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Basic Preparation Of Foods: Dairy Produce.

EGGS: Part 1

Eggs can be fresh or dried, dried eggs being only chickens’ eggs without the shell and water. Dried egg should be stored in a cool, dry place – it may not be stored in the refrigerator! Store eggs for several days or a week in a cool place not close to strong-smelling foods. An egg stand is an ideal gadget for this. If the eggs are dirty, wipe them clean with a damp cloth- washing will only remove the natural oils which help to preserve the eggs.

Pickled Eggs: eggs laid in the Spring keep better than those laid in the other seasons. Eggs that will not clean-up, must be rejected. Waterglass or the special preparations should be used. If an egg floats to the surface, use it immediately. Try to maintain the ambient temperature between 2 and 8 C and they should keep for 6 to 9 months.

Preparing Eggs for Cooking: break each egg separately into a cup, before adding it to the other ingredients to ensure it is not ‘off’. If you wish to separate the white from the yolk, tip the contents back and forth between the two eggshell halves and the white (albumen) will run off. Beat eggs with a whisk or a fork in an appropriate bowl; whip egg whites with a knife on a dinner plate – a pinch of salt will help.

Raw eggs used to be prescribed for invalids as they are easily digestible, but this not recommended these days due to the ubiquity of salmonella and other diseases. One method, retold here for the curious was to strain a beaten egg into a mug and slowly add a cup of hot milk (or tea, coffee or lemon water; add sugar to taste. Sherry was often added too.

Cooking Eggs: eggs must be cooked slowly because the albumen solidifies at a temperature lower than that of boiling water and becomes ‘tough’ at higher temperatures. Similarly, if raw egg is used to thicken a sauce and the liquid is subsequently allowed to boil, the sauce will ‘curdle’, i.e. the egg will solidify into small specks, ruining its texture.

Coddling: produces easily digestible egg-whites, making it an ideal method for invalids and children. Lower eggs into 75mm boiling water; place lid and remove from heat. Stand for: 7 mins for medium-, 5 mins for soft- and 20 mins for hard-boiled eggs .

Boiling: lower fresh eggs gently into 3″ (75mm) boiling water with a large spoon. Replace the lid and boil gently for 3-4″ mins for soft-, 4-5 mins for medium- and 10 mins for hard-boiled eggs.

Place the eggs in eggcups: tap the shell to crack it, pemitting the steam to escape and so preventing further cooking. For sandwiches, salads etc: boil egg for 12 mins and plunge into cold water. This enables the shell to be easily removed and discourages a black ring around the yolk.

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The Basic Preparation Of Foodstuffs: Dairy Products

These basic tips may seem unnecessary for most modern households with a refrigerator, but modern devices can make people lazy and it is well-worth while knowing ‘why’ we must do certain things. It is also worth remembering these tips when refrigerators are not at hand or are so small that they will not hold everything, such as when camping or boating or on holiday in some parts of the world.

MILK:

Milk has been called ‘nature’s perfect food’, because no other food, taken alone, can support adult life. It is of the first importance for the growth and development of young people, but it must be clean as bacteria also find it very nourishing and quickly multiply in it. If milk is not bought pasteurized, then it should be scalded and quickly cooled before consumption.

How To Scald Milk: Rinse a clean pan with cold water, pour in the milk and heat until bubbles rise around the side of the pan. Maintain it at this temperature, ie, not letting it boil, for three minutes. Do not let it overheat, as milk burns quite easily. Pour immediately into a clean bottle and place in a basin of cold water and cover with a fine cloth to discourage flies and dust getting in.

How To Keep Milk Fresh: If milk the is not be preserved in the receptacles in which you bought it, pour it into a clean container, which has been rinsed with cold water. A warm receptacle will cause the milk to stick to the sides and go off much more quickly. Always keep milk covered and in the coolest place in the larder. it is a good tip to remember that draughts usually occur at ground-level and that hot air rises. Never keep milk in an airless cupboard and in hot weather stand the milk in a container in a bowl of water with the cloth covering hanging in the water. The muslin will soak up water, which will evaporate, which dissipates the heat, ensuring that the container remains cool. Keep milk away from strong-smelling foods, as it absorbs smells easily. Never mix old and new milk together.

Sour Milk: When milk comes straight from the cow is a little alkaline, but as time passes, lactic acid is formed and it becomes what we call ’sour’. Pasteurizing or scalding the milk slows down this process. Milk which is ‘on the turn’ can be revived by boiling with a pinch of bicarbonate of soda to restore its alkalinity. Once the milk has gone too far and has curdled, it can be strained through (cheese) cloth, thus separating the curds from the whey. The curds can be used as a filling for cakes, tarts, scones etc and the whey can be used as the liquid for making scones, cakes and soups etc., as it still has much of its goodness.

Evaporated Milk: Evaporated milk is ordinary milk, which has had some of its water evaporated by heat in some way or another before being containerised. Once reconstituted by adding water, it will last only a little longer than fresh milk does.

Condensed Milk: This form of milk is merely evaporated milk to which sugar has been added before being placed in its container. The sugar acts as a preservative and preserve the milk for about a week. Do not keep in the tin, but decant it into a jug or bottle.

Dried Milk: Dried milk comes in a variety of forms and particular attention should be paid to the instructions on the label. Specialized products can be bought for babies, invalids, convalescents and dieters, all of which contain varying amounts and types of added vitamins and minerals. Usually, they are very much lower in fat content than conventional milk.

