Science in the Kitchen. by Mrs. E. E. Kellogg

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"Paddy" is the name given in India to the rice grain when inclosed in
its husk. The same is termed "rough rice" in this country. The outer
husk of the rice is usually removed in the process of threshing, but the
inner red skin, or hull, adheres very closely, and is removed by rubbing
and pounding. The rough rice is first ground between large stones, and
then conveyed into mortars, and pounded with iron-shod pestles. Thence,
by fanning and screening, the husk is fully removed, and the grain
divided into three different grades, whole, middlings, and small whole
grains, and polished ready for market. The middlings consist of the
larger broken pieces of the grain; the small rice, of the small
fragments mixed with the chit of the grain. The broken rice, well dried,
is sometimes ground into flour of different degrees of fineness. The
small rice is much sweeter and somewhat superior in point of nutritive
value to the large or head rice usually met with in commerce.

Rice is characterized by a large percentage of starch, and is so
deficient in other food elements that if used alone, unless consumed in
very large quantities, it will not furnish the requisite amount of
nitrogenous material necessary for a perfect health food. For this
reason, it is necessary to supplement its use with some other food
containing an excess of nitrogenous elements, as peas, beans, milk, etc.
Associated with other articles rich in albuminous elements, rice is
exceedingly valuable, and one of the most easily digested foods. Boiled
or steamed rice requires but a little over one hour for digestion.

PREPARATION AND COOKING.--Rice needs to be thoroughly washed to
remove the earthy taste it is so apt to have. A good way to do this is
to put it into a colander, in a deep pan of water. Rub the rice well
with the hands, lifting the colander in and out the water, and changing
the water until it is clear; then drain. In this way the grit is
deposited in the water, and the rice left thoroughly clean.

The best method of cooking rice is by steaming it. If boiled in much
water, it loses a portion of its already small percentage of nitrogenous
elements. It requires much less time for cooking than any of the other
grains. Like all the dried grains and seeds, rice swells in cooking to
several times its original bulk. When cooked, each grain of rice should
be separate and distinct, yet perfectly tender.

RECIPES.

STEAMED RICE.--Soak a cup of rice in one and a fourth cups of water
for an hour, then add a cup of milk, turn into an earthen dish suitable
for serving it from at table, and place in a steam-cooker or a covered
steamer over a kettle of boiling water, and steam for an hour. It should
be stirred with a fork occasionally, for the first ten or fifteen
minutes.

BOILED RICE (Japanese method).--Thoroughly cleanse the rice by
washing in several waters, and soak it overnight. In the morning, drain
it, and put to cook in an equal quantity of boiling water, that is, a
pint of water for a pint of rice. For cooking, a stewpan with tightly
fitting cover should be used. Heat the water to boiling, then add the
rice, and after stirring, put on the cover, which is not again to be
removed during the boiling. At first, as the water boils, steam will
puff out freely from under the cover, but when the water has nearly
evaporated, which will be in eight to ten minutes, according to the age
and quality of the rice, only a faint suggestion of steam will be
observed, and the stewpan must then be removed from over the fire to
some place on the range, where it will not burn, to swell and dry for
fifteen or twenty minutes.

Rice to be boiled in the ordinary manner requires two quarts of boiling
water to one cupful of rice. It should be boiled rapidly until tender,
then drained at once, and set in a moderate oven to become dry. Picking
and lifting lightly occasionally with a fork will make it more flaky and
dry. Care must be taken, however, not to mash the rice grains.

RICE WITH FIG SAUCE.--Steam a cupful of best rice as directed
above, and when done, serve with a fig sauce prepared as directed on
page 89. Dish a spoonful of the fig sauce with each saucer of rice, and
serve with plenty of cream. Rice served in this way requires no sugar
for dressing, and is a most wholesome breakfast dish.

ORANGE RICE.--Wash and steam the rice according to directions
already given. Prepare some oranges by separating into sections and
cutting each section in halves, removing the seeds and all the white
portion. Sprinkle the oranges lightly with sugar, and let them stand
while the rice is cooking. Serve a portion of the orange on each
saucerful of rice.

RICE WITH RAISINS.--Carefully wash a cupful of rice, soak it, and
cook as directed for Steamed Rice. After the rice has began to swell,
but before it has softened, stir into it lightly, using a fork for the
purpose, a cupful of raisins, or Zante currents. Serve with cream.

RICE WITH PEACHES.--Steam the rice as previously directed, and when
done, serve with cream and a nicely ripened peach pared and sliced on
each individual dish.

