School and Home Cooking Part 58

It is most interesting to select foods from the groups above that would "eat well" together. The one-dish meal gives one the opportunity for a fascinating study of food combinations. If the ca.s.serole or fireless cooker is used in their preparation, the possibilities are limitless.

An examination of the meat-subst.i.tute dishes and meat extenders will show that most of these foods make one-dish meals.

MUTTON WITH BARLEY

1 pound mutton 1 onion 1/2 cupful pearled barley 2 quarts water, boiling 4 potatoes Celery leaves (fresh or dried) 1 1/2 teaspoonfuls salt

Cut the fat from the meat, cut the meat into pieces. Put the fat and sliced onion in a frying pan. Brown the meat in the fat. Add the barley and water and let the mixture cook at simmering temperature for at least 1 1/2 hours. Pare the potatoes, cut them into quarters. Add the potatoes and celery leaves and cook the mixture at boiling temperature until the potatoes are tender. Serve hot.

(Adapted from _Department of Agriculture Leaflet_.)

TAMALE PIE

3/4 cupful corn-meal 1 1/2 teaspoonfuls salt 3 cupfuls boiling water 1 onion 1 tablespoonful fat 1 pound chopped meat 2 cupfuls tomatoes Dash Cayenne pepper, _or_ 1 small chopped sweet pepper 1 1/4 teaspoonfuls salt

Make a mush by stirring the corn-meal and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt into boiling water. Cook in a double boiler or over water for 45 minutes. Brown the onion in the fat, add the chopped meat, and stir until the red color disappears. Add the tomato, pepper, and salt. Grease a baking-dish, put in a layer of corn-meal mush, add the seasoned meat, and cover with mush.

Bake 30 minutes.

(Adapted from _United States Department of Agriculture Leaflet_.)

CREOLE STEW

1 pound lean beef or 1 medium fowl 1 tablespoonful fat 1/4 cupful chopped onion 1/2 cupful chopped sweet peppers 1 cupful boiling water 1/2 cupful rice 1 cupful carrots or okra (cut into small pieces) 2 cupfuls tomatoes 2 1/2 teaspoonfuls salt

Cut the meat into small pieces or cut the fowl into joints. In a frying pan melt the fat, add the onions, peppers, meat, or chicken. Brown for a few minutes.

Pour these materials into a ca.s.serole or kettle of the fireless cooker and add the other ingredients. If the ca.s.serole is used, cook at simmering temperature for 2 hours. If the stew is to be cooked in the fireless cooker, cook it directly over the flame for 1/2 hour and then place it in the fireless cooker from 2 to 3 hours. Serve hot.

With chicken and okra this is the famous Creole Chicken of the South.

(Adapted from _United States Department of Agriculture Leaflet_.)

QUESTIONS

Make a list of meat-extending dishes.

Make a list of foods suitable for the main food of one-dish meals.

How many persons will one pound of meat serve?

How many persons will the dishes of this lesson (each containing one pound of meat) serve?

Tell why the foods comprising these dishes are desirable food combinations.

RELATED WORK

LESSON CV

MENU-MAKING

REPRESENTATION OF ALL ESSENTIALS OF DIET.--All the foodstuffs or nutrients should be represented in the foods of a meal, or at least in the foods composing a day's diet. The meal, or the day's ration, should consist of:

Food rich in carbohydrates and fat, to supply energy to the body.

Food rich in protein [Footnote 70: Protein is not only a body-builder, but also a fuel. But since it should be used chiefly for body-building (see _Daily Carbohydrate and Fat Requirement_) its energy-giving power is not considered in meal planning.] and ash, to build the body.

Food in the form of ash and water, to regulate the processes of the body.

Food containing vitamines, to promote the health and growth of the body.

Food containing cellulose, to give bulk to diet.

Water is supplied to some extent with almost all the foods of a meal, but as mentioned previously, a generous quant.i.ty should be used as a beverage.

A consideration of the kinds of food to meet the different needs of the body follows:

A. _Food for Energy_.--Although both _starch_ and _sugar_ are carbohydrates which furnish energy to the body, this need of the body should be supplied for the most part by starch. The harmful effects of excessive sugar eating were mentioned previously.

A certain amount of _fat_ is needed for energy-giving. A meal containing fat "stays by" a person for a longer time than one devoid of foods rich in fat. This is because fat is more slowly digested than other foodstuffs. Hence a vigorous person leading an active outdoor life may feel much more comfortable when fat is included in his diet. On the other hand, those exercising little find that fat-rich foods distress them greatly, since they are too slowly digested. For many persons, the use of much fat is harmful. Since b.u.t.ter contains the fat-soluble vitamine, it is valuable not only for energy-giving, but for growth-promoting.

B. _Food for Body-building and Repairing_.--Both _protein_ and _ash_ are needed for body-building. The former foodstuff contains the element nitrogen,--one of the necessary elements for the growth and maintenance of the body.

Since there are several kinds of food containing protein, the question arises whether protein is best supplied by meat, eggs, milk, cheese, or vegetable protein foods. There are some who contend that meat is the least desirable source of protein food. The use of much meat may lead to the formation of an excess of uric acid which is eliminated by some persons with difficulty. It may also cause intestinal putrefaction.

Many find that by using meat once a day their health is normal. Others find that by using meat but several times a week a more desirable condition is maintained. Doubtless many people would find themselves much benefited by using less meat. If the quant.i.ty of meat eaten is greatly lessened, care should be taken that protein is supplied by other foods, such as eggs, legumes, cheese, and the various meat-subst.i.tute dishes.

Care should also be taken to see that complete proteins are included in diet. If foods containing incomplete protein such as some of the legumes and cereals are used for body-building, they should be supplemented by foods rich in complete protein such as milk and eggs. If much meat is eaten, a generous quant.i.ty of water and of fresh vegetables and fruits should be used.

While all the _mineral materials_ found in the body [Footnote 71: The ash const.i.tuents existing in the body in largest quant.i.ty are:

Sulphur Chlorine Calcium Iron Sodium Magnesium Pota.s.sium Phosphorus

] are necessary for its growth and maintenance, calcium, phosphorus, and iron are the elements most likely to be used in insufficient quant.i.ties (see Figures 78, 79, and 80).

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIGURE 78.--FOODS CONTAINING CALCIUM. a, Dried beans, b, dried figs; c, rutabaga, d, celery; e, milk; f, cauliflower, g, almonds; h, egg yolk; i, cheese]

Calcium is needed for building the hard tissues such as the teeth and bones. A diet deficient in calcium is sometimes the cause of poor teeth.

Calcium is equally important for body-regulating functions. It is especially necessary that calcium-rich food be given to children.

_The most practical and effective way of obtaining calcium is to use a generous supply of milk._ Cheese, eggs, and the leaves and stems of plant-foods are also valuable sources of calcium.

_Milk, egg yolk, cheese, whole grains, and vegetables are the most satisfactory sources of phosphorus._ A free use of these foods is especially desirable since it has been found that phosphorus is quite as necessary as nitrogen. The whole grains are a very valuable source of ash.

Many of the ash const.i.tuents in cereals are found next to the outer coat of bran, hence fine white flour is not so rich in ash as whole wheat flour.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Foods Containing Phosphorus: _a_ Dried peas; _b_, chocolate; _c_, dried beans; _d_, whole wheat; _e_, peanuts; _f_, cheese; _g_, cocoa; _h_, egg yolk.]