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Cereal Breakfast Food (Cereals are cultivated grasses)

Cereals are cultivated grasses, such as wheat, rice, oats and other grains. They are the most widely used of any vegetable food, partly because they are so easily and cheaply grown in almost all climates, and also, because they can readily be made into palatable and nourishing dishes that are easily digested. Only the seeds of these plants can be digested by the human stomach. The remainder of the plant can be used as fodder for cattle and horses.

Composition.

These seeds, like the potato, are storehouses for food to the young plants and as starch is the easiest form in which plants can store food, we find that the grains are from 60% to 75% starch. They also contain 6% to 16% protein, from 1% to 7% fat, and an average of 1% mineral matter.

Unlike the potato, raw cereals contain a very small amount of water-from 8% to 12%. In cooking, however, they absorb from two to four times their bulk in water so that the proportion of water to starch in cooked cereals is much like that of boiled potatoes.

The woody fiber or cellulose in all the cereals except rice, is tougher than that in the potato and requires longer cooking to soften.

Buying and Storing.

Cereals sold in bulk are cheaper than those sold in pound packages, but the sealed package keeps out so much dust and dirt that it is worth the extra cost.

Do not leave cereals in the paper boxes after they have been opened as insects, dust, etc., will quickly find a lodging place there. Empty them into glass jars and keep the covers screwed down. It would be well to have several kinds on hand at the same time so as not to serve one kind continuously. Classification. 1. Cooked cereals. 2.

Uncooked cereals. a.

Rolled. b. Granular.

The ready cooked cereals such as puffed rice and wheat, toasted corn flakes, shredded wheat biscuits, etc., are very palatable and appetizing and are welcome changes from the cooked porridge, especially in summer. They should not be eaten exclusively, however. Those in which the starch has been partly digested by the process of manufacture will tend to weaken the digestion and those that contain raw starch will overtax the digestion.

In the preparation of the rolled cereals the grain has been steamed and then passed through hot steel rollers. The heat partly cooks the starch and the great pressure to which the grains are subjected in passing between the rollers bursts open some of the cell walls and crushes some of the starch grains, so that the rolled cereals do not require as long cooking nor as much water as the granular cereals. They will absorb two times their bulk of water and should be cooked from three-quarters of an hour to two hours.

The granular cereals have not been cooked in the process of manufacture. They require four times their bulk of water and should be cooked from one to three hours.

One-third teaspoonful salt should be added to each cup of water for all cereals.

Cooking and Digestion of Starch.

Uncooked starch is not readily digested by the human digestive system. Three conditions are necessary to the thorough cooking of starch: 1. There must be a large amount of water present. 2. There must be a temperature of not less than 212° (boiling temperature) for at least part of the time. 3. It must cook for a long time. If it is kept at boiling temperature only part of the time, the length of time for cooking must be increased.

All starchy foods should be thoroughly chewed and mixed with the saliva in the mouth, as the saliva is a very important aid in the digestion of starch.

Use of the Double Boiler.

A double boiler consists of two parts; the lower part, which should be kept one-third full of boiling water, when in use, and the upper part in which the food is to be cooked. As long as the lower boiler is supplied with water the food in the upper part cannot burn nor become quite as hot as the temperature of boiling water.

A home-made double boiler can be made by placing one saucepan inside of another with a Mason jar cover, or support of some kind, to keep the upper saucepan from resting on the bottom of the lower one.

Home-made Double Boiler Manufactured Double Boiler