BROWNED RICE.--Spread a cupful of rice on a shallow baking tin, and
put into a moderately hot oven to brown. It will need to be stirred
frequently to prevent burning and to secure a uniformity of color. Each
rice kernel, when sufficiently browned, should be of a yellowish brown,
about the color of ripened wheat. Steam the same as directed for
ordinary rice, using only two cups of water for each cup of browned
rice, and omitting the preliminary soaking. When properly cooked, each
kernel will be separated, dry, and mealy. Rice prepared in this manner
is undoubtedly more digestible than when cooked without browning.

RYE.

DESCRIPTION.--Rye is much more largely grown and used in European
countries that in America. In appearance it closely resembles wheat,
although somewhat darker in color and smaller in size. Bread made from
rye constitutes the staple food of the people in many parts of Europe.
In nutritive value such bread nearly equals that made from wheat, but it
has an acid taste not relished by persons unaccustomed to its use.

Rye is found in market deprived of its husk and crushed or rolled, and
also in the form of meal and flour.

_RECIPES._

ROLLED RYE.--Into three parts water boiling in the inner dish of a
double boiler, stir one part rolled rye. Boil rapidly until set,
stirring meanwhile, then place in the outer boiler, and cook for three
or more hours.

RYE MUSH.--Stir a cupful of rye meal to a smooth batter with a
cupful of water, then turn it slowly into three cupfuls of water, which
should be boiling on the range, in the inner dish of a double boiler.
Stir until thickened, then place in the outer boiler, and cook for an
hour or longer.

MAIZE, OR INDIAN CORN.

DESCRIPTION.--There can be little doubt that maize is of American
origin. The discoverers of the new world found it cultivated by the
aborigines, and from the fact that corn was the generic term then
largely used to designate grain (in old English, "corn" means grain),
they named it "Indian corn." Since that time it has been carried to
nearly every part of the globe, and probably it is more extensively used
than any other one of the cereals, with the exception of rice. This is
undoubtedly due to the fact that it is the most prolific of the grains,
and is adapted to the widest range of climate.

Maize was the chief food of the slaves of Brazil, as it used to be of
those in our own Southern States, and is very largely consumed in Mexico
and Peru. It was used very little in Europe until the Irish famine in
1847; since then, it has become a staple food with the poorer classes.

The varieties of corn are almost too numerous to be counted. For general
purposes, however, they may be classified as field corn, sweet corn, and
pop corn.

Corn is characterized by an excess of fatty matter, containing upwards
of three times the amount of that element to be found in wheat. Corn
requires stronger powers of digestion than wheat, and is unsuited to
some stomachs.

The skin of the corn kernel is thin, and when subjected to milling
processes, is included in the grinding. When well ground, it can be
digested, with the exception of the siliceous coating.

Sweet corn and some of the field varieties, form a nutritious and
favorite food while green. The mature grain is used in many forms. The
whole grain, hulled, is an agreeable food. Hulled, broken, or split to
various degrees of fineness, it is known according to the size to which
the grain has been reduced as hominy, fine hominy, or grits; or, if
finer still, as samp. Subjected to a process of still finer trituration,
it forms meal. Cornstarch consists of the farinaceous portions of the
grain.

On account of the large proportion of fatty matter contained in maize,
it acquires, if kept for some time and unpleasant, rancid taste,
occasioned by the usual change which takes place in fat when exposed to
the atmosphere.

The new process granular meal, which is prepared from corn dried for a
long period before grinding, becomes rank less quickly than that ground
in the old way.

Maize meal is very largely consumed in the form of mush or porridge.
This, in Ireland, is termed "stirabout;" in Italy it is called
"polenta;" and in British Honduras it is known as "corn lob."

GENERAL SUGGESTIONS FOR COOKING.--Most of the various preparations
from maize require prolonged cooking to render them wholesome; this is
equally true respecting mushes prepared from samp or meal, a dish which
unfortunately some cook in bygone days saw fit to term "hasty pudding."
Unthinking people since, supposing it to have been so named because of
the little time required to cook it, have commonly prepared it in
fifteen or twenty minutes, whereas from one to two hours, or even
longer, are necessary to cook it properly. Hulled corn, hominy, and
grits, all require prolonged cooking. The time for cooking these
preparations may be somewhat lessened if they are previously soaked over
night. They should, however, be cooked in the same water in which they
are soaked.

