vegetables and seasoning. Strain, set stock aside to cool—discard
bones, reserving vegetables and meat portions, which are still rich in
food value, for further use in pressed loaves. A bit of Extract of Beef
will add the desired meat flavor.
Stock is used as the foundation for all meat and vegetable soups. Cream
soups have white sauce as a foundation with the vegetable purée added.
CANNED SOUPS
[Illustration: Cream of Tomato Soup]
So much time is consumed in preparing soup that the great variety
of high quality canned soups are a welcome addition to Madam Home
Manager’s Labor Savers.
_Armour’s Extract of Beef makes excellent soup stock or
bouillon_
MEAT COOKERY
(_See pages 7, 8 and 9 for Meat Charts_)
To be sure of success in meat cookery, know first the structure of the
cut of meat you are to prepare, then use a standard tested method for
making that cut tender, flavory and juicy.
Always have a good fire before placing meat over the heat, for all meat
cookery requires the greatest heat first to seal the appetizing juices
in. Your skill will be shown in your first ten minutes of handling.
The short fibered cuts comprising the loin cuts, porterhouse, and
club steaks may be given the entire short cooking over a hot fire.
Practically all the other cuts on the carcass require long moist
cooking after the searing process.
All boiling pieces should be put into boiling water first and after ten
minutes’ brisk boiling, the heat should be reduced so that the meat
simmers until the connective tissue softens and the meat is tender and
just right for carving. Too long brisk boiling makes the meat stringy.
Roasts should be cooked on the same principle. Put into the hot oven
for fifteen minutes, then reduce the heat and cook the cut slowly,
basting frequently. Steaks and chops that are to be pan broiled, should
be put on a hot pan and quickly turned so as to sear and brown evenly,
then allowed to cook through, over the hot fire. As salt draws the
juices out of meats it should not be added until after the first ten or
fifteen minutes of cooking, when the meat is thoroughly seared.
METHODS
BROILING
This process of cooking subjects the meat, fish or poultry to the
direct rays of the fire, quickly searing and browning the meat; this is
the approved method of cooking tender steaks and chops, fish and spring
chicken. An intense, even heat is necessary.
PAN BROILING
A very hot frying pan is used without addition of any fat; chops and
steaks are cooked in this way.
ROASTING AND BAKING
Roasting is oven cooking in an uncovered pan. Baking differs only in
the fact that the pan is covered, thus making the cooking self basting.
Prime ribs, loin or leg, and fowl, are roasted; rump, short ribs and
shoulder are frequently baked.
POT ROASTING
Wipe the meat, dredge with flour and brown the entire surface in a
little fat, place the meat on a rack in a deep kettle and cover with
boiling water. Cook with vegetables and seasoning, adding vegetables at
intervals to allow for the perfect cooking of each class of vegetables
by the time the meat is done. Place cover on kettle and simmer slowly
about four hours. Serve with the thickened liquor.
BOILING
Cooking in liquid at 212° F. is boiling. Meat should never be boiled
rapidly, as the fibers become tough and the tissues dissolved. To have
boiled meats tasty and juicy, plunge the meat into boiling water and
cook for ten minutes, then lower the heat and cook slowly until tender.
An excellent way to cook shank, clod, shoulder plate, brisket or neck.
A fireless cooker is practical for this type of cookery. A pressure
cooker makes it possible to cook a tough fowl or cut of meat in a very
short time.
BRAISING
Cooking in a closely covered pan in the oven is termed braising; a
small amount of water is used. The meat is usually sautéed first, to
prevent escape of much juice. Vegetables are often cooked with the
meat. The temperature should be kept low. It is an excellent way for
cooking spareribs, brisket, rump, shoulder or chuck roast. Besides
stewing or boiling, it is an excellent way to prepare the tough cuts.
SAUTÉING
Pan frying in just enough fat to brown the foods nicely and keep them
from sticking to the pan is called sautéing. Fish, steaks, chops and
potatoes are cooked by this method.
STEWING
Meat for a stew, such as neck, clod, shank, brisket or chuck, can be
cut in small pieces, browned to hold in juices before cooking in the
boiling water; or, omitting that process, put directly in a small
amount of hot water and cooked at a low temperature for a long time.
