Dietetics for Nurses

by Fairfax T. Proudfit

Selecting of Chicken and Turkey.—In selecting chicken for the diet of invalids, use only the young birds for broiling, those a few months older for baking and roasting, and the fowls for soup and broth. To test a chicken for broiling and roasting, select one in which the cartilage at the end of the breastbone is soft and pliable; the pinions (lower part of the wings) and the feet should be soft and readily bent. The breastbone of a fowl is firmer and the wings and feet harder than those of the younger chicken. The young chicken has an abundance of pin feathers while the old fowl has not. In fact, one of the means of differentiating between the old chicken and the young, even if they are practically of the same weight, is the presence of the long hairs instead of pin feathers. The fowl selected for broth should not be very fat, as this fat will melt into the broth, causing it to be greasy and unpalatable. Turkey, even when it is young, is not quite so digestible as young chicken; the fibers are longer and the connective tissue more abundant. Goose and duck are richer in fat and not so desirable as chicken in the invalid dietary. Squab, quail, and young squirrel are all palatable and readily digested. The squirrel must, however, be young, or the flesh will be tough and more difficult of digestion.

Fish.—Fish should be given consideration in the dietary of the invalid since it is a valuable source of protein and readily digested in the majority of cases. As a rule fish is not so well liked as meat, but since it contains a smaller percentage of extractives and purin bases it is exceedingly valuable in certain pathological conditions. The lean varieties of fish, halibut, flounder, trout, perch, haddock, turbot, whitefish, are more readily digested than the dark fish, which contain a higher percentage of fat. To this latter class belong the bluefish, mackerel, salmon, shad, and herring.

Shellfish.—Of the shellfish, the oyster and the clam are exceedingly useful. The soft parts of the oyster are palatable and easily digested. They are not highly nutritious, but give a nice variety to the diet. When used in broth or for the juice, clams are particularly useful. Many cases of nausea are relieved by the taking of iced or very hot clam juice when they resist other remedies. The necessity of having both oysters and clams absolutely fresh is of the greatest importance, since a type of poison results from tainted shellfish which is exceedingly dangerous.

Pork in the Diet.—Fresh pork is rarely ever included in the invalid dietary save in diabetic diets. Meat from this animal must always be thoroughly cooked, not only because underdone pork is exceedingly indigestible but because there is an infectious bacterium sometimes found in pork which is only destroyed by thorough cooking of the meat. Well-cooked bacon is digestible if the surplus fat is poured off instead of allowed to soak into the cooked bacon. The most efficient method of cooking bacon is to place the strips upon a broiler under the flame. In this way the hot fat drips down into the pan beneath, leaving the bacon crisp and delicate.

The meats to be used for the invalid must be selected with care. The quality of this item of food is most important. It is not always necessary to purchase the most expensive cut. If it is to be broiled or roasted then it is necessary to select parts of the animal which are tender, but for broths, soups, scraped or ground meat, or the meat to be used for the juice only, it is wasteful to buy these tender, expensive pieces when those costing less will serve the purpose equally well. The names given to the different cuts vary slightly in different parts of the country, but those in general use only will be mentioned here. The following table shows the manner in which the beef is cut and the method in which it is generally used:

TABLE

Beef	Cut			Method of Preparation
Hindquarter	Round		more or less free from fat	Broth, soup, beef juice, scraped beef.
			round steak	Hamburg steak (ground meat).
				Broiled (this is a cheaper and less tender cut than the loin steaks).
			steak	Broiled, cheaper cut steak.
	Rump		roast	Roasted, cheaper cut roast.
			lean meat	Broth, soup, beef juice.
			3 ribs, 1st, 2d and 3d cuts	Roasted.
	Loin		sirloin steak	Broiled.
			porterhouse steak	Broiled.
			steak	Broiled.
	Tenderloin		roast	Roasted.
			fillet	Broiled or roasted, larded or plain.
	Ribs (prime)			Roasted.
	Ribs, chuck roast or steak			Roasted or broiled.
Forequarter	Brisket			Corning.
				Broth, soup, scraped, meat juice.
				Hamburg steak.
				Salisbury steak.

Cuts of Lamb and Mutton

Lamb	Neck		Soup, broth, etc.
	Chuck (including shoulder ribs).
	Shoulder chops are not so tender as loin chops.		Broiled.
	Flank		Soup, broth.
	Loin (chops)		Broiled.
	Leg		Roasted.
Veal	Neck		Soup, broth.
	Chuck		Soup, broth, roast, broiled.
	Cutlets		Broiled (breaded or plain).
	Chops (rib)		Broiled.
	Breast		Roasted, stuffed or plain.
	Leg		Roasted.
	Hind shank	(veal knuckles)	Soup, broth.
	Fore shank