_RECIPES._

CORN MEAL MUSH.--stir together one pint of cornmeal, one
tablespoonful of flour, and one pint of cold milk. Turn this slowly,
stirring well meanwhile, into one quart of boiling water, which should
not cease to boil during the introduction of the batter. Cook three or
four hours. If milk is not obtainable, water alone may be used, in which
case two tablespoonfuls of flour will be needed. Cook in a double
boiler.

CORN MEAL MUSH WITH FRUIT.--Mush prepared in the above manner may
have some well-steamed raisins or chopped figs added to it just before
serving.

CORN MEAL CUBES.--Left-over corn meal mush may be made into an
appetizing dish by first slicing into rather thick slices, then cutting
into cubes about one inch squares. Put the cubes into a tureen and turn
over them a quantity of hot milk or cream. Cover the dish, let them
stand until thoroughly heated through, then serve.

BROWNED MUSH.--Slice cold corn meal mush rather thin, brush each
slice with thick, sweet cream, and brown in a moderate oven until well
heated through.

SAMP.--Use one part of samp to four and one half parts of boiling
water. It is the best plan to reserve enough of the water to moisten the
samp before adding it to the boiling water, as it is much less likely to
cook in lumps. Boil rapidly, stirring continuously, until the mush has
well set, then slowly for from two to three hours.

CEREALINE FLAKES.--Into one measure of boiling liquid stir an equal
measure of cerealine flakes, and cook in a double boiler from one half
to three fourths of an hour.

HULLED CORN.--_To Hull the Corn._--Put enough wood ashes into a
large kettle to half fill it; then nearly fill with hot water, and boil
ten minutes. Drain off the water from the ashes, turn it into a kettle,
and pour in four quarts of clean, shelled field corn, white varieties
preferred. Boil till the hulls rub off. Skim the corn out of the lye
water, and put it into a tub of fresh cold water. To remove the hulls,
scrub the corn well with a new stiff brush broom kept for the purpose,
changing the water often. Put through half a dozen or more waters, and
then take the corn out by handfuls, rubbing each well between the hands
to loosen the remaining hulls, and drop again into clear water. Pick out
all hulls. Cleanse the corn through several more waters if it is to be
dried and kept before using. Well hulled corn is found in the markets.

_To Cook._--If it is to be cooked at once, it should be parboiled in
clear water twice, and then put into new water and cooked till tender.
It should be nearly or quite dry when done. It may be served with milk
or cream.

COARSE HOMINY.--For coarse hominy use four parts of water or milk
and water to one of grain. It is best steamed or cooked in a double
boiler, though it may be boiled in a kettle over a slow fire. The only
objection to this method is the need of frequent stirring to prevent
sticking, which breaks and mashes the hominy. From four to five hours'
slow cooking will be necessary, unless the grain has been previously
soaked; then about one hour less will be required.

FINE HOMINY OR GRITS.--This preparation is cooked in the same
manner as the foregoing, using three and one half or four parts of water
to one of the grain. Four or five hours will be necessary for cooking
the unsoaked grits.

POPPED CORN.--The small, translucent varieties of maize known as
"pop corn," possessed the property, when gently roasted, of bursting
open, or turning inside out, a process which is owing to the following
facts: Corn contains an excess of fatty matter. By proper means this fat
can be separated from the grain, and it is then a thick, pale oil. When
oils are heated sufficiently in a vessel closed from the air, they are
turned into gas, which occupies many times the bulk of the oil. When pop
corn is gradually heated, and made so hot that the oil inside of the
kernel turns to gas, being unable to escape through the hull of the
kernel, the pressure finally becomes strong enough to burst the grain,
and the explosion is so violent as to shatter it in a most curious
manner.

Popped corn forms an excellent food, the starch of the grain being will
cooked. It should, however, be eaten in connection with other food at
mealtime, and not as a delicacy between meals. Ground pop corn is
considered a delectable dish eaten with milk or cream; it also forms the
base of several excellent puddings.

To pop the corn, shell and place in a wire "popper" over a bed of bright
coals, or on the top of a hot stove; stir or shake continuously, so that
each kernel may be subjected to the same degree of heat on all sides,
until it begins to burst open. If a popper is not attainable, a common
iron skillet covered tightly, and very lightly oiled on the bottom, may
be used for the purpose. The corn must be very dry to begin with, and if
good, nearly every kernel will pop open nicely. It should be used within
twenty-four hours after popping.

MACARONI.

