VEGETABLES AND THEIR COOKING.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 38, 8 November 1907, Page 3

VEGETABLES AND THEIR COOKING.

(Speciam.y Written i'ou The Dominion.) (Hy Minh OKU'iituiin Ivby.) That some have,said a workman can save os. a weok bv abandoning animal foods is ample proof that, a little Itnowledge is dangorous. Vegotarians have learnt the food value of vegetables apparently without considering other knowledge that beam upon tho subject. They rightly say all necessary nourishment may be obtained very cheaply from vegetables. The plants draw nourishment from the earth and air, and with the help of sun and water turn it into fleshformin", heat-giving and mineral foods. These foods aro stored in tho plants along with a groat bulk of wator and cellulose. When tho animal eats tho plant it brings the flesh-forming food into a more concentrated and digestible form for man to eat. It may be said animal food is dearor in a similar way as it is dearer to buy dresses through tho shopkeeper than directly from the manufacturer. Tho shopman must bo paid for his work. Ono scientific writer foun{l 'that a diet of vegctablo and animal food mixed would cost him 2s. 7}d. a day, while a purely vegetarian diet would cost 2s. 3d.; but the former required only 185 h'dur's' cooking in tho week, the latter G3 hpurS. If it is assumed fuel cost }d. per hourj at tho end of the week there would Ko kittle' difference botween tho total cost of the, two diets. Tho puny, weak, peevish, and badly behaved children, the lawless and ill-tempered, are nearly always badly fed. In-a- purely vegetable diet there ig. great danger that children, who all require a large 'quantity of tissue-building food, will not be 'ablo r to get ■ it owing to tho large 'bulk of vegetables it is' necessary to eat in order to do,so. In a similar way a large quantity of tissue-building food is required by the convalescent ; vegetarians convalcsco but slowly. Vegetarians Lacking in Stamina.

/'There are degrees in health. A grass-fed horse is strong; a corn-fed hunter is energetic. '"'. In his oats tho hunter' takes larger quantities of. tissue-building food than the' horso who cats grass. Energy is a property of'thc nervous system; strength of the muscles. ■ Muscles give us the power to do the' work'; tho nervous system the initiative ! td". start it. It has been stated on tho best authority that consistent vegetarians do not too';readily resist diseases, *and quickly collapse with and after _an illness. The Dunedin: resident travelling through Australia in'thc hottest weather becomes anxious about-his loss of relish for moat, and in his owri':-mind ho is quite suro that without ;mc.'at ho cannot be strong. Do not worry a'nflitake tonics. In a warm climate fruit andj vegetables need to bo eaten more freely, and. when one livos in a climate that is very cold in winter and hot in summer it is best ,'toi change the diet with tho temperature., Above-all, be cheerful at meal-times, and do not" worry over what to eat and what not to eat. A sufferer from indigestion would do well.-to say. to himself, "This food agrees with "me, I will often eat it"; he would in ithis way get a list of foods that ho is, suro will agree -with him, instead of selecting a list of those that will disagree. The' Uso of Creens. I ..Green vegetables should, be caton every .day, as they are such a valuablo source of ariiiieral food. Perhaps you think with tho jnian who, was advised to. eat more green ;vegetables when he said, "Why should I, vfhen the leisure of the ox is so w;oll supplied with work by grinding up the groon food;,arid. making it more digestible? Am I to. take'to eating grass next?" --It is true ■tha't'the small quantity of nourishment that gfqen vegetables havo is partly lost in cookjingl'and by being carried out of the body by ;the; large bulk of cellulose they contain. .Tliis.ccllulose is useful, however, as a stimulus to the intestinal ' movements. Tho .'mineral salts are' very effective in preventing and in curing skill diseases. If the mother who persistently tries to forco .her child to eat cabbage' and other greens would explain their effect on tho skin sho would have less, trouble, if tho erring one was it girl. It was ■ owing to Captam Cook's knowledge, and forethought that ho kept his' sailors freo from scurvy by a plentiful isupply. of green vegetables on that long voyage ho took when ho discovered New Zealand. The only vegetarian l restaurant in .Wellington iseems to ignore vegetables and ■ fruit, .prehips owing to the fact that it is hard enough to give the required amount of .nourishment in a quantity that tho ordinary iman will cat without adding to') it by the 'addition of fruit and vegetables. Spinach .contains-a good deal of iron, but it is very difficult to supply a of iron in a diet from food. Wo have generally to take it as a, medicine. Thero is a French proverb that freely translated -reads "Spinach .•and.leek keep the skin sleek!" The daily Inioderate use of celery is said by some to reimpye, nervousness and even palpitation of ■the'hpart; in this way onions may be used j whoa, celery is out of season. Everyone is ifamiliar with the use of celery in the diet of jthosb; who suffer from rheumatism. Letjtude's, are said to produce sleep, and no jdoiibt they havo some action in that way. iThev Potato.

