William Penn Life, 2008 (43. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

2008-02-01 / 2. szám

■fhe jiuD&ävlm Kitchen.

Marinating Food

FÁRADJON BE A MAGYAR KONYHÁBA.

The joys of winter have arrived and are with us in strong force. For those who ski, the mountains await you.

For everyone else there is the warm lodge or the warmth of an active kitchen.

The trick to staying healthy is staying active during the winter months when most outdoor activities are limited. Keeping that in mind, I would suggest trying recipes, using all your culinary skills and talents. This is the time to try recipes that you would not normally have time for.

Before we start, let me do some housekeeping with regard to the William Penn Association. I am a member of the Fraternal Activities Committee which was formed to help promote and provide the best activities and events for the membership. The goal of any committee is to make each event we did in 2007 much better in 2008. All the activities need your support throughout the year. That being said, please keep yourself informed of all the WPA events by reading the William Penn Life and keeping in touch with your branch coordinators.

And, now, we begin....

Marinating food has long been a practice of many chefs, cooks and foodies. MARINADE is a seasoned liquid in which foods are soaked in order to absorb flavor and sometimes

tenderize. MARINATE is the process by which we use a marinade with meat, fish, poultry or vegetables. The proteins in food are unwound, or denatured, thus causing a tenderizing effect.

(At this point I will add you can marinate fruit and-a process known as MACERATING—which only gives fruit extra flavor and does not tenderize.)

Marinating raw vegetables would tend to break down vegetable fibers, or cellulose, which would cause them to cook much quicker than in a raw state.

The basic marinade recipe would usually contain an ACID with herbs and/or spices. The acid could be wine, any alcohol product, vinegar, citrus juice or fermented product. Acids break down collagen fibers to make meat tender. Fish has less collagen fibers than most meat so it takes less time to marinate seafood products.

The HERBS and SPICES used are of the common kitchen variety. You may follow a recipe or create your own flavor profile.

When blending marinades it's best to use NON REACTIVE CONTAINERS like glass, ceramic or stainless steel so no reaction takes place between the container and the food. Aluminum should never be used as it will cause a reaction spoiling the taste of your food. When marinating any food keep it REFRIGERATED so the

bacteria is kept at a minimum.

Marinades can be WET or DRY. In the dry form it is called a RUB, but the purpose is still the same, which is adding flavor but not as much to tenderize. The liquid marinades do a better job of tenderizing because they can coat the product better and transfer flavor by means of the liquid in its base.

Now, for a quick science lesson. Everything in nature tends to stay in its normal state. If you over-salted a soup, you could correct it by placing a

Before mixing any dry herbs or spices, make sure they are completely dry. A pilot light in a gas oven is 100 degrees Fahrenheit and any herbs or spices will get really dry after a few hours. Just place the ingredients on a clean baking sheet and leave in the oven for an hour, then stir each ingredient and let set another hour. Your spice blends and rubs will stick better to your entrees and produce a tasty finished product.

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William Penn Life, February 2008