DESCRIPTION.--Macaroni is a product of wheat prepared from a hard,
clean, glutenous grain. The grain is ground into a meal called
_semolina_, from which the bran is excluded. This is made into a tasty
dough by mixing with hot water in the proportion of two thirds
_semolina_ to one third water. The dough after being thoroughly mixed is
put into a shallow vat and kneaded and rolled by machinery. When well
rolled, it is made to assume varying shapes by being forced by a
powerful plunger through the perforated head of strong steel or iron
cylinders arranged above a fire, so that the dough is partially baked as
it issues from the holes. It is afterwards hung over rods or laid upon
frames covered with cloth, and dried. It is called by different names
according to its shape. If in the shape of large, hollow cylinders, it
is _macaroni;_ if smaller in diameter, it is _spaghetti;_ if fine,
_vermicelli;_ if the paste is cut into fancy patterns, it is termed
_pasta d'Italia_.

Macaroni was formerly made only in Italy, but at present is manufactured
to a considerable extent in the United States. The product, however, is
in general greatly inferior to that imported from Italy, owing to the
difference in the character of the wheat from which it is made, the
Italian macaroni being produced from a hard, semi-translucent wheat,
rich in nitrogenous elements, and which is only grown successfully in a
hot climate. Like all cereal foods, macaroni should be kept in a
perfectly dry storeroom.

TO SELECT MACARONI.--Good macaroni will keep in good condition for
years. It is rough, elastic, and hard; while the inferior article is
smooth, soft, breaks easily, becomes moldy with keeping. Inferior
macaroni contains a large percentage of starch, and but a small amount
of gluten. When put into hot water, it assumes a white, pasty
appearance, and splits in cooking. Good macaroni when put into hot water
absorbs a portion of the water, swells to nearly double its size, but
perfectly retains its shape. Inferior macaroni is usually sold a few
cents cheaper per pound than the genuine article. It contains a much
smaller amount of gluten. The best quality of any shape one pleases can
be bought in most markets for ten or fifteen cents a pound.

TO PREPARE AND COOK MACARONI.--Do not wash macaroni. If dusty, wipe
with a clean, dry cloth. Break into pieces of convenient size. Always
put to cook in boiling liquid, taking care to have plenty of water in
the saucepan (as it absorbs a large quantity), and cook until tender.
The length of time required may vary from twenty minutes, if fresh, to
one hour if stale. When tender, turn into a colander and drain, and pour
cold water through it to prevent the tubes from sticking together. The
fluid used for cooking may be water, milk, or a mixture of both; also
soup stock, tomato juice, or any preferred liquid.

Macaroni serves as an important adjunct to the making of various soups,
and also forms the basis of other palatable dishes.

_RECIPES._

HOME-MADE MACARONI.--To four cupfuls of flour, add one egg well
beaten, and enough water to make a dough that can be rolled. Roll thin
on a breadboard and cut into strips. Dry in the sun. The best
arrangement for this purpose is a wooden frame to which a square of
cheese-cloth has been tightly tacked, upon which the macaroni may be
laid in such a way as not to touch, and afterwards covered with a
cheese-cloth to keep off the dust during the drying.

BOILED MACARONI.--Break sticks of macaroni into pieces about an
inch in length, sufficient to fill a large cup; put it into boiling
water and cook until tender. When done, drained thoroughly, then add a
pint of milk, part cream if it can be afforded, a little salt and one
well-beaten egg; stir over the fire until it thickens, and serve hot.

MACARONI WITH CREAM SAUCE.--Cook the macaroni as directed in the
proceeding, and serve with a cream sauce prepared by heating a scant
pint of rich milk to boiling, in a double boiler. When boiling, add a
heaping tablespoonful of flour, rubbed smoothed in a little milk and one
fourth teaspoonful of salt. If desired, the sauce may be flavored by
steeping in the milk before thickening for ten or fifteen minutes, a
slice of onion or a few bits of celery, and then removing with a fork.

MACARONI WITH TOMATO SAUCE.--Break a dozen sticks of macaroni into
two-inch lengths, and drop into boiling milk and water, equal parts. Let
it boil for an hour, or until perfectly tender. In the meantime prepare
the sauce by rubbing a pint of stewed or canned tomatoes through a
colander to remove all seeds and fragments. Heat to boiling, thicken
with a little flour; a tablespoonful to the pint will be about the
requisite proportion. Add salt and if desired, a half cup of very thin
sweet cream. Dish the macaroni into individual dishes, and serve with a
small quantity of the sauce poured over each dish.

