1. Without doubt, the greatest problem confronting the human race is
that of food. In order to exist, every person must eat; but eating
simply to keep life in the body is not enough. Aside from this, the body
must be supplied with an ample amount of energy to carry on each day's
work, as well as with the material needed for its growth, repair, and
working power. To meet these requirements of the human body, there is
nothing to take the place of food, not merely any kind, however, but
the right kind. Indeed, so important is the right kind of food in the
scheme of life that the child deprived of it neither grows nor increases
in weight, and the adult who is unable to secure enough of it for
adequate nourishment is deficient in nerve force and working power. If a
person is to get the best out of life, the food taken into the body must
possess real sustaining power and supply the tissues with the necessary
building material; and this truth points out that there are facts and
principles that must be known in order that the proper selection of food
may be made, that it may be so prepared as to increase its value, and
that economy in its selection, preparation, use, and care may be
exercised.
2. Probably the most important of these principles is the cooking of
food. While this refers especially to the preparation of food by
subjecting edible materials to the action of heat, it involves much
more. The cooking of food is a science as well as an art, and it depends
for its success on known and established principles. In its full sense,
COOKING means not only the ability to follow a recipe, thereby
producing a successfully cooked dish, but also the ability to select
materials, a knowledge of the ways in which to prepare them, an
understanding of their value for the persons for whom they are prepared,
and ingenuity in serving foods attractively and in making the best use
of food that may be left over from the previous meals, so that there
will be practically no waste. Thus, while COOKING in all its phases is a
broad subject, it is one that truly belongs to woman, not only because
of the pleasure she derives in preparing food for the members of her
family, but because she is particularly qualified to carry on the work.
3. The providing of food in the home is a matter that usually falls to
the lot of the housewife; in fact, on her depends the wise use of the
family income. This means, then, that whether a woman is earning her own
livelihood and has only herself to provide for, or whether she is
spending a part of some other person's income, as, for instance, her
father's or her husband's, she should understand how to proportion her
money so as to provide the essential needs, namely, food, clothing, and
shelter. In considering the question of providing food, the housewife
should set about to determine what three meals a day will cost, and in
this matter she should be guided by the thought that the meals must be
the best that can possibly be purchased for the amount of money allowed
for food from the family income and that their cost must not exceed the
allotment. To a great extent she can control the cost of her foods by
selecting them with care and then making good use of what her money has
bought. It is only by constant thought and careful planning, however,
that she will be able to keep within her means, and she will find that
her greatest assistance lies in studying foods and the ways in which to
prepare them.
4. A factor that should not be disregarded in the problem of food is
waste, and so that the housewife can cope with it properly she should
understand the distinction between waste and refuse. These terms are
thought by some to mean the same thing and are often confused; but there
is a decided difference between them. Waste, as applied to food, is
something that could be used but is not, whereas refuse is something
that is rejected because it is unfit for use. For example, the fat of
meat, which is often eaten, is waste if it is thrown away, but potato
parings, which are not suitable as food, are refuse.
In connection with the problem of waste, it may be well to know that
leakage in the household is due to three causes. The first one is lack
of knowledge on the part of the housekeeper as to the difference between
waste and refuse and a consequent failure to market well. As an
illustration, many housewives will reject turkey at a certain price a
pound as being too expensive and, instead, will buy chicken at, say, 5
cents a pound less. In reality, chicken at 5 cents a pound less than the
price of turkey is more expensive, because turkey, whose proportion of
meat to bone is greater than that of chicken, furnishes more edible
material; therefore, in buying chicken, they pay more for refuse in
proportion to good material. The second cause for this leakage in the
household is excessive waste in the preparation of food for the table,
arising from the selection of the wrong cooking method or the lack of
skill in cooking; and the third cause is the serving of too large
quantities and a consequent waste of food left on individual plates and
unfit for any other use in the home.
5. Another matter that constantly confronts the housewife is what foods
she shall select for each day's meals. To be successful, all meals
should be planned with the idea of making them wholesome and appetizing,
giving them variety, and using the left-overs. Every woman should
understand that food is cooked for both hygienic and esthetic reasons;
that is, it must be made safe and wholesome for health's sake and must
satisfy the appetite, which to a considerable degree is mental and, of
course, is influenced by the appearance of the food. When the housewife
knows how to cook ordinary foods well, she has an excellent foundation
from which to obtain variety in the diet--by which in these lessons is
meant the daily food and drink of any individual, and not something
prescribed by a physician for a person who is ill--for then it is simply
a matter of putting a little careful thought into the work she is doing
in order to get ideas of new ways in which to prepare these same foods
and of utilizing foodstuffs she has on hand. However, ample time must
always be allowed for the preparation of meals, for no one can expect to
produce tasty meals by rushing into the kitchen just before meal time
and getting up the easiest thing in the quickest manner. Well-planned
meals carefully prepared will stimulate interest in the next day's bill
of fare and will prove extremely beneficial to all concerned.
6. In the practice of COOKING it is also important that the meals be
planned and the cooking done for the sake of building the human body
and caring for it. As soon as any woman realizes that both the present
and the future welfare of the persons for whom she is providing foods
depend on so many things that are included in COOKING, her interest in
this branch of domestic science will increase; and in making a study of
it she may rest assured that there is possibly no other calling that
affords a more constant source of enjoyment and a better opportunity for
acquiring knowledge, displaying skill, and helping others to be well
and happy.
The fact that people constantly desire something new and different in
the way of food offers the housewife a chance to develop her ingenuity
along this line. Then, too, each season brings with it special foods for
enjoyment and nourishment, and there is constant satisfaction in
providing the family with some surprise in the form of a dish to which
they are unaccustomed, or an old one prepared in a new or a better way.
But the pleasure need not be one-sided, for the adding of some new touch
to each meal will give as much delight to the one who prepares the food
as to those who partake of it. When COOKING is thought of in this way,
it is really a creative art and has for its object something more than
the making of a single dish or the planning of a single meal.
7. From what has been pointed out, it will readily be seen that a
correct knowledge of COOKING and all that it implies is of extreme
importance to those who must prepare food for others; indeed, it is for
just such persons--the housewife who must solve COOKING problems from
day to day, as well as girls and women who must prepare themselves to
perform the duties with which they will be confronted when they take up
the management of a household and its affairs--that these lessons in
COOKING are intended.
In the beginning of this course of study in COOKING it is deemed
advisable to call attention to the order in which the subject matter is
presented. As will be seen before much progress is made, the lessons are
arranged progressively; that is, the instruction begins with the
essentials, or important fundamentals, of food--its selection,
preparation, and care--and, from these as a foundation, advances step by
step into the more complicated matters and minor details. The beginner
eager to take up the actual work of COOKING may feel that too much
attention is given to preliminaries. However, these are extremely
essential, for they are the groundwork on which the actual cooking of
food depends; indeed, without a knowledge of them, very little
concerning COOKING in its various phases could be readily comprehended.
8. Each beginner in COOKING is therefore urged to master every lesson in
the order in which she receives it and to carry out diligently every
detail. No lesson should be disregarded as soon as it is understood, for
the instruction given in it bears a close relation to the entire subject
and should be continually put into practice as progress is made. This
thought applies with particular emphasis to the Sections relating to the
essentials of COOKING. These should be used in connection with all other
Sections as books of reference and an aid in calling to mind points that
must eventually become a part of a woman's COOKING knowledge. By
carrying on her studies systematically and following directions
carefully, the beginner will find the cooking of foods a simple matter
and will take delight in putting into practice the many things that
she learns.
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