Remnants of fat, either cooked or uncooked, should be saved and tried out, and when necessary clarified.
Fat from beef, poultry, chicken, and pork, may be used for shortening or frying purposes; fat from mutton and smoked meats may be used for making hard and soft soap; fat removed from soup stock, the water in which corned beef has been cooked, and drippings from roast beef, may be tried out, clarified, and used for shortening or frying purposes.
To Try out Fat. Cut in small pieces and melt in top of a double boiler; in this way it will require less watching than if placed in kettle on the back of range. Leaf lard is tried out in the same way; in cutting the leaf, remove membrane. After straining lard, that which remains may be salted, pressed, and eaten as a relish, and is called scraps.
Sautéing is frying in a small quantity of fat. Food so cooked is much more difficult of digestion than when fried in deep fat; it is impossible to cook in this way without the food absorbing fat. A frying-pan or griddle is used; the food is cooked on one side, then turned, and cooked on the other.
Braising is stewing and baking (meat). Meat to be braised is frequently first sautéd to prevent escape of much juice in the gravy. The meat is placed in a pan with a small quantity of stock or water, vegetables (carrot, turnip, celery, and onion) cut in pieces, salt, pepper, and sweet herbs. The pan should have a tight-fitting cover. Meat so prepared should be cooked in an oven at low uniform temperature for a long time. This is an economical way of cooking, and the only way besides stewing or boiling of making a large piece of tough meat palatable and digestible.
Fricasseeing is sautéing and serving with a sauce. Tender meat is fricasseed without previous cooking; less tender meat requires cooking in hot water before fricasseeing. Although veal is obtained from a young creature, it requires long cooking; it is usually sautéd, and then cooked in a sauce at low temperature for a long time.
VARIOUS WAYS OF PREPARING FOOD FOR COOKING
Egging and Crumbing. Use for crumbing dried bread crumbs which have been rolled and sifted, or soft stale bread broken in pieces and forced through a colander. An ingenious machine on the market, “The Bread Crumber,” does this work. Egg used for crumbing should be broken into a shallow plate and beaten with a silver fork to blend yolk and white; dilute each egg with two tablespoons water. The crumbs should be taken on a board; food to be fried should be first rolled in crumbs (care being taken that all parts are covered with crumbs), then dipped in egg mixture (equal care being taken to cover all parts), then rolled in crumbs again; after the last crumbing remove food to a place on the board where there are no crumbs, and shake off some of the outer ones which make coating too thick. A broad-bladed knife with short handle—the Teller knife—is the most convenient utensil for lifting food to be crumbed from egg mixture. Small scallops, oysters, and crabs are more easily crumbed by putting crumbs and fish in paper and shaking paper until the fish is covered with crumbs. The object of first crumbing is to dry the surface that egg may cling to it; and where a thin coating is desired flour is often used in place of crumbs.
Larding is introducing small pieces of fat salt pork or bacon through the surface of uncooked meat. The flavor of lean and dry meat is much improved by larding; tenderloin of beef (fillet), grouse, partridge, pigeon, and liver are often prepared in this way. Pig pork being firm, is best for larding. Pork should be kept in a cold place that it may be well chilled. Remove rind and use the part of pork which lies between rind and vein. With sharp knife (which is sure to make a clean cut) remove slices a little less than one-fourth inch thick; cut the slices into strips a little less than one-fourth inch wide; these strips should be two and one-fourth inches long, and are called lardoons. Lardoons for small birds—quail, for example—should be cut smaller and not quite so long. To lard, insert one end of lardoon into larding-needle, hold needle firmly, and with pointed end take up a stitch one-third inch deep and three-fourths inch wide; draw needle through, care being taken that lardoon is left in meat and its ends project to equal lengths. Arrange lardoons in parallel rows, one inch apart, stitches in the alternate rows being directly underneath each other. Lard the upper surface of cuts of meat with the grain, never across it. In birds, insert lardoons at right angles to breastbone on either side. When large lardoons are forced through meat from surface to surface, the process is called daubing. Example: Beef à la mode. Thin slices of fat salt pork placed over meat may be substituted for larding, but flavor is not the same as when pork is drawn through flesh, and the dish is far less sightly.
Boning is removing bones from meat or fish, leaving the flesh nearly in its original shape. For boning, a small sharp knife with pointed blade is essential. Legs of mutton and veal and loins of beef may be ordered boned at market, no extra charge being made.