MACARONI BAKED WITH GRANOLA.--Break macaroni into pieces about an
inch in length sufficient to fill a large cup, and cook until tender in
boiling milk and water. When done, drain and put a layer of the macaroni
in the bottom of an earthen pudding dish, and sprinkle over it a scant
teaspoonful of granola. Add a second and third layer and sprinkle each
with granola; then turn over the whole a custard sauce prepared by
mixing together a pint of milk, the well beaten yolks of two eggs or one
whole egg, and one-fourth of a teaspoonful of salt. Care should be taken
to arrange the macaroni in layers loosely, so that the sauce will
readily permeate the whole. Bake for a few minutes only, until the
custard has well set, and serve.

EGGS AND MACARONI.--Break fifteen whole sticks of macaroni into
two-inch lengths, and put to cook in boiling water. While the macaroni
is cooking, boil the yolks of four eggs until mealy. The whole egg may
be used if caught so the yolks are mealy in the whites simply jellied,
not hardened. When the macaroni is done, drain and put a layer of it
arranged loosely in the bottom of an earthen pudding dish. Slice the
cooked egg yolks and spread a layer of them over the macaroni. Fill the
dish with alternate layers of macaroni and egg, taking care to have the
top layer of macaroni. Pour over the whole a cream sauce prepared as
follows: Heat one and three fourths cup of rich milk to boiling, add one
fourth teaspoonful of salt and one heaping spoonful of flour rubbed
smooth in a little cold milk. Cook until thickened, then turn over the
macaroni. Sprinkle the top with grated bread crumbs, and brown in a hot
oven for eight or ten minutes. Serve hot.

TABLE TOPICS.

Sir Isaac Newton, when writing his grail work, "Principia," lived
wholly upon a vegetable, diet.

ROBERT COLLYER once remarked; "One great reason why I never had a
really sick day in my life was that as boy I lived on oatmeal and
milk and brown bread, potatoes and a bit of meat when I could get
it, and then oatmeal again."

HOT-WEATHER DIET.--The sultry period of our summer, although
comparatively slight and of short duration, is nevertheless felt by
some people to be extremely oppressive, but this is mainly due to
the practice of eating much animal food or fatty matters, conjoined
as it often is with the habit of drinking freely of fluids
containing more or less alcoholics. Living on cereals, vegetables,
and fruits, and abstaining from alcoholic drinks, the same persons
would probably enjoy the temperature, and be free from the thirst
which is the natural result of consuming needlessly heating
food.--_Sir Henry Thompson._

_Mistress_ (arranging for dinner)--"Didn't the macaroni come from
the grocer's, Bridget?"

_Bridget_--"Yis, mum, but oi sint it back. Every won av thim leetle
stims wuz impty."

Some years since, a great railroad corporation in the West, having
occasion to change the gauge of its road throughout a distance of
some five hundred miles, employed a force of 3,000 workmen upon the
job, who worked from very early in the morning until late at night.
Alcoholic drinks were strictly prohibited, but a thin gruel made of
oatmeal and water was kept on hand and freely partaken of by the men
to quench their thirst. The results were admirable; not a single
workmen gave out under the severe strain, and not one lost a day
from sickness. Thus this large body of men were kept well and in
perfect strength and spirits, and the work was done in considerably
less time than that counted on for its completion.

In Scotch households oatmeal porridge is as inevitable as breakfast
itself, except perhaps on Sundays, as this anecdote will illustrate.
A mother and child were passing along a street in Glasgow, when this
conversation was overheard:--

"What day is the morn, mither?"

"Sabbath, laddie."

"An' will wi hae tea to breakfast, mither?"

"Aye, laddie, gin we're spared."

"An' gin we're no spared, will we hae parrich?"

BREADSTUFFS AND BREADMAKING

Although the grains form most nutritious and palatable dishes when
cooked in their unground state, this is not always the most convenient
way of making; use of them. Mankind from earliest antiquity has sought
to give these wonderful products of nature a more portable and
convenient form by converting them into what is termed bread, a word
derived from the verb _bray_, to pound, beat, or grind small, indicative
of the ancient manner of preparing the grain for making bread. Probably
the earliest form of bread was simply the whole grain moistened and then
exposed to heat. Afterward, the grains were roasted and ground, or
pounded between stones, and unleavened bread was made by mixing this
crude flour with water, and baking in the form of cakes. Among the many
ingenious arrangements used by the ancients for baking this bread, was a
sort of portable oven in shape something like a pitcher, in the inside
of which a fire was made. When the oven was well heated, a paste made of
meal and water was applied to the outside. Such bread was baked very
quickly and taken off in small, thin sheets like wafers. A flat cake was
the common form in which most of the bread of olden times was baked;
being too brittle to be cut with a knife, the common mode of dividing it
was by breaking and hence the expression "breaking bread" so common in
Scripture.