' -Tlio' potato, belongs to the nightshade iorder,, which includes a largo number of :poi'sonpus plants. There is a poison in the potato' skin which is destroyed in cooking. ; Alii these vegetables are doficient in fleshformcrs', and are not considered to contain iniuch nourishment, but, nevertheless, have a 'nutritive, value. They ' contain healthful 'mineral salts, especially in tho case of the ipotatb. These salts lie in larger quantities :jusf underneath the skin of the potato, so :thb.'peel, must be removed as thinly, as possible. ■ The mineral salts and proteid are very soluble,.so potatoes are more nutritious cooked in their jackets or ' steamed. The richer: the .potato is in tissue-forming food — in''other words, the juicier it is—the more waxy it is.when cooked. The man of hustle and bustlo must remember that the potato is first ■digested in the mouth, and it must not' be "bolted..", When potatoes are selling at -Id; a pound and firead at ljd.', they are two .or, three times dearer than bread. Both foods contain similar nourishment. If, however, we. study the question from tho point of view of national economy, we find that a given piece'of land will produce more vegetables than if devoted to wheat. Turnips arid' .Jerusalem artichokes, instead of starch, contain a . substance called inulin, which is close allied to it. but is not converted during the process of digestion into the'sa'nio form' of sugar; lichee they may be oaten by diabetic people. Onions have little nutritive value,. and are chiefly used for their pungent oil.. They give flavour to otherwise insipid food, and are more nutritious than white turnips. Tapioca, sago, arrowroot are simply agreeable' forms of starch. Tapioca has the disadvantage of remaining a.long time in the stomach. Wrong Ways of Cooking. A short visit to the house of a neighbour will frequently make it quite plain why niany prefer meat to vegetables. The wrong way to cook vegetables is to put them over the fire in water partly boiling or lukewarm; to throw in salt or not as it happens; and to boil until they are overcooked, and then drain the best part down the sink. The tasteless, water-soaked material left in the pot is then dressed up with pepper and salt and_Jmtter to put in tho flavour that has übv.. .* s f l ~-~v«>d-; by bad cooking. It must be remembered'tnat whenever a vegetable is put'into water, or cooked in water, it loses some of its .flavour and nourishment. A simple proof of this is tho flavour brought out-of if iii soup-making. Many people do not realise'this, and cut tho vegetables into two. or three prices before they cook them. Thd consequence is that they expose moro of the vegetable to the action of the water. All vegetables should be cooked whole where it is possible to do so. Green vegetables should bo cooked quickly with the lid off tho saucepan. If the water is bard, a small piece of. soda is put into it to soften it, thus keeping tho .vegetables green. Soda should lie-used very carefully, as it is injurious if it is eaten too frequently. A piece of washing soda the size of a pea will bo found to bo quite sufficient for a large saucepan of green vegetables. Peas, turnips, onions, carrots, and any vegetable with a slightly sweet taste has a much better flavour if a small piece of sugar is put into the water in which they are boiled. We must not forget that iii cooking vegetables tho thrifty housekeeper cair find fit place for the expression of her genius. The flavour of meat is a pleasing one, and with small expenditure can bo used to flavour cooked vegetables. Cheese, also, combines well with many vegetables.