A text-book of cooking

Experiment 28 : Saponification of Fat. — Into a test tube put \ teaspoonful of washing soda and 1 teaspoonful water, then heat until the washing soda is entirely dissolved. Melt 1 teaspoonful of lard and add it to the soda solution. Boil the contents of the tube for a few minutes and then examine it. What substance does the foaming suggest ? What has been formed by the union of fat and soda ? What application can be drawn from this with regard to the use of soda in cleaning utensils that have contained fat ? Wipe out with soft paper the utensil that has held fat. Fill it full of water, add some washing soda, and heat. Empty the water and wash. Do not use washing soda in aluminum utensils. (See Carefully remove bits of food from dishes before washing, p. 18.) Fats for Deep-fat Frying. — Olive oil, cotton seed oil, cottolene, beef drippings, and lard, or a mixture of several fats are used for cooking. The best fat for frying is that which can be heated to a very high temperature without burning. For this reason olive oil is the best and butter the poorest fat for frying. Olive oil is, however, too expensive for practical use. One of the cheaper vegetable fats, or a mixture of one third beef drippings and two thirds lard is perhaps the most advisable for deep-fat frying. Experiment 29: Bread fried in "Foaming" Fat (Class Experiment). — Put some vegetable fat, or lard and suet, in an iron pan and FAT AS A FRYING MEDIUM 79 heat. Note carefully the change that takes place in fat as it heats. When the fat "foams" or bubbles, drop into it a piece of bread. After one minute remove the bread from the fat ; examine the bread by breaking it apart to see if the fat has soaked into the bread. Is it desirable to have the fat soak into fried foods ? What conclusion can you draw as to frying foods in " foaming " fats ? Experiment 30 : The Temperature of Fat for Frying (Class Experiment). — Continue to heat the fat of Experiment 29. When blue fumes begin to rise from the fat, again drop a bit of bread into it. After one minute remove the bread and examine it as above. Has as much fat soaked into it as in the first bit of bread ? What conclusion can you draw from this in regard to the proper temperature for frying foods? Cooked foods and foods needing but little cooking require a higher temperature than batters or other uncooked foods. If a bit of bread is browned in 40 seconds, the fat is of proper temperature for cooked foods and for oysters. If bread is browned in 60 seconds, the fat is of proper temperature for uncooked foods. General Rules for Frying. — Since fat, when heated, reaches such a high temperature, the kettle in which it is heated should be of iron. If there is any moisture on foods, it must be evaporated before the foods brown. Excessive moisture also cools the fat considerably, hence, foods that are to be fried should be as dry as possible. Place the foods to be cooked in a bath of fat deep enough to float them. The kettle should not be too full, however, as fat is apt to bubble over when moist foods are placed in it. Foods may be placed in a frying basket, or they may be lowered into the fat and taken from it with a wire spoon. All fried foods should be drained on paper. When one quantity of food has been removed, the fat should be reheated and its temperature tested before adding the second quantity of food. * Fat used for frying should be cooled and clarified with potato as directed. (See To Clarify Fat, p. 78.) If a coal range is used for heating the fat, sand or ashes and a shovel should be near at hand in case the fat takes fire. If hot fat must be carried or lifted, wrap a towel about the hand before grasping the handle of the kettle. PRIED OYSTERS Large oysters Dried bread crumbs Salt and Pepper Eggs 1 tablespoonful water or oyster juice for each egg