Domestic

New Zealand Tablet, 9 February 1911, Page 257

Domestic

By MAUREEN

Various Methods of Cooking.

Baking. Baking is one of the oldest modes of cookiii" on record for bread has been baked from time immemorial, .and according to the Scriptures baking was known more than 3600 years ago. It is a most convenient form of cooking. Baking is cooking in hot air, and hot air plays a very important part in cooking; although baking in a close oven is not done by radiant heat, there is a great amount of heat radiated from the sides of the oven and liorn the top and bottom. The hot air in an oven is likely to become tainted with the fumes of burnt grease and smoke, _ whicn too often communicates disagreeable flavors to things baked, more especially to meats. This can be avoided to a large extent if the oven is kept scrupulously clean and well ventilated. For roasting, braising, baking vif.’i I cakes P as . tr .V, puddings, custards, savory meats, vegetable and farinaceous dishes, the oven will always remamm . favor. In baking,, especially puff pastry and souffles, it is well to know that opening the door of an oven is detrimental to fine pastry, in process of baking. In fact, the mere slamming of an oven door is often sufficient to 111 aae puff paste drop Hat and lose its lightness on the spot, so that nothing will make it rise again. Baked custaids and milk puddings will require a more moderate oven than pastry, and a longer time in baking, for if they are baked too quickly the milk will turn-watery in the dish while tie top will burn. The difference between baking and boding is that by the former method the food is cooked V dry heat, while by the latter it, is cooked by liquid heat. 1 aking, as compared with other cooking processes such as broiling and roasting, differs in this: while by bro Him and roasting the food cooked by full exposure to the hot air baking is performed in ovens, more or loss close structures’ hereby the action of dry heat is modified by the presence of the steam that comes from the food ..which is being baked. Roasting.—Roasting is cooking before the. fire and must be distinguished from baking. The intense heat of the fire, combined with the free action of the hot air produces and imparts that savory taste and fine flavor which is quite unlike that obtained in any other wav. The success of every method of cooking depends largely upon the correct management of the fire, and in roasting this is parAssent i d tu V aSt V- 88 r f ear ’ b r sk ’- and yet steady fii? is ssential. Roasting i )(, ° re a hre is cooking by radiated eat inunely the . heat rays coming from the fire are caught by the join., hanging before it. This can be done by either a close 01 open, range. I o roast a joint, it should be placed outsido K of a tl leUt 1 + 1 ’ th r i first 011 "dilutes, to harden the outside ol the meat and keep 111 the juices, and then be Jl °f'h! d i t() cook 111010 slowly. If allowed to cook quickly ail the time the meat is likely to be tough. The neat (if S 8 annuals “T, 1 that of old ones require different treatment. As a rule young flesh, containing less fihrine requires longer cooking. White meat, such as pork veal bo served’ rare iI"T be - ' Xe + \ l cooked > aild must’never served rare. Hashing is the worst use that can ho made of meat, which, by the two processes it has been put be' eaten as^uchl r ° Ughly -digestible. Cold meat should

"ice Cooking.—Although this term is not used now the ptocess is nevertncless largely practised. Very tough meat and some fash, also some kinds of game, are said to become improved in f avor by twice cooking, with an interval of one day. Indeed, when cooking is performed on a large scale most of 10 dishes served are in a manner twice cooked. Wo have two examples to quote— viz. : Biscuit and toast where this method is employed. The biscuit is perhaps the oldest example for ‘ bis ’ means twice and emt means baked or cooked, though this word is now but seldom used in the literal sense. Toast however selves as a good example of twice cooking; so do pulled bread and rusks. In these articles the change to cl" vtrine V* more complete than in once baked bread or biscuits, and thcieforo the rood becomes more soluble. 3 <- cl

Cooking in Stoneware.—Stone or earthenware coolcimr appliances are used to very great advantage for various (or„, s of preparing food. For the homely pot-an-feu ti e lend] housewife has used fireproof earthenware dishes for generations, and does so to-dav. But besides les tor various savory dishes and all sorts of stows are °? P * S ’ stoneware pots. Indeed, so much- has this form of conkcrv come into fashion that many dislies are sent to taMe y the pots in which they are cooked Cookimr in bl m has no equal where slow cooking is aimed "at .“Id? 8 are many dishes which one would do well to refrafn fc® attempting unless cooked in this fashion from

_ ~WIIH W IIH m* V in —WH I Imi m miwr» i 111 ■lllMi—LJl im—naiimtMWW wt llH | iM l fnW** r *^^** l