by Tom Stobart
Meat has two kinds of connective tissue – collagen, which is white, and elastin, which is yellow. Meat from old animals and muscles that have had hard exercise contain a lot of elastin, which is not softened by cooking but can only be broken up by bashing. But collagen can be changed to gelatine by the combined action of heat and water, the process is hastened by acids, which is why marinating is effective.
[Meat – French: viande German: Fleisch Italian: carne Spanish: carne]
MEDLAR. The medlar (Mespilus germanica), which originated in southern central Europe and the Caucasus, has the merit of being exceedingly hardy; it grows wild over much of Europe and has been introduced into North America. The wild trees are thorny, but the cultivated ones are usually not. Although they were doubtless useful when the only winter fruit was stored apples, medlars are now among the least popular fruit. Even when ripe, medlars look like young apples, with russet-brown skin and a large calyx surrounding a cup-shaped depression in which the five seed vessels can be seen, and they are so hard and astringent as to be inedible. They are picked from the end of October onwards, when they are ripe, but must then be kept on straw until they are ‘bletted’ – soft, brown and acidly aromatic. Fermentation has taken place, and you could be forgiven for saying they were rotten. At this point they are ready to eat. There are people who love them, and dons at the ancient universities are likely to enjoy eating them as they sip the college port. In Victorian times, it was usual to keep medlars in a silver dish of moist sawdust on the sideboard.
Many authors say that the medlar ripens in Italy and is eaten there as a fresh fruit, but they confuse the common medlar with the *loquat. In fact, medlars are grown in Italy and are found wild in much of southern Europe, but the fruits there are also allowed to rot until they are bletted. They are little loved fruit in a country rich in fruit but they are liked in Piedmont, where they are called piciu. They are also unpopular in the US. However, they do make a delicious jelly. The Naples medlar (Crataegus azarolus) is more closely related to the hawthorn (see rowan).
Medlar Jelly
Simmer ripe medlars in water just to cover and, when they can be pulped, strain off the juice through a jelly bag. Take 1¼ It (2¼ pt) of juice to every 1 kg (2¼ lb) of sugar, boil rapidly, keeping the liquid skimmed until it reaches jellying point. Pour it into moulds to be turned out and served with cream as a sweet.
[Medlar – French: nèfle German: Mispel Italian: nespola Spanish: níspola]
MEGRIM. See flatfish (lemon sole).
MELEGUETA PEPPER. See grains of paradise.
MELILOT. Leguminous plant sometimes grown as a fodder crop. The melilots (Melilotus) have the strong aromatic smell of new-mown hay because they contain coumarin. The leaves of the Common melilot (M. officinalis), which has yellow flowers, are sometimes used for stuffing, wrapping or marinating rabbits to give them a sweet flavour. A paste of melilot is an ingredient of Schabzeiger cheese (US, sapsago), made in Glarus, at the eastern end of Lake Zurich. Melilots abound in Swiss pastures, but today the Blue melilot (Melilotus coeruleus), introduced from Turkey, is the one used to grind and mix with the curd. Schabzeiger cheese, which is hard and pale green, is grated and pounded with butter for spreading or used as a flavouring and sprinkled in soups. The melilot gives it a taste that is unique.
[Melilot – French: mélilot German: Honigklee, Steinklee Italian: meliloto Spanish: mililoto, trébol dulce]
MELOKHIA. See mallow.
MELON (Cucumis mela) and watermelon (Citrullus vulgaris) were both grown by the ancients. Today, they are important commercial fruits, which are vital in the summer in the hot, dry countries of the Mediterranean and the Middle East (where the best melons, if not the best watermelons, are grown). In more northern climates, both have to be grown under glass. Melons are difficult fruit, because dozens of varieties and types span a wide range in quality, and to be really good, any melon must be exactly ripe, a difficult moment to judge.
Melon seeds, which are largely wasted, are very oily and contain some 35-40% of fats. They are dried and are eaten as nibbles or are used in cooking in China, Greece, Central and South America, and in other places where people cannot afford waste. Watermelon seeds are highly valued by the tribes of Nigeria.
