Principles of cooking.—1. Softening of the fiber by long-continued low temperature with a supply of water present.
2. Complete opening of the starch granules by the boiling temperature of water.
3. The protein present presents no special problem. Its digestibility is not especially affected, but the softening of the fiber of the cereal makes the protein available to us.
Methods.—There are two classes into which the cereals may be divided,—the flaked and the granular. The weighing experiments (page [62]) show that the granular is the heavier. This means that more water will be absorbed by a given measure of the granular, because it contains more material.
In experimenting with a cereal at home it is well to try the proportion of water and cereal printed on the box the first time, altering the proportion if the first result is not satisfactory. There should be enough water to soften the cereal, and only just enough. If the cooked cereal is stiff, the measure of water is short; if so thin that the cereal runs on the plate, too much water was allowed.
1. Preparation of breakfast cereal.
Ingredients.
1 part, by measure, flaked cereal to 2 of water. 1 part granular cereal to 3 to 4 of water. 1 cup of dry cereal will serve three or four people. Samp, cracked wheat, and coarse corn meal will take from 4 to 6 parts of water. Salt. A tablespoonful to a quart of water is an average amount.
Utensils: a measuring cup; a double boiler; a fork.
Method.—Measure the cereal and water, put the water into the inner part of the double boiler with the salt. Have the lower part of the boiler ready—about half full of hot water; place the inner boiler directly upon the stove or over the flame. When the water is boiling rapidly, shake the cereal into the water from a cup, so slowly that the water does not stop boiling. This is the first secret of a well-cooked cereal. The rapidly boiling water keeps the grains of cereal in motion, and thus they do not stick to the vessel nor to each other, and the heat reaches the starch in the grains equally. If the grains begin to settle, shake the vessel gently, but do not stir, even with a fork. Allow this process to continue for about five minutes, or until you see a thickening of the mass, so much so that the separate