All nutriment is retained in the meat.
DEEP FRYING
For this method of cooking, an iron kettle is best. Half fill the
kettle with fat and place over fire; melt and, when a slight blue vapor
arises, test with a small cube of bread. If bread browns in one minute,
the temperature is right for uncooked mixtures (doughnuts). If it
browns in forty seconds, it is right for cooked materials (croquettes).
The temperature of the fat should average 350-400 degrees F. Keep the
temperature even; if too cool, the food will soak fat; if too hot,
both fat and material to be cooked will burn. Foods cooked in deep fat
should be drained on brown paper.
_Armour Meats are U. S. Government inspected and passed_
A FEW MEAT RECIPES
ROAST CHUCK
Serves 5. Preparation 3 hours.
4 lbs. chuck (2 first ribs of chuck, cut across)
¼ tsp. pepper
⅛ c. thinly sliced onion
2 tbsp. flour
⅛ tsp. allspice
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. salt
Dredge the roast with flour. Rub skillet with suet and, when pan is
hot, quickly sear roast on all sides. Add seasonings, except salt.
Roast in hot oven for fifteen minutes, sprinkle with salt, lower heat
and cook slowly until tender. Baste every twenty minutes, adding a
little boiling water if necessary.
[Illustration: Prime Ribs of Beef and Browned Potatoes]
POT ROAST OF BEEF WITH SPAGHETTI
Serves 6. Preparation 4 hours.
4 to 5 lbs. rump of beef
1 lb. spaghetti
2 qts. canned tomatoes
¼ lb. beef suet
1 large onion
1 large green pepper
Grated American cheese
2 slices of bacon
3 bay leaves
6 cloves
2 cloves of garlic
1 c. hot water
salt and pepper
Cut the suet and bacon fine and fry. Add the onion, garlic and green
pepper chopped quite fine and fry. When beginning to brown, add the
meat, turning it so that it will be well browned on all sides. Then
add the hot water, tomatoes and the seasoning. Simmer gently for three
hours, add 2 tsp. salt and a quarter tsp. pepper at the end of an
hour and a half. Half an hour before the meat is finished, boil the
spaghetti till tender, drain it and put it into the sauce surrounding
the meat. Let cook 10 minutes. For serving, put the meat on a platter
and the sauce in a dish, grating American cheese thickly over the top.
ROLLED FLANK STEAK
Serves 5. Preparation 1 hour.
1 flank steak (2 pounds)
1 cup bread dressing
Wipe steak. Score across grain with sharp knife. Rub with flour and
brown; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread one side with bread
dressing, well seasoned. Roll up and fasten with skewers or tie with a
cord. Place in a casserole, add one-fourth cup boiling water and let
bake slowly until tender. Slice and serve with the gravy.
ROAST SHOULDER OF MUTTON
Serves 5. Preparation 3 hours.
Five-pound shoulder roast
Salt, garlic, pepper and flour
Wipe meat. Sear quickly to seal in juices. Sprinkle with salt and
pepper. Cut garlic in two pieces and place on meat. Dredge both meat
and bottom of pan with flour. Place roast on rack in roasting pan,
and add hot water. Place in hot oven and baste every fifteen minutes.
Lower gas after the first twenty minutes’ cooking, and cook slowly
until tender. Keep meat covered and about three-fourths pint of water
in the pan, as the steaming will help make the meat tender. Cook at low
temperature.
BAKED HAM
Serves 20. Preparation 6-7 hours. (12 pounds.)
Set ham on a rack in a baking pan and bake one-half hour in a hot oven,
turning after the first fifteen minutes. Lower heat. Pour a cupful of
cider over ham and let bake five hours, basting often with the liquid
in the pan. Remove from the oven and skin. Insert cloves in the fat
of the ham, from which the skin has been taken; press these into the
ham in a symmetrical manner. Mix half a cupful of brown sugar with
half a teaspoon of pepper and half a cupful of fine cracker crumbs and
sprinkle over the portion containing the cloves; return the ham to the
oven for one hour.
