This method is peculiarly adapted for all gelatinous meat, such
knuckles, heads and feet, and for all tough, fibrous meats, because
long=continued, moderate heat, with moisture, is the best way of
bringing gelatine and tough fiber into an eatable condition, and it
will not only make it eatable but palatable. A tough fowl can in this
manner be made presentable, better than by any other. In order to
prevent the extraction of all the juices from the meat in stewing,
the best way is to fry it first; this gives it a good color and mode-
rates the escape of the juices, which is often very desirable. The
thoughtless method of putting it in an excess of water and then let-
ting it boil away, produces miserable results.
In stewing, meat and vegetables are often cooked together, but
as the principles involved in cooking them are difPerent, and they re-
quire different treatment, the best plan is to boil the vegetables first.
118 MEATS
and then use them and their liquor for the stew. Some people have
a prejudice against a " stew." If so, you can dignify it by giving it
a French name, and call it a ragout — but be sure you pronounce it
ra=goo', not ra=gowt.
FRICASSEEINQ.— This means, literally, " to fry." It is usually
applied to a chicken, rabbit or any small animal which is cut up and
fried, either before or after stewing, and served in a well flavored sauce.
FRYING. — There are 2 ways of frying known to cooks as (1)
wet frying, sometimes called French frying or frying in a kettle of
hot fat; and (2) dry frying or cooking in a frying-pan. The best re-
sults are undoubtedly obtained by the first method, although it is
little used in this country. We will describe the 2 methods:
To fry anything by the first, or French method, is to cook it by
immersing it in very hot fat. In fact, just as in boiling we must let
the water cover what is boiled, so in this method we must let the fat
cover what is fried. The same fat will do over and over again, so
that this method is not as expensive as many people imagine. Food
fried in this way comes out quite dry, and without any of the greasy
moisture of frying-pan cookery. An iron sauce=pan or small kettle
must be used, as the heat of the fat melts the solder of a tin i)an.
The rules for good frying are: (1) The fat must be sufficiently
deep to fully cover the article. (2) The fat must be sufiiciently
hot, in fact, it should smoke. (3) When anything is floured before
it is fried, it must not be floured until the last moment before it is
plunged into the fat. (4) When anything is fried that has been
egged and bread^crumbed, it is best to egg and bread-crumb it some
little time before it is fried. (5) Shut the kitchen door and open
the window a little to avoid scenting up the house; this is a practical
point which should be remembered.
Page 85
Presented as published in 1902. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
This method is peculiarly adapted for all gelatinous meat, such knuckles, heads and feet, and for all tough, fibrous meats, because long-continued, moderate heat, with moisture, is the best way of bringing gelatine and tough fiber into an eatable condition, and it will not only make it eatable but palatable. A tough fowl can in this manner be made presentable, better than by any other. In order to prevent the extraction of all the juices from the meat in stewing, the best way is to fry it first; this gives it a good color and moderates the escape of the juices, which is often very desirable. The thoughtless method of putting it in an excess of water and then letting it boil away, produces miserable results.
In stewing, meat and vegetables are often cooked together, but as the principles involved in cooking them are different, and they require different treatment, the best plan is to boil the vegetables first.
and then use them and their liquor for the stew. Some people have a prejudice against a " stew." If so, you can dignify it by giving it a French name, and call it a ragout — but be sure you pronounce it ra-goo', not ra-gowt.
FRICASSEEINQ.— This means, literally, " to fry." It is usually applied to a chicken, rabbit or any small animal which is cut up and fried, either before or after stewing, and served in a well flavored sauce.
FRYING. — There are 2 ways of frying known to cooks as (1) wet frying, sometimes called French frying or frying in a kettle of hot fat; and (2) dry frying or cooking in a frying-pan. The best results are undoubtedly obtained by the first method, although it is little used in this country. We will describe the 2 methods:
To fry anything by the first, or French method, is to cook it by immersing it in very hot fat. In fact, just as in boiling we must let the water cover what is boiled, so in this method we must let the fat cover what is fried. The same fat will do over and over again, so that this method is not as expensive as many people imagine. Food fried in this way comes out quite dry, and without any of the greasy moisture of frying-pan cookery. An iron sauce-pan or small kettle must be used, as the heat of the fat melts the solder of a tin pan. The rules for good frying are: (1) The fat must be sufficiently deep to fully cover the article. (2) The fat must be sufiiciently hot, in fact, it should smoke. (3) When anything is floured before it is fried, it must not be floured until the last moment before it is plunged into the fat. (4) When anything is fried that has been egged and bread-crumbed, it is best to egg and bread-crumb it some little time before it is fried. (5) Shut the kitchen door and open the window a little to avoid scenting up the house; this is a practical point which should be remembered.