For this reason the fat must be hot and smoking before anything
of the kind named can be successfully fried. The best plan to test
the proper temperature of fat is to watch it until it is perfectly still ; a
faint blue smoke will then be seen to rise — the fat is then ready for
frying. A small piece of bread thrown into the fat is also a good test :
if it turns brown immediately, the heat is correct ; if not, the fat is still
too cool for frying.
The principle causes of failure in frying are :
Putting in things to fry before the fat is thoroughly heated.
Insufficient quantity of fat in the pan.
Too much moisture adhering to the surface of articles to be fried.
Sauter or Sauteing’. — The exact meaning of the culinary term
sauter or saute is not clearly understood by most English cooks. The
translation of this word is ‘jump,’
but the correct meaning is conveyed in
the word ‘ toss.’ For instance, if we
wish to translate * Pommes de terre
saute au beurre,’ ‘ Potatoes jumped
in butter ’ would hardly do, so that it
is more correct and more expressive if
we translate it as ‘ Potatoes tossed in
butter ’ ; and as every English cook knows the meaning of tossing
anything over the fire, the culinary term of ‘ saute ’ is more perfectly
explained or defined in the word ‘toss.’
Sauteing may also be defined as dry frying. Frying proper is
effected in a large quantity of fat, oil, butter, or lard : this is called
wet or deep frying, whilst dry frying is to attempt frying with an
alleviated, or a less severe heat than the actual frying in deep fat.
This is done by using only just enough fat, butter, or lard, to enable
one to toss things in the pan over the fire. The pan used for this
purpose is either a saute-pan (sautoire or sauteuse), or an ordinary
frying- or omelet-pan.
saut£ pan
COOKING PROCESSES AND THEIR EFFECTS
81
The object of sauteing is partly to stir the contents of the pan and
to prevent it from burning. This must, however, not be performed
with a fork or spoon, but by moving the pan frequently backward and
forward over a quick fire. A quick and clear fire is needed, because
the article to be tossed must be cooked rapidly and equally throughout.
We saute potatoes, beans, &c. Liver, kidneys, chicken, fillets, &c. are
sauted either in butter, oil, or lard. If cut in small, thin pieces a
quick fire is best ; if in larger pieces, a more moderate but well regu-
lated fire is advisable.
Twice Cooking-. — Although this term is not used now, it is
nevertheless largely practised.
Very tough meat and some fish, also some kinds of game, are said
to become improved in flavour by twice cooking, with an interval of
one day. Indeed, when cooking is performed on a very large scale,
most of the dishes served are in a manner twice cooked.
We have two examples to quote, viz. biscuits and toast, where
this method is employed. The biscuit is perhaps the oldest example,
for ‘ bis ’ means twice, and ‘ cuit ’ means baked or cooked, though this
word is now but seldom used in the literal sense. Toast, however,
serves as a good example of twice-cooking, so does pulled bread, and
rusks ; the latter are known as Zicieback in German (which means
twice-baked). In these articles the change to dextrine is more com-
plete than in once-baked bread or biscuits, and therefore the food
becomes more soluble.
Page 47
Presented as published in 1901. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
For this reason the fat must be hot and smoking before anything of the kind named can be successfully fried. The best plan to test the proper temperature of fat is to watch it until it is perfectly still ; a faint blue smoke will then be seen to rise — the fat is then ready for frying. A small piece of bread thrown into the fat is also a good test : if it turns brown immediately, the heat is correct ; if not, the fat is still too cool for frying.
The principle causes of failure in frying are :
Putting in things to fry before the fat is thoroughly heated.
Insufficient quantity of fat in the pan.
Too much moisture adhering to the surface of articles to be fried.
Sauter or Sauteing’. — The exact meaning of the culinary term sauter or saute is not clearly understood by most English cooks. The translation of this word is ‘jump,’ but the correct meaning is conveyed in the word ‘ toss.’ For instance, if we wish to translate * Pommes de terre saute au beurre,’ ‘ Potatoes jumped in butter ’ would hardly do, so that it is more correct and more expressive if we translate it as ‘ Potatoes tossed in butter ’ ; and as every English cook knows the meaning of tossing anything over the fire, the culinary term of ‘ saute ’ is more perfectly explained or defined in the word ‘toss.’
Sauteing may also be defined as dry frying. Frying proper is effected in a large quantity of fat, oil, butter, or lard : this is called wet or deep frying, whilst dry frying is to attempt frying with an alleviated, or a less severe heat than the actual frying in deep fat. This is done by using only just enough fat, butter, or lard, to enable one to toss things in the pan over the fire. The pan used for this purpose is either a saute-pan (sautoire or sauteuse), or an ordinary frying- or omelet-pan.
saut£ pan
The object of sauteing is partly to stir the contents of the pan and to prevent it from burning. This must, however, not be performed with a fork or spoon, but by moving the pan frequently backward and forward over a quick fire. A quick and clear fire is needed, because the article to be tossed must be cooked rapidly and equally throughout. We saute potatoes, beans, &c. Liver, kidneys, chicken, fillets, &c. are sauted either in butter, oil, or lard. If cut in small, thin pieces a quick fire is best ; if in larger pieces, a more moderate but well regulated fire is advisable.
Twice Cooking-. — Although this term is not used now, it is nevertheless largely practised.
Very tough meat and some fish, also some kinds of game, are said to become improved in flavour by twice cooking, with an interval of one day. Indeed, when cooking is performed on a very large scale, most of the dishes served are in a manner twice cooked.
We have two examples to quote, viz. biscuits and toast, where this method is employed. The biscuit is perhaps the oldest example, for ‘ bis ’ means twice, and ‘ cuit ’ means baked or cooked, though this word is now but seldom used in the literal sense. Toast, however, serves as a good example of twice-cooking, so does pulled bread, and rusks ; the latter are known as Zicieback in German (which means twice-baked). In these articles the change to dextrine is more complete than in once-baked bread or biscuits, and therefore the food becomes more soluble.