Cantaloupe melon. The real cantaloupe is popular in Europe. What is called a cantaloupe in the US is the Netted melon (see below). Cantaloupes are usually rather small and rounded. Many varieties have a heavily netted skin and broad ribs, which seem to show where the melon might be sliced into portions. The most famous variety is probably the French charentais, which is small, very highly scented and orange fleshed, as is the Tiger melon. There are also green-fleshed cantaloupes, like the Ogen, and even ones with bright scarlet flesh, such as the Sweetheart. Cantaloupes are reckoned to be ready when gentle pressure at the stalk end shows some give. There will also be a fine scent. They need a day in the refrigerator to cool properly for eating. Good cantaloupes should not be gilded with ginger or pepper and, at most, benefit from a slight squeeze of lemon if they are not acid enough.
Casaba melon, generally larger than cantaloupes and musk melons, is mainly green, which, in a musk melon, would suggest unripeness. Casabas, with Honeydew melons, are classed as winter melons in Britain because they have a long growing season, are ready at the end of the summer, keep to some extent and ripen a bit off the vine. They are ripe when there is a little give at the opposite end to the stem. The flesh is creamy or golden yellow, orange, green or white, according to variety.
Musk melon, Netted melon, Nutmeg melon, or Sweet melon. It is recorded that the first melons in the Americas were planted by Columbus’s men on 29th March 1494. Musk melons are popular summer melons in the US, where they are often referred to as cantaloupes, but there are so many hybrids that the cook – and probably also the gardener – is lost. However, this type of melon is usually covered with a creamy netting and has orange flesh. It may or may not be segmented very clearly. They are ripe when there is a slight give at the stem end. Persian melons are of the same type, but are larger and have a finer netting. Cranshaw melons are hybrids between the Persian and the Casaba; they have no net.
Honeydew melon. These, in general, are shaped like a rugby ball and have either a smooth skin or a very slight and irregular net on a tough, heavily wrinkled outside. They are often dusky green, but may also be white and yellow. The flesh is greenish white. These melons appear at the end of the season and are available well into the winter, as they store well and ripen in storage. Although not comparable to the cantaloupe, they are very good when properly ripe.
Snap melon. In Asia, melons are often grown in the sand along river beds. As pathogenic organisms can live inside melons, especially if they are injected with dirty water, melons often cost the traveller a bellyache. The Snap melon or phooti (var. momordica) of India bursts open when ripe and is used unripe as a vegetable, as also is the Long melon or kakri.
Watermelon belongs to a different genus of the cucumber family. It is thought to have originated in Africa, but as there is a Sanskrit name for it, the fruit must have been cultivated thousands of years ago in India. Today, there are many varieties, differing in shape and size from melon-sized ones and almost spherical ones to monstrous blimp-shaped ones so heavy that only a strong man can lift them.
The skin is smooth and glossy; it may be, for example, dark green with paler green stripes and blotches or pale green with dark green netted marks. There is even a golden-skinned variety. Most watermelons have black seeds, but some have almost white ones, even when ripe, and there are seedless hybrids. Though the flesh is usually red to purplish, there are watermelons with creamy yellow flesh (e.g. ‘Yellow Baby’).The names are sometimes a bit flattering, like ‘Sweet Princess’ and ‘You Sweet Thing’.
It is not easy to judge when a watermelon is ripe, and some experts say that cutting it in two is the only sure way. Since the fruit is apt to be too large for the average household, and in particular for chilling in the refrigerator, wate
rmelons are often sold in halves, which enables you to judge ripeness and to avoid any with white streaks or core, immature seeds or a granular, pale look in the middle. Never buy cut melon slices in Oriental markets or from street vendors in exotic places. This is the quick way to get ill, because flies get on cut surfaces, and there is insufficient acidity to kill unpleasant organisms. The vendors are likely to splash dirty water on their wares to keep them looking fresh. When buying a whole watermelon, look for one with a matt surface; it is usually better than a shiny one. The standard way to tell if a watermelon is ripe is to hold it near the ear and to press the ends together sharply. If it cracks, it is ripe. lf you are a regular customer, it would also be as well to consult the greengrocer, as there are years when many watermelons are of poor quality, and a kind greengrocer might advise you to buy something else.