_The cheaper cuts of meat are nutritious and can be
made as tasty as the expensive cuts_
HUNGARIAN GOULASH
Serves 5. Preparation 2½ hours.
2 lbs. beef (shoulder clod)
Salt
Flour
¼ lb. fat salt pork
Boiling water
2 cups tomatoes
1 sliced onion
1 stalk celery
Bit of bay leaf
4 cloves
2 cups sliced potatoes
1½ cups carrots
1 green pepper
Parsley
Wipe beef, cut in two-inch pieces, and roll in flour. Cut salt pork in
dice and fry until light brown. Add beef and cook until meat is well
browned, stirring constantly. Add salt and enough boiling water to
prevent burning, and cook slowly two hours or until tender. In another
dish cook tomatoes, onion, chopped celery, bay leaf and cloves for
thirty minutes. Add two tbsp. flour, mixed until smooth with two tbsp.
cold water, and cook thoroughly. Add to meat. Remove meat to center of
platter, surround it with potato slices and carrots cut in strips and
cooked until tender in boiling salted water, and add the green pepper
parboiled and cut in strips. Pour gravy over the meat; garnish with
parsley.
STEAKS
BROILED SIRLOIN STEAK
Serves 6-7. Preparation 10 minutes.
3½ lbs. steak
½ tsp. salt
⅛ tsp. pepper
2 tbsp. butter
Wipe meat with cloth wrung out of cold water. Remove superfluous fat
and use to grease the broiler. Have broiler very hot. Place meat on
broiler about three inches from the heat, which should be even, whether
it is coal, gas or electricity. Turn meat every ten seconds at first,
that the surface may be well seared and prevent the escape of the
juices.
Steak 1½ inches thick will require 10 minutes if desired rare, 12 to 15
minutes if preferred well done.
[Illustration]
PLANKED RUMP STEAK
Serves 5-6. Preparation 25 minutes.
1 cross cut of rump steak (1¾ inches thick)
2 tbsp. butter
½ tsp. salt
2 c. small beets
⅛ tsp. pepper
6 slices tomato
6 slices lemon
6 stuffed olives
6 potatoes
Wipe steak, remove superfluous fat, and pan broil seven minutes. Grease
an oak plank and arrange, close to the edge, a border of mashed
potatoes, pressed through a pastry bag. Remove steak to plank, put into
a hot oven, and bake until steak is cooked and potatoes are browned.
Spread steak with butter, salt and pepper, and garnish with parsley,
lemon and olives. Arrange beets and other vegetables, if desired, on
the side.
[Illustration: Grilled Sirloin Steak]
MEAT SAUCES AND GRAVY
Use the meat juices left from cooked meat or fowl, removing any excess
fat. Extract of beef may be substituted for meat juices in gravy.
After removing meat and excess fat from the roasting pan or skillet,
heat meat juices to boiling and thicken carefully. To avoid lumpy
gravy, the best way is to mix the flour with a small amount of water,
stirring until smooth, then gradually adding more cold water until
the thickening is of the right consistency. Add gradually to the hot
liquid, stirring constantly.
Allow mixture to cook ten minutes. Gravy should be cooked thoroughly to
avoid any raw or starchy taste, too common to American gravies.
Season carefully, according to the meats gravy is to be served with. It
is wise to taste before serving.
The distinctive touch French chefs are noted for in their meat and
fish dishes is often due to the sauce accompanying them. Any careful
American cook can acquire the same reputation for skill by following
the suggestions to cook thoroughly and season distinctively.
FOUNDATION RECIPE FOR CREAM SAUCES FOR MEATS, FISH AND VEGETABLES
Thin Sauce 1 tbsp. fat, 1 tbsp. flour to ½ pt. liquid
Medium “ 2 tbsp. fat, 2 tbsp. flour to ½ pt. liquid
Thick “ 3 tbsp. fat, 3 tbsp. flour to ½ pt. liquid
=Method of Preparation=—Melt fat, add flour, stir until smooth. Add
liquid gradually, stirring constantly. Place over hot water until
the starch is well cooked and the sauce is smooth and of the desired
thickness. Season to taste.
