Foods, their selection and preparation

2. Heat a small amount of fat in the pan or allow the fat from the meat to accumulate. Any meat that has a coating of flour, meal, or egg and crumbs and meats that are very low in fat, such as liver or cubed steak, will need fat added. On the other hand, it will not be necessary to add fat for a slice of ham or for a pork chop unless the chop is breaded. 3. Keep fat below the smoking point. When fat smokes, it is burning or breaking down. Such a temperature is too high not only for the fat, but also for the meat. A thermom¬ eter is helpful in determining the tempera¬ ture of the fat in deep-fat frying. 4. Do not cover the meat. Frying is another dry-heat rfiethod of cooking. If covered, the meat is braised, and its crispness, which is one object in frying, is lost. It is true that the meat will be less tender than if a cover is used ; but in frying there is some sacrifice of tenderness in order to obtain crispness and a desired flavor. 5. Coo\ at moderate temperature and turn occasionally. Turning is necessary in pan¬ frying, as it is in pan- broiling, to insure even cooking. 6. Coo\ until browned on both sides and the meat is done. The difficulty in frying is to cook the meat through while it is brown¬ ing. Time may be used as a guide to the degree of doneness; also, for practical pur¬ poses, a gash may be cut close to the bone — if there is bone — to observe the color of the meat and juice. How to Fry in Deep Fat: 1. Use a deep kettle and a frying basket. There should be enough fat to cover the meat completely; a wire basket is needed to lower the meat into the fat and to remove it from the fat when done. [200] 2. Heat fat to frying temperature. Suitable temperatures for deep-fat frying of meat range from 300° to 350° F., depending upon the size of the pieces and whether the meat is uncooked or left over. A frying ther¬ mometer is desirable. 3. Using the frying basket, lower a few uniform pieces of meat at a time , gradually , into the hot fat. Before being placed in the basket, the meat may be coated with egg and crumbs or a batter, or dredged with flour or corn meal. This increases the browning and adds to the crispness and flavor. 4. Brown meat and cook it through. When the meat is covered with fat, no turning is necessary and both sides are cooked at once. The cooking time, therefore, is less than in pan-frying. 5. When done , drain fat from meat into kettle before removing meat from basket. This is another use of the basket. 6. Strain fat through cloth and cool. Cover and store in refrigerator. The life of fat used for frying will be much longer if crumbs and other food particles are removed. The fat should be strained after each use. How to Braise. Braising is a method for cooking the less tender meat cuts. Some tender cuts also are good braised. These include the following: pork chops, steaks, and cutlets; veal chops, steaks, and cutlets; and pork liver. The following steps show how to braise, whether a large pot roast or a thin cut is being cooked: 1. Brown meat slowly on all sides in heavy utensil. The browning develops flavor and color. To intensify the browning, the meat may be dredged with flour; then it is neces¬ sary to add fat to the pan. A slow browning is better than a quick browning at high tem¬ perature.