Watermelons are harvested when ripe, but travel well, because of their tough skin. They will keep uncut for at least a week in the refrigerator. Large ones may need to be kept in the cold for up to 24 hours before they are ready to eat. Watermelon experts like to separate large melons into core and outer part along the line of the seeds by cutting in just so far, but not right through. Some people prefer the outer part and others the core, and these sections are offered separately at table. The white rind underlying the skin is often made into pickle. There are dozens of recipes in American cookery books, and special varieties of watermelon for pickle are grown (with all or nearly all white part), and they are sometimes eaten immature as a vegetable in the Orient.
Watermelons contain valuable minerals and trace elements. As they need a long hot summer, they are not grown in Britain, but if harvested when ripe, they keep for up to three weeks chilled at around 3°C (37°F) with 85% relative humidity, so can be shipped. After picking, they never become sweeter, just softer.
Watermelon Pickle
Soak 2 kg (4½ lb) cubed watermelon rind with all skin and red parts removed overnight in a 3% salt solution (30 g of salt per 1 It of water or a good 2 tablespoons per pt). Next day, make a pickle from the rest of the ingredients. Tie 2 tablespoons of whole cloves, a few allspice berries and a dozen 2.5 cm (1 in) pieces of stick cinnamon together in a spice-bag. Boil 2.2 It (4 pt) vinegar, 600 ml (1 pt) water and 1.8 kg (4 lb) sugar, plus the spice-bag for five minutes, drain the watermelon cubes and add them to the pickling liquid. Simmer it until the rind becomes transparent. Bottle and seal the pickle immediately while it is hot.
[Melon – French: melon, cantaloupe German: Melone, Beutelmelone Italian: mellone, popone Spanish: melon.
Watermelon – French: pastèque German: Wassermelone Italian: cocomero Spanish: sandia]
MERCURY. See spinach (Good King Henry).
MERGUEZ. See sausage.
MERSINE. Smoked *swordfish.
METAL. Common metals and alloys such as iron, copper, aluminium, brass, tin, lead, zinc, silver and gold have sections to themselves. As pans, jugs, other utensils and pipes, they can all come into contact with our food and drink. Metals themselves are not soluble in water, but their various salts often are and may be poisonous in any quantity. On the other hand, many metals are necessary for health as *trace elements, even when poisonous in larger quantities. Apart from this aspect, the conductivity of metals is of importance. Food cooks well in a copper pan because copper is an excellent conductor of heat, but that same quality makes it impossible to drink hot liquids from a copper mug without burning your mouth. Food does not cook well in stainless steel, which is a poor conductor of heat (unless the bottom of the pan is copper coated), but you can drink with reasonable comfort from a stainless steel mug.
[Metal – French: métal German: Metall Italian: metallo Spanish: metal]
METRIC SYSTEM. The metric system was first introduced into France at the end of the 18th century as one of the changes of the revolution, although comprehensive decimal systems of measurement had been devised by scientists over a century earlier. The basic unit is the metre, which is a ten millionth part of the distance between the pole and the equator, measured along the meridian running through Paris. In practice, it is the length of a platinum bar kept near Paris. The unit of volume derived from this is the litre which is the volume of a cube with 10 centimetre sides, i.e. 10 x 10 x 10 = 1000 cubic centimetres. The unit of weight is the gram, which was originally the weight of a cubic centimetre of pure water (at 4°C) but is now based on a standard Kilogram (1000 grams), which is also kept near Paris. See weights and measures, conversions.
Five hundred grams is known in France as a livre (pound). In the mind’s eye, a gram can be pictured as 15 grains of wheat. Metric shoppers think in terms of a kilo or in hundreds of grams, sometimes in a half or a quarter of a kilo. Small items like spices would be bought in 25, 50 or 100 grams. Household scales do not measure accurately under 10 grams and rarely under 25 grams, so spoons are used. In nutrition, the daily requirements of minerals and vitamins are measured in milligrams. The mind’s eye picture of 10 milligrams is a large grain of wheat.