_For variety, serve some of the extra meat portions
each week—see page 15_
HOW TO COOK POULTRY
(_See pages 13 and 40_)
SELECTION OF YOUNG FOWL
The flesh of young fowl is smooth. The claws and feet are usually light
yellow in color and are very supple. A breastbone which bends easily
indicates young fowl. Fowl should be plump, but not over plump. If fowl
is exceptionally fat at the crop, it indicates large inner organs. They
weigh heavily, and therefore are poor purchases.
PREPARATION FOR COOKERY
Care should be taken that the fowl is drawn and thoroughly cleansed.
This is often attended to by the local butcher, but special care and
attention is also needed in the home.
The pin feathers must all be removed and the fowl singed. All blood
clots, portions of lungs, etc., should be removed. Hold fowl under
faucet, and let water from faucet rush through it to remove any
clinging portions.
TERMS USED IN SELECTING FOWL
Chicken—Term applied to fowls under ten months.
Broilers—Young spring chickens about six months old.
Fowl—Term including chicken, turkey, goose and duck.
Pullet—Young hen. Term including fowl up to the age of one year.
Capon—Specially fattened male chicken.
METHODS OF COOKING
ROASTING
Chicken and turkey being dry meat, require frequent bastings. The
grease which accumulates in the roasting of geese must be poured off
from time to time. This should be clarified and carefully saved for
use in pastries and as spreads. Strips of salt pork or bacon if placed
across turkey or chicken baste the fowl as well as flavor it.
STEWING
Older fowl is best when stewed. The fowl should be put into boiling
water, seasoning added, and gently cooked at the simmering point for
several hours before the vegetables are added. Cook until the meat is
very tender. Add dumplings the last twenty minutes.
BROILING
Fowl that is to be broiled should be brushed well with oil and allowed
to stand in cool place some time before broiling. Sprinkling with
lemon juice also tends to make it tender as well as flavors the fowl.
Strips of bacon laid across the top baste the fowl. Turn frequently to
insure thorough cooking.
FRYING
Select young fowl for frying. Long, slow cooking is needed to
thoroughly cook the fowl. The portions are dipped in egg and crumbs to
protect them from the high heat of the pan and so keep them tender. Use
a shallow griddle and add bacon fat as necessary.
DRESSING A FOWL
In order that the legs, wings, and neck of fowl will not dry out, it is
well to truss the fowl for roasting.
Fold back the wings so that they form a “V” on the back. Fold the neck
back so that it fits beneath the wings. Fasten with twine. Bend back
legs and fasten them close to the rump. Also fasten joints close to
the body. If dressing is to be used, stuff in body and then sew up the
openings. A trussing or darning needle threaded with twine makes the
matter of trussing quite simple.
FROZEN FOWL
If fowl is purchased frozen, thaw in pan of cold water or place in
refrigerator for six hours and then dress in the usual manner. Frozen
fowl handled by a nationally recognized food organization has been
carefully selected and possesses a delicate flavor.
PRESSURE COOKERY OF FOWL
Fowl may be fried or stewed in the pressure cooker. The foods are
made ready as in the ordinary method and are placed in the bottom of
the cooker. Vegetables or cereals may be placed on the rack above and
cooked at the same time. The lid is then adjusted and the pressure
raised to about 18 pounds and then kept there for thirty minutes. Fowl
that is old is quickly cooked tender in a pressure cooker.
WAYS OF SERVING LEFT-OVER FOWL
Fricassee, creamed chicken, chicken à la king, croquettes, soufflé of
fowl, timbales, en casserole, salad, pilaff, patties, cold jellied loaf
with vegetables, club sandwiches, hot chicken sandwiches, fritters,
dumplings, pot pie, cottagers’ pie, pan roast, boned stuffed chicken,
soup, country fried, pressed chicken, forcemeat, blanketed, curry,
cutlets, gumbo, scalloped, stew.
_Armour’s Veribest Poultry, the choice of the
discriminating housewife_
SALADS
Salads are combinations of meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, or fruits and
nuts with a dressing.
Mayonnaise should not be added to salad until just before serving, as
it may liquefy. It is most satisfactory to mix each ingredient in a
fruit or vegetable salad with the dressing separately and combine at
the last moment.
