Experimental cookery

Steaks. Steaks from 1 to 2 inches in thickness may have a thermometer inserted, the right-angle type being easier to turn for reading as the steak is turned. An interior temperature of 60° to 63°C., when removed from the oven, gives a medium well-done steak. Steaks may be broiled below a gas flame, under an electric heating unit, or over coals, or they may be pan broiled. In broiling, the steak is placed far enough from the heat and 228 MEAT turned often enough to prevent charring or over-browning. If desired, the steak may be turned only once. For a rare or medium well-done steak the cooking temperature does not need to be lowered, but for a well-done steak, or for one thicker than 1^2 inches, the temperature may be lowered after the browning is accomplished. Many people prefer steak cooked at a constant, fairly low temperature. The interior of the medium well-done steak is then more uniform in appearance, being pinkish throughout. Many steaks cooked at high temperatures are likely to have a gray surface layer, a thin pink layer, and an uncooked center portion. The outer surface of the steak does not brown so well at the lower temperature, but these con- noisseurs think this is more than compensated for by the uniformity of the interior of the steak. Increased browning of the surface at the lower tem- perature may be acquired by sprinkling with a small amount of sugar. The searing time and the total cooking time vary with the temperature used, the stage of cookery, and the thickness of the steak. The total time for a medium-done steak 1 inch thick is 7 to 10 minutes when seared. With a low, constant temperature the cooking time for the same steak may be increased to 20 minutes. Chops. Chops of veal, lamb, and pork may be broiled or pan broiled. Thicker chops, at least % inch thick, but mutton, particularly, as thick as 2 inches, are easier to cook without drying out than thin chops. The time of cooking varies with the temperature and the thickness of the chop from about 8 to 30 minutes. Pork and veal are usually cooked well done. Pork chops require about 10 to 20 minutes, and chops of veal and lamb % to 1 inch in thickness about 8 to 15 minutes. Less tender cuts. The less tender cuts are used for pot-roasts, Swiss steak, braised meat dishes, stews, and soups. If ground, the meat is cooked as a tender cut. The less tender cuts are usually cooked by moist heat and at fairly low temperatures. The aim is to cook the meat so that the structural proteins, the connective tissues, are softened yet not completely dissolved and the plasma proteins of the fibers are not made tough, rubbery, or stringy. If this is successful, a tender yet easily sliced meat is the result. If the connective tissues are entirely dissolved, the meat is not slicable. The less tender cuts are often pounded, or seasoned flour is pounded into the meat, or the surface is floured and seared. Pounding appears to be a good means of increasing the tenderness of some of the tougher cuts, particularly those containing a great deal of connective tissue and little fat or when they are not ripened. The flour absorbs and holds moisture; thus to this extent the meat appears less dry. Better grades of less tender cuts containing more fat and cuts from carcasses of younger animals from which rigor has passed do not need to be pounded.