MEXICAN BLACK BEAN. A variety of *kidney bean.
MEXICAN TEA. See epazote.
MICRO-ORGANISMS or microbes. Readers of old cookery books should remember that it was not until about the middle of the last century that Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) recognized that fermentation, the souring of milk, putrefaction, and, of course, diseases were caused by tiny living organisms. Their effects are felt because of their vast numbers. It is a sobering thought that in 28 g (1 oz) of grubby hamburger mince, the number of micro-organisms is greater than that of the entire human population of the world, and in warm weather this could double inside half an hour. Microbiology is now an advanced science – in the sphere of food, it is involved in the making of such products as bread, beer, wine, vinegar, cheese, butter, yoghurt, Sauerkraut, pickles, ham, sausages, anchovies and soy sauce as well as in processes like canning, bottling, freezing and drying. Since micro-organisms are everywhere and cause food spoilage, it is useful to know something about them, even for those who only buy foods ready made in the supermarket.
There are five important groups of micro-organisms that can affect food: *bacteria, *moulds, *yeasts, *protozoans and *viruses. Methods of preventing their activity are dealt with under preservation, pasteurization, sterilization, freezing and drying.
All organisms require water or moisture, which is why drying is preservative. Bacteria and yeasts need more water than moulds, which can often manage on a small quantity of condensation. Organisms cannot grab water from strong solutions of salt or sugar, which are therefore preservative in effect. A 60-70% sugar solution effectively stops organisms from growing, and 25% of salt stops all but special, salt-loving organisms.
Some sorts of organism, described as aerobic, need air to live. AII moulds are aerobic, which is why they grow only on the surface of jam and not at the bottom of the jar, though some can manage with very little air and are micro-aerobic (e.g. the blue moulds in cheeses). Other organisms are anaerobic and refuse to grow except in the total absence of oxygen. In between, there are all sorts of intermediate preferences, and many organisms can grow equally well both with oxygen and without it. These can be important considerations. For instance, anaerobes can thrive in canned food. Sometimes oxygen may get used up by aerobic organisms and in the resulting conditions anaerobes can operate, as happens inside large, hard-rinded, maturing cheeses.
Some organisms are very sensitive to temperature and others less so, but they all have a temperature range within which they will grow, as well as an optimum. For convenience, they are divided into three categories as follows:
1) Cold-loving (psychrophilic) organisms do not grow well in a warm kitchen, but prefer the larder and the warmer parts of the refrigerator. They will, of course, also grow when food passes through their favoured range of temperature. They do not multiply in the deep freeze. Temperature range for multiplication: lowest, -11°C (12°F); optimum, 10°C (50°F); highest, 30°C (86°F).
2) Medium-range (mesophilic) organisms g
row best at normal, summer’s-day temperatures, more slowly in winter or in a cool larder and hardly at all in a refrigerator. The majority of organisms fall into this category, including the disease-producers, which prefer the precise temperature of the human body, and the yeasts which like it comfortably warm but not very hot or very cold. Temperature range: lowest, 0°C (32°F); optimum, 25-35°C (77-95°F); highest, 40-50°C (104-122°F).
3) Heat-loving (thermophilic) organisms are hot weather microbes. In nature, they like hot springs, compost heaps and the temperatures of blazing deserts. This group also includes the organisms responsible for *yoghurt. Temperature range: lowest, 30°C (86°F); optimum, 50-65°C (122-149°F): highest, 70-80°C (158-176°F).
Most organisms are killed by boiling for one minute (but see pasturization and sterilization). Naturally, the thermophilic organisms tend to withstand more heat than the others, but certain bacteria – not too many – can form resistant spores. One, perhaps the world’s most common organism, is the hay bacillus (Bacillus subtilis), which has spores that can stand fast boiling for three hours. Those of the deadly botulism organism (see poisoning) can stand six. Spores have also been known to remain alive for as long as ten years. They form when food starts to run out and waste products accumulate (i.e. in old cultures).They take about 24 hours to form, but are killed by boiling for five minutes during that vulnerable period. When conditions improve, the spores germinate much more quickly – usually in five or six hours.