PURE AND IMPURE FOOD. 



«« What a Man Eats He Is." 

 Edited by C. F. Langworthy, Ph. D. 

 Author of "On Citraconic, Itaconic and Mesaconic Acids," "Fish as Food," etc. 



THE WAY TO BOIL MEAT. 

 If, in cooking, meat is placed in water 

 cold at the start, part of the organic salts, 

 the soluble albumen and the extractives, or 

 flavoring matters, will 'be dissolved out. A 

 little lactic acid will be formed, which acts 

 on the meat and changes some of the in- 

 soluble matters into materials which may- 

 be dissolved out. The extent of this ac- 

 tion and the total quantity of materials 

 which actually go into the solution depend 

 on 3 things : the extent of surface exposed 

 to the water, the temperature of the water, 

 and the length of time of the exposure. 

 Small pieces of meat, long continued cook- 

 ing and very hot water all result in rich 

 broth and tasteless meat. If the water is 

 heated gradually, more and more of the 

 soluble materials are dissolved. At a tem- 

 perature of about 134 degrees Fahr. the sol- 

 uble albumen will begin to coagulate. At 

 160 degrees Fahr. the dissolved albumen 

 will rise as a brownish scum to the top and 

 the liquid will become clear. Upon heat- 

 ing still higher, the connective tissues be- 

 gin to change into gelatin and are partly 

 dissolved out; while the insoluble albu- 

 minoids are coagulated. The longer the 

 action of the hot water continues, the 

 tougher and more tasteless the meat be- 

 comes, but the better the broth. Treated in 

 this way, flesh may lose over 40 per cent, 

 by weight. This loss is principally water, 

 but 5 to 8 per cent, may be made up of the 

 soluble albumen, gelatin, mineral matters, 

 organic acids x muscle sugar, and flavoring 

 materials. Part of the melted fat also goes 

 into the broth. 



It would be a great mistake to assume 

 that meat, thus boiled, which is nearly a 

 tasteless mass of fibers left undissolved by 

 the water, has no nutritive value. The 

 tasteless material has been found to be as 

 easily and completely digested as the same 

 weight of ordinary roast. It contains 

 nearly all the protein of the meat, and, if 

 it is properly combined with vegetables, 

 salt, and flavoring materials, makes an 

 agreeable as well as nutritive food. 



If a piece of meat is plunged into boil- 

 ing water or very hot fat, the albumen 

 on the entire surface of the meat is quickly 

 coagulated, and the enveloping crust thus 

 formed resists the dissolving action of 

 water and prevents the escape of the juices 

 and flavoring matters. The meat retains 

 most of its flavoring matters, and has the 

 desired meaty taste. The resulting broth 

 is correspondingly weak. 



The foregoing statements will be of 

 much help in the rational cooking of meats 

 in water. The treatment depends largely 

 on what it is desired to do. It is impos- 

 sible to make a rich broth and have a 

 juicy, highly flavored piece of boiled meat 

 at the same time. If the meat, only, is to 

 be used, the cooking in water should be as 

 follows : Plunge the cut at once into a 

 generous supply of boiling water and keep 

 the water at the boiling point, or as near 

 boiling as possible, for 10 minutes, in order 

 to coagulate the albumen and seal the 

 pores of the meat. The coating thus 

 formed will prevent the solvent action of 

 the water and the escape of the soluble al- 

 bumen and juices from the inner portions 

 of the meat. But if the action of the boil- 

 ing water should be continued, the whole 

 interior of the meat would, in time be 

 brought near the temperature of boiling 

 water, and all the albumen would be co- 

 agulated and rendered hard. Instead of 

 keeping the water at the boiling point, 212 

 degrees Fahr., therefore, the temperature 

 should be allowed to fall to about 180 de- 

 grees Fahr., when the meat could be thor- 

 oughly cooked without becoming hard. A 

 longer time will be required for cooking 

 meat in this way, but the albumen will not 

 be firmly coagulated and the flesh will be 

 tender and juicy instead of tough and dry, 

 as will be the case when the water is kept 

 boiling, or nearly boiling, during the entire 

 time of cooking. 



In boiling delicate fish, as salmon or 

 halibut, the plunging into boiling water is 

 objectionable because the motion of the 

 boiling water tends to break the fish into 

 small pieces. Fish should be first put into 

 water that is on the point of boiling. The 

 water should be kept at this temperature a 

 few minutes and then allowed to fall to 180 

 deg., as in the case of meats. Fish may 

 be conveniently boiled in a fish basket 

 made for the purpose. 



If both the broth and the meat are to be 

 used, the process of cooking should be 

 quite different from that outlined for boil- 

 ing meat. Stewing is in this country a 

 much undervalued method of cooking. 

 This is due partly to the fact that stewing 

 is generally improperly done, and partly to 

 the general aversion which, consciously or 

 unconsciously, Americans have to made 

 dishes of any kind. This aversion prob- 

 ably has its origin in a false notion which 

 spurns economy or any attempt at economy 

 in the diet. 



395 



