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Hush Puppies
Hush puppies are small balls of corn bread batter
(about 2 tablespoons) that are deep-fat fried. Finely
chopped onions and black or white pepper are added to
the corn bread batter. The sugar is eliminated. Corn
bread mix, a complete mix except for water, is available
for preparing corn bread, muffins, and hush puppies.
Check the AFRS for directions.
Dumplings
There are two basic types of dumplings included in
the AFRS. The first type is the meat dumpling that
accompanies meat stew or poultry and is made from a
dough that contains eggs and has no fat. This dumpling
is light in texture and bland in flavor to accompany any
meat or poultry entrée without overpowering it. This
type is cooked by steam or in boiling stock. These
dumplings are dropped by scoop or 1/4-cup measure on
top of simmering stew. The kettle should be covered
during the entire cooking period to assure fast and even
doneness.
A finished dumpling should not be gummy.
Dumpling quality should be the same when cooked in
stock in kettles, stockpots, insert pans, or steamers. The
outside of the dumpling is characteristically moist, and
the inside is light and fluffy. Dumplings absorb the
flavor of the accompanying meat dish.
The other type of dumpling is a filled baked dessert
and is explained later in this chapter.
Fritters
A fritter is a food, such as fruit, meat, poultry, or
vegetables, that has been dipped in a milk-egg-flour
batter and fried in deep fat. The food maybe uncooked,
cooked, or a leftover. Fritters are made by combining a
vegetable, such as corn, into the basic batter. The AFRS
contains recipes for apple fritters and corn fritters.
The muffin method is used for mixing fritters; that
is, dry ingredients are sifted together, liquid ingredients
are combined and added with melted shortening. The
amount of mixing is not as critical in the production of
fritter or batter mixtures as it is with other quick breads
because of the high ratio of liquid to flour and the
volubility of the other ingredients.
There is less
tendency to overdevelop the flour gluten because the
ingredients mix easily. Fritters are usually very tender
products because they are cooked in deep fat.
Fritters should be thoroughly drained after drying.
Place the fritters on absorbent paper for a short period.
Fry in small batches because fritters lose crispness if
allowed to stand on a steam table.
Commercial breading and batter fry mix is a product
made of ingredients similar to those used in fritter batter.
Fry mix may be used for deep-fat frying, panfrying, or
for grilling. Pancake mix batter may also be used for
making fritters.
Tempura Batter
Tempura batter is prepared from flour, baking
powder, salt, ice-cold water, and beaten eggs. The batter
is unsweetened and lighter than fritter batter. It is used
for dipping raw shrimp, onion rings, or a variety of other
vegetables before frying. Check the AFRS for
directions.
Pancakes
The muffin method is used in mixing pancakes.
Mixing should be kept to a minimum to prevent the
overdevelopment of the flour gluten, which causes a
tough texture.
Cooking should begin as soon as the ingredients
have been mixed. A hot, lightly greased griddle is
essential in producing high-quality pancakes. The
griddle should be maintained at 375°F. Too high or low
a temperature causes uneven browning and heavy
textured pancakes.
Muffins
Ingredients for muffins cover a wide range of
products including fruits, nuts, bacon, and cereals in
addition to the plain muffin ingredients.
Muffins are mixed using the muffin method. The
mixing time is more limited for muffins than for other
products mixed by this method because of the high ratio
of flour to liquid. After the addition of eggs, shortening,
and water, the muffin mixture should be stirred until dry
ingredients are slightly moistened. It is essential that
dry flour lumps be dampened. After mixing, the batter
should appear quite lumpy. If overmixed, tunnels and
peaks form, the product texture is tough, and the volume
is low. Drained blueberries, chopped nuts, dates, or
raisins are folded into the batter just before panning.
The panning procedure is an extremely important
aspect in muffin
be well greased.
preparation. The muffin pans should
Gas that causes the muffin to rise can
8-13
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