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Preparation Of Foods: Dairy Produce.

Eggs: Part II

Poaching: boil 1.5 inches (40mm) water in a frying pan; add 5 g of salt and a teaspoon of vinegar. Crack an egg into a cup, inspect and tip into boiling water. Turn down the heat. Gather the white around the unbroken yolk with a spoon and continue to simmer for another 3-4 mins. Lift out with a fish slice, drain and serve on hot buttered toast.

Scrambling: beat eggs well; add salt, pepper and a dash of milk. Melt enough butter to cover the bottom of the pan. Cook eggs slowly, stirring continuously. Cook in a basin floating in boiling water, if preferred. Serve when almost completely set, in about 5 mins.

Fried Eggs: Melt enough butter to easily cover the base of the frying pan. Tip the egg(s) in gently and gather the whites around the yolks. When the white has set, baste the yolk to your preference and remove whole with a fish slice.

Baking: lightly grease a fireproof dish and slide eggs into it. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and butter. Bake in a moderate oven and serve in the same pan after the whites have set.

Omelettes: buy a pan and keep it only for omelettes! The base should be smooth and clean. Allow two eggs per serving; whip lightly and add salt and pepper to taste. Melt enough butter to cover the base of a shallow pan. When the butter is fairly hot, gently tip in the beaten eggs; as it sets, lift the handle and draw the set mixture up towards the handle, allowing the liquid egg to run down onto the hot pan. When all the liquid has set, tilt the pan forward and roll the omelette up. Serve straight away on a hot plate. The omelette can be stuffed with almost anything, before being rolled up.

Pouring Custard: beat 2-3 eggs per 1 pint of milk lightly. Heat the milk and pour gradually over the eggs; add sugar and flavouring; cook in a double pan or jug and hot water until the required thickness has been reached. If it is not to be served immediately, pour a thin layer of water onto the top to prevent a skin forming.

Baked Custard: start as above but then pour the custard into a lightly greased shallow dish; sprinkle sparsely with nutmeg and place the dish in water to halfway up its sides. Cook at 350 F for 35-45 minutes; you can test its solidity by inserting a knife, which should be clean on removal.

Steamed Custard: proceed as for above, but cook in a steamer or a pan in boiling water. The length of cooking time is about the same too.

Custard Tarts: pour pouring custard into unbaked pastry cases and bake in the oven for 40-50 minutes. A little jam can be placed at the base of the pastry case first, if preferred.

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The Basic Preparation Food: Dairy Products.

CHEESES

Cheeses are made from milk which has been naturally or artificially turned sour. The first method is brought about by standing the milk in a warm place and allowing natural, beneficial bacteria to convert the milk’s natural sugars into lactic acid. The latter method is effected by adding an agent, usually in to form of rennet.

Colouring and salt are usually added too. The whey is then drained off and the curds are pressed into moulds where they are ripened or cured. Some cheeses are subjected to pressure; soft cheeses are not. Curds are ripened or cured by a variety of means. The method, the quality of the milk and its pasture, the breed of cow, sheep or other animal and the type of bacteria all govern the final product.

Some local conditions are unique and those areas produce cheeses that are not successfully reproduced elsewhere: for example Gruyere and Camembert, although factories do try. They even have some success, as most of the world’s Cheddar cheese now comes from the USA and Canada.

The constituents of cheese are roughly: 33% fat, 33% protein and 33% water with salt, colouring, sugar etc making up the other 1%. These percentages do vary from region to region as some producers use full-cream milk, others skimmed-milk and yet others add extra cream. Some add some extra sugar, although most do not. All cheeses have a high calcium content and can be considered as ‘concentrated milk’ and stored the same way.

Many people say that cheese must not be kept in a fridge and although storing in water, as for milk, is not a viable option, a cool larder is certainly ideal. Try the traditional method of suspending it from a hook in muslin in a cool, breezy place. If it is hot, moisten the cheesecloth with water to which a little vinegar has been added.

Cheese is typically served in Europe with a salad or/and bread and is often served after or instead of the sweet course. Hard cheese can be difficult for children to digest and grating it first will make it more palatable to them. Once grated the cheese can be sprinkled on vegetable or fish soups or sauces; added to egg, pasta, rice and oatmeal dishes; put on baked potatoes or pastry; toasted on bread or put in salads and sandwiches.

How To Cook Cheese: A not well known fact is that a lot of people find cooked cheese practically indigestible and the reason lies in its make-up. This is why: cooked starch can be digested by the saliva in the mouth, but other foods must pass to the stomach or intestines for this process to be completed. They are, however, broken up in the mouth. Digestion of protein begins in the stomach and is completed in the small intestine, while fat is not rendered soluble until it reaches the small intestine.

Cheese has a high fat and protein content, but when melted, the fat frequently covers the protein and stops the digestive juices reaching it in the stomach. This results in, its digestion is delayed until the fat has been absorbed by the intestines. Cheese can be made more digestible in the following way:

1] Combining it with some starchy food, because the starch will absorb the fat, not allowing it to cover the protein.

2] Adding seasoning. Cayenne Pepper or mustard will irritate the intestinal lining, causing extra digestive juices to be released.

3] Cooking quickly. This has the effect of preventing the protein from becoming tough and stringy and therefore, harder to digest. You could also add the cheese late to sauces.

4] Adding an alkali: for example, a generous pinch of Bicarbonate of Soda per 3 ozs (75g) will help neutralize the fatty acids and make the proteins easier to digest.

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