Moist Heat

Moist Heat

The methods of cooking with moist heat, ie, through water are boiling, boiling, steaming, dry steam, and braizing. In each of these processes, the effect of moist heat in food is totally different from the dry heat. However, the method of choice depends largely on the amount of water that the food contains. For some more food and water must be added in the cooking process, for others, only a little or none at all. If food is not placed directly in large or small amounts of water, is cooked by contact with steam or a heated utensil to be placed in another containing boiling water, for example, a double boiler.

Because water is so important in cooking with moist heat, something about its nature and its use must be understood. Therefore, before considering the moist heat cooking process in detail, the role of water in the body and in the kitchen and the types of water are discussed.

ROLE OF WATER IN THE BODY .-- water supply no energy for the body, but also plays an important role in nutrition. Indeed, its particular function in the body is to act as a solvent and a carrier of nutrients and waste materials. In doing this work, keeps body fluids properly diluted, increases the flow digestive juices and helps take waste material. However, their ability to perform these necessary functions on the right path depends on its quality and safety.

WATER RATES .-- The well water is hard or soft. As falls from the clouds, is pure and soft until it comes into contact with the gases and solids that dissolve in it and change its character. Definitely, we know that the last of the falling water in the shower is much better than the first, since the former not only clean the air, but the ceilings and other things with which it comes into contact. Hitting certain type of soil or rocks, it dissolves some of the minerals found there and is thus moved from soft to hard water. If the waste water drains into a well or water supply, water is responsible to contain bacteria, which make it unfit and unsafe for consumption until sterilized by boiling. Besides rainwater and distilled water, there is none that is completely smooth, all other waters to maintain certain salts in solution a greater or lesser degree.

The quality of hardness, which is present in almost all water is temporarily or permanently. Water is hard when it contains calcium temporary soluble which precipitates, ie, separated from it, the boiling point. Every housewife who uses a kettle is familiar with this condition. The lime precipitate day after the day he clings to the sides of the vessel in which water is boiled, and eventually become very dense cover. Permanent hardness is caused by other compounds of lime that are precipitated by boiling water. The only way in which to soften the water as it is added to an alkali, such as borax, soda ash or sodium bicarbonate.

USES OF WATER IN THE KITCHEN .-- It is the solvent, or dissolution, the power of water that makes this precious liquid in the kitchen, but the two types, soft water is preferable the harsh, because it has a higher solvent power. This is due to the fact that hard water has dissolved a certain amount of material and therefore less of dissolved substances in foods and flavors when used for cooking than soft water, nothing has been dissolved. It is also known that the taste of beverages such as tea and coffee is often very poor by the use of hard water. The beans and peas, cereals and difficult cuts of meat will not cook tender so easily in hard water as in soft but adding a small amount of sodium in cooking these foods will help soften them.

The water used in cooking, mainly for extraction of flavors, as in the preparation of coffee, tea and soups, as a means to carry nutrients and flavors in beverages such as lemonade and cocoa, to soften fiber plants and animals, and cooking starch and sugar solution, salt, gelatin, etc. In carrying out much of this work, the water acts as a medium for heat transfer.

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Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Cook Your Food With Moist Heat