CONSERVATION IN THE KITCHEN

March 22, 1942

by Susan Thrift

ONE war ago there was a fighting slogan: “Food Will Win the War." 

Food DID help to win that war and it can help to win this one. Which brings the battle front right into our kitchens. 

That extra crust of bread, end of meat, bunch of vegetables, multiplied by millions can balance the scales toward victory. Today it is a "must” for every woman to learn what food to buy for health and efficiency; how to avoid waste; when to buy for economy. This goes for any size budget. 

Lay the groundwork for the present emergency by reading government reports on the buying of food und planning of meals. Here is essentially what you will learn. 

For efficiency and economy, plan your meals a week ahead. Buy – in one shopping trip on Saturday – staples such as flour, canned goods, coffee, cereals for the entire week. At the same time, buy as much of your meat and vegetables as practical. 

From government reports you will learn that food for each member of the family, to ensure needed vitamins, must each day include the following: 

• 1 pint milk for each adult (1 quart for each child). 
• 1 serving lean meat, poultry or fish. 
• 3 to 4 eggs a week for each adult (1 per day for each child). 
• 2 servings fruit (one must be citrus fruit, tomatoes or tomato juice). 
• 2 servings vegetable (must be yellow or green). 
• 2 servings cereals or (one bread, whole or enriched grains. 
• Butter with Vitamin A. 
• 6 glasses water. 

Corners may be filled with “budget” cuts of meat. You learn the food value of cheese, the value of evaporated milk and vegetable, margarine for cooking, how to buy fruits and vegetables so none spoil, and how to cook extras to save them.

After trial and error, you come out at the end of the week with a perfect pattern of meals, with proper vitamins and the budget intact. So sit yourself down in a sunny corner of your kitchen and plan your menus for the week. First list your needed staples, then rough out the week’s menus and figure amounts and costs. 

Armed with this list, go to market from clerks who know you and know you can’t be fooled. If you have a freezing unit in your refrigerator, you can buy meat for the week. You’ve probably learned that you can depend much on a reliable butcher and standard brands. For the rest, remember what your mother taught you about the purchase of meat: 

Any variety, any cut of meat, should have clear, white, firm edges of fat. Thin usually means well-fed, healthy young animals. 

Beef, to be tender, must be hung and aged. Such beef is a clear, dark red. 

Buy poultry with clear yellow skin so thin It may even break, legs must be without tough tendons. In a young fowl, breast bone is soft gristle, not bone. 

Buy roasts with a thought to the use of leftovers, to save money – and even more important now – to save food. If you start the week with a roast, balance the budget later with cheaper cuts pot roasts, ragouts, stews cooked long and flavored well. 

After choosing your meat, select fruits, vegetables. In modern refrigerators, vegetables may be kept a week; with less efficient equipment it is more economical to buy oftener. In choosing fruits and vegetables, these are the rules to remember: 

Fresh, young vegetables look fresh, their leaves crisp, never wilted and brown. Young vegetables crack open; old ones are limp, wrinkled, dry. 

Pods of fresh peas are slick, shiny. 

As a rule, the smaller the kernels, the younger the corn. 

Heads of lettuce and cabbage must be firm, solid, heavy. Never choose one that seems spongy. 

Choose oranges and grapefruit by weight – the heavier the better. But remember that some have thicker skins. 

Always avoid all bruised fruit. 

Buying fresh vegetables is particularly important now and in the future because the housewife will need to utilize them constantly. The abundance of canned goods will be sharply cut because of tin priorities. 

The staples such as cabbage, carrots, dried beans and fruits will become vital parts of our diet, for the tenderer, more tasty vegetables just won’t be available.  

When you are home from the market put your food away promptly. Learn to use your refrigerator for maximum efficiency, for half use or misuse of refrigeration costs time, food and ice. Here are a few simple rules: 

Remove tops from vegetables to save space, ice. 

Place vegetables in cellophane bags or hydrator. 

Wrap uncooked meat in waxed paper. 

All foods fruits, vegetables, meats cooked or raw, should be kept covered. 

You can save much time and some cooking cost if you prepare Yin “ V s C more than one day’s supply of food at a time. Store It in covered glass dishes use as needed. (Good thought for the career girl.) 

If your refrigerator has a compartment for freezing meat, be sure to remove meat from this pan two hours before cooking, so it may reach room temperature. Frozen meat put directly on the fire is tough. 

Rule Number One for all housewives is DON’T HOARD. 

There is no food shortage. Panicky over-buying depletes stocks unnecessarily, causes waste and occasions hardships for those who buy properly. 

Wise housewives always have kept a certain basic supply of food on their shelves against a rainy day, unexpected guests, emergency. 

In this current emergency, the powers that be tell you that the following supply is ample for four people for at least four emergency days. Here’s the official list, in case you want to devote certain cupboard space to this supply, replacing foodstuffs as used: 

• 16 cans evaporated milk. 
• 4 5-ounce jars cheese. ½ pound dried peas, or 4 cans baked beans. 
• 1 pound jar peanut butter. 
• 8 cans vegetables (1 can peas, 1 can beans, 1 can sauerkraut, 4 cans tomatoes). 
• 4 cans grapefruit juice. 
• 1 pound dried prunes (or apricots). 
• ½ pound raisins. 
• 4 or 5 pounds canned meat, fish (such as corned beef, salmon, etc.) 
• 2 packages prepared cereals. 
• 1 pound cereal to be cooked. 
• 2 packages whole wheat crackers. 
• 2 packages of soda crackers. 
• 16 chocolate bars (1 1/2  to 2 ½ ounces). 
• 1 pound can cocoa or chocolate. 
• 1 pound sugar. 
• 1 pound jar jam. 
• ½ pound coffee. 
• ¼ pound tea. 

Note that there is included a proper amount of canned food for your dog – putting even Mother Hubbard to shame! All items of this basic stock must be in containers to prevent spoilage and should be stored in a cool dry place.