Green vegetables, such as lettuce, should not have dressing added until
just before serving.
The flavor of meat and fish salads is improved by marinating in French
dressing before combining with other materials.
CARE OF MATERIALS
LETTUCE AND OTHER SALAD GREENS
Wash and pick over carefully as soon as brought from garden or market.
Wrap in a wet tea towel or in salad bag and place on the ice or in cold
place to keep fresh.
To keep parsley or other garnishes fresh, place in a fruit jar,
sprinkle with cold water and cover tightly. The greens will remain
fresh as long as there is moisture in the jar.
SALAD DRESSINGS
FRENCH
A mixture of salad oil, two parts, with one part vinegar and salt and
pepper to taste.—Suitable for almost all salads.
CHEESE
To a French dressing add one part of one of the stronger varieties of
cheese, crumbled.—Suitable for lettuce salad.
MAYONNAISE
Salad oil, eggs, a small amount of lemon juice, or vinegar and
seasoning whipped together to form a thick dressing.—Suitable for
chicken, Waldorf, cream cheese, fruit, Macedoine, asparagus, celery and
other salads.
BOILED
Milk, eggs, mustard, vinegar and seasonings cooked together to form a
dressing of the consistency of soft custard.—Suitable for potato or
cabbage salad, and salads where oil dressing is not liked.
RUSSIAN
To one cup of boiled dressing add one-fourth cup of ground ham, 2
tablespoons of caviar, 1 tablespoon of shallots, horseradish and grape
juice, and season with sour cream, sugar, pepper and salt.—Suitable for
vegetable salads.
THOUSAND ISLAND
A mayonnaise dressing to which is added pimento, green peppers, chili
sauce, Worcestershire sauce, pickles and whipped cream.—Suitable for
lettuce, endive, and watercress.
WHIPPED CREAM DRESSING
Whipped cream added to a small proportion of boiled dressing or
mayonnaise dressing. =Use=—For fruit salad, chicken salad, and other
meats of delicate flavor.
SALAD COMBINATIONS
MATERIALS DRESSING WHEN TO SERVE
FRUIT
Waldorf—Apple, celery, Whipped cream Luncheon, dinner or
nuts and dressing dressing light dinner
Half pear filled with “ Luncheon or heavy
chopped fruit dinner
Mixed fruits—orange, “ Luncheon or to replace
pineapple, dates, banana dessert for dinner
CHEESE
American cheese cut in Boiled dressing Main luncheon dish or
cubes, peas, gherkins light dinner
Celery stuffed with cream French dressing Luncheon or course
cheese dinner
Cheese and nut balls “ “
lettuce
Lettuce, grated cheese Mayonnaise “
Pineapple slice with French dressing Serve with baked ham
cheese ball dinner
FISH
Tuna and diced celery Mayonnaise Main luncheon dish or
with light dinner
Fresh watercress, minced
onion, shredded finnan French dressing “
haddie
Salmon en French dressing “
mayonnaise—asparagus
tips
VEGETABLE
Any vegetable fresh, French dressing Luncheon, dinner or to
canned or cooked or mayonnaise replace second vegetable
dressing at dinner
[Illustration: Salmon Salad
Salads make an ideal main dish—and always add variety]
_For a fine flavored salad dressing use Armour’s
Veribest Salad Oil_
SOME HEARTY MEAT SUBSTITUTES
EGGS
Although hens’ eggs are more commonly in use, the eggs of ducks, geese,
guinea fowl and turkeys are all used as food.
USES
The various uses of eggs in cooking may be listed as follows:
1 As a substitute for meat
2 To clear soup and coffee
3 To thicken sauces, etc.
4 To make certain foods light, omelet, soufflés
5 As a garnish
6 To improve flavor
7 To color certain foods
8 To glaze breads, rolls, etc.
9 As a leavening agent in baking
PRINCIPLES OF COOKERY
In cooking eggs, heat produces a change in both color and in firmness,
the firmness, or hardness, depending on the temperature and length of
time cooked. The change which takes place in the egg albumen is called
coagulation. A high temperature for any continued length of time will
produce a leathery consistency, which necessitates a longer time for
digestion.
