 to advantage if the water is quite hard. Peas may be boiled for fifteen 

 or twenty minutes in the water to which the soda has been added, 

 then to be cooked as usual. 



During the cooking of all vegetables the cover must be drawn to 

 one side of the stewpan to allow the volatile bodies liberated by the 

 heat to pass off in the steam. All vegetables should be thoroughly 

 cooked, hut the cooking should stop while the vegetable is still firm 

 except when they are cooked in soups, purees (thick strained soups), 

 etc. The best seasoning for most vegetables is salt and good butter. 

 Vegetables that are blanched and then cooked with butter and other 

 seasonings and very little moisture are more savory and nutritious 

 than when all the cooking is done in a good deal of clear water. 



Blanching in cookery is a cooking process often used with vege- 

 tables, since it removes the strong or acrid taste and improves the 

 quality. It is also convenient, since blanching may be done at any 

 time, and the cooking completed in a very short time when the disn 

 is to be served. Drop them into the boiling water, and boil rapidly, 

 with the cover partially or wholly off the stewpan, five to twenty 

 minutes, depending upon the vegetable, then drain off the water. 

 If the cooking of the vegetable is not to be finished at once, pour 

 cold water over the vegetable to cool it quickly, then drain and set 

 aside until needed. If the cooking is to be continued at once, it will 

 not be necessary to rinse the vegetable with cold water. To complete 

 the cooking the vegetable should be put in a small stewpan with but- 

 ter or drippings and the other seasonings and cooked gently until 

 done. A few spoonfuls of liquid will be required for every quart of 