Soft-cooked eggs digest more quickly and more satisfactorily than do
eggs prepared any other way.
The margin is slight, however, and the stomach takes care of all kinds
of cooked eggs.
WAYS OF COOKING AND TIME REQUIRED TO DIGEST
Hours to Digest
1 Boiled { Soft 3
{ Hard 3½
2 Poached 2½
3 Scrambled 3½
4 Fried 3½
5 Baked or Shirred 2¼
6 Raw 1¼
HOW TO PRESERVE
As there is a harvest time for eggs, it is necessary to insure eggs for
year around use by preserving a supply for winter release.
Preserve only fresh clean eggs in the spring and early summer when they
are cheap and plentiful. They may be preserved in any of the following
ways:
1 Commercial cold storage is the most satisfactory method of
preserving eggs.
2 Pack in sawdust, salt, bran or sand, with small end down.
3 Cover with salt brine, limewater or water glass.
4 Coat with lard, oil or paraffin.
CHEESE
PRINCIPLES OF COOKERY
Cheese is sufficiently cooked when melted. Protein is toughened by a
high temperature, therefore a low temperature process should always be
used in preparing cooked cheese dishes.
Cheese should be kept dry and covered, but never wholly exclude the
air. If spread with melted paraffin, it will keep moist. Soft cheese
should be kept in the ice box. The receptacle for cheese should be
thoroughly sterilized before new cheese is placed in it.
Cheese gives character to many nourishing but indistinct-flavored foods.
HOW TO USE CHEESE
{ Sandwiches
{ Grated in Soups
Uncooked { Salad
Cheese { With Pie or Pudding
{ With Crackers and
{ Coffee
{ In Scalloped Dishes
{ Rarebit
{ Sauces
{ Croquettes
Cooked { Soufflés and Fondues
{ Biscuits, Muffins,
{ Cheese Sticks
{ Topping for Baked
{ Dishes
CHEESE SOUFFLÉ
Serves 4. Preparation 20 minutes. Medium in cost.
2 tbsp. butter or oleomargarine
3 tbsp. flour
½ c. scalded milk
Speck cayenne
½ tsp. salt
¼ c. grated American cheese
3 eggs
Melt the oleomargarine, add the flour and when well mixed add gradually
the scalded milk. Then add salt, cayenne and cheese. Remove from the
fire and add the yolks of eggs, beaten until lemon colored. Cool the
mixture and fold into the whites, beaten until stiff. Pour into a
buttered baking dish and cook twenty minutes in a slow oven. Serve at
once. Cheese soufflé is suitable as the main dish for luncheon, dinner
or supper.
CHEESE SAUCE
Serves 5. Preparation 20 minutes.
2 c. medium white sauce
1 c. grated cheese
Make a medium white sauce. To each cup of sauce add half a cup of
grated cheese and cook in double boiler until melted.
Use as a sauce over macaroni, spaghetti, rice, hominy, escalloped
vegetable dishes, over toast as mock rarebit, or as a foundation for
cream of cheese soup.
_Veribest carton eggs carry the Armour guarantee of
dependability_
VEGETABLE COOKERY
Fresh vegetables should be whole and sound when purchased. Roots and
tubers require special care as to cleanliness. Perishable vegetables
should be used as soon as purchased. If kept for any length of time,
they should be stored in a cool, dry place. From time to time, they
should be looked over and those which show signs of decay, removed.
PREPARATION FOR COOKING
The first step is cleansing. Wash thoroughly in cold water and then
pick over or scrub with a vegetable brush to thoroughly remove any
small portions of dirt that may be embedded in the outer covering
or hidden among the leaves. Remove all leaves, tops, etc. The ideal
way, from a food value standpoint, is to cook potatoes with the skins
on, for, if pared, the valuable mineral salts escape into the water.
Vegetables that are pared before cooking should be pared very thin.
Between the skin and outer layers of the vegetable lies a layer
containing much nutritive material, and, unless the parings are thin,
this material is lost. Water in which pared vegetables are cooked
should be saved and used as soup stock.
METHODS OF COOKING
BOILING