An appetizing snack, without which it is difficult to imagine a festive table. A meat delicacy that can be prepared in a hundred ways. Nutritionists praise jelly for its nutritional properties. In a word, this product deserves a rather detailed story.
Historians say that aspic was simultaneously created in two ways.
Firstly, rich soups from fatty, rich in connective tissues, meat products could solidify.
Secondly, from the Early Middle Ages to the Victorian era, it was a custom to cook food for the servants from the meat left from the master's table, boiling it in a kind of thick stew, again - frozen in the pantry in the cold.
But already in the XVIII century, French chefs began to ennoble meat jelly - add spices, vegetables and even wines. Gradually, everything was divided into jellied - translucently fluttering, prepared with the addition of agar-agar, gelatin and the like.
And not so beautiful jellies - which have enough gelling substances from raw meat.
From the jelly served at the beginning of the meal, the benefit is expressed in the fact that it stimulates appetite.
This product is quickly, easily and fully absorbed. So it is recommended during periods of rehabilitation after illness and surgery. Jelly can support the strengths of pregnant and newly born women.
The energy value of food is different - from 300 kcal or more in a pork to 120 kcal per 100 g of chicken meat. So, theoretically, it can be eaten on a diet.
And definitely fatty jelly is useful for people engaged in hard physical labor.
And for those who visit the gym, a small portion of jelly before training will help to increase endurance and physical activity, it is better to transfer all the loads to the musculoskeletal system and especially to the spine.
It is noteworthy that heat treatment does not destroy most of the valuable elements of aspic.
And of them it is worth noting separately:
- calcium - strengthens the skeletal system;
- Vitamin C - improves the condition of the gums, is necessary for the synthesis of hormones, normalizes the permeability of capillaries;
- aluminum - is involved in the production of digestive enzymes and ensures the normal functioning of the kidneys;
- rubidium - suppresses allergy manifestations;
- carotene - allows you to acquire a beautiful tan in the sun;
- phosphorus - necessary for the balance of acid-base balance in the body and the assimilation of a number of vitamins;
- B vitamins - are involved in the synthesis of hemoglobin.
Amino Acid Lysine performs two important functions - protects against infectious diseases and stimulates the absorption of calcium.
Amino Acid Glycine positively affects the activity of the brain, relieves fatigue and improves mood.
But most of all these substances are known for collagen.. It is his entry into the human body that provides such a specific benefit of the aspic as its ability to prevent premature aging, noticeable and invisible, since collagen:
- smoothes wrinkles;
- increases skin elasticity, tightening it;
- participates in the process of updating the epidermal cells;
- It is part of the connective tissue, which means that it provides mobility of the joints, healthy ligaments.
And naturally, the positive properties of aspic vary depending on its composition:
- porcine is useful for providing muscle tissue with oxygen;
- beef - for excellent vision;
- chicken can tidy up the metabolism, impaired by fasting on a diet.
Head (and ears separately), tails, legs, fatty pieces of meat ... Pork and beef - in the first place. With poultry, the dish is based on chicken legs (part with fingers).
The base of the jelly can be supplemented with any meat, including game birds, venison.
In world cuisine, there are dozens of regional varieties of jellied meat.
Additional ingredients can be vegetables and herbs, mushrooms, even fruits, as well as nuts, boiled eggs and cereals.
And for the basis of diversity, you can take the simplest recipes.
Turkey Jelly
Ingredients:
- 500 g of chicken legs;
- 1 turkey drumstick;
- 3 cloves of garlic;
- 1 wing of turkey;
- 1 onion;
- 5 boiled eggs;
- 150 g canned peas;
- 1 tsp allspice and black pepper;
- a bunch of fresh greens of dill and parsley;
- 1 carrot;
- salt to taste.
Cooking method:
- Prepare the chicken legs - cut the claws, pour boiling water over and peel off the hard skin.
- Pour 800 ml of water into a saucepan on the stove, lay the paws, bring to a boil and count about 3 hours 15 minutes to cook them. Strain the broth.
- In a separate bowl on the stove, place the turkey and pour some water - barely covering the bird. Lay out carrots, onions and peppercorns. Bring to a boil, salt and measure on cooking for about 1 hour.
- Remove the turkey meat from the bone, divide into medium pieces.
- Grind the garlic with a knife into crumbs.
- Chop the greens finely.
- Cut the boiled carrots into circles.
- Dice the eggs.
- Mix turkey, carrots, peas and eggs in a jelly dish.
- Pour the turkey and chicken broth into one pan, add greens and garlic to it, and warm to a boil.
- After 5 minutes, fill with liquid the contents of the form, mix.
- Put the dish in the refrigerator until it solidifies (it will take 4-6 hours).
Jellied pork and beef
Ingredients:
- 1.5 kg of pork shank;
- 1 kg of beef tenderloin;
- 400 g of carrots and 1 small root vegetable;
- 1 bell pepper;
- 150 g onions and 1 onion;
- a bunch of fresh parsley and green onions;
- vegetable oil;
- 10 cloves of garlic;
- 1 stalk of celery;
- salt to taste;
- 2 tsp peas of black and allspice;
- 4 bay leaves.
Cooking method:
- Rinse the meat in cold water, put in a pan on the stove. Add 1 onion and 1 carrot, as well as celery.
- Pour water into the pan so that it covers everything.
- Bring to a boil, salt in 15-20 minutes.
- Lay peppercorns and bay leaf.
- Count 1 hour, remove vegetables and continue cooking meat for about 2.5 hours.
- Remove the meat, disassemble it into small pieces.
- Strain the broth from cooking.
- Grate raw carrots on a coarse grater.
- Chop vegetable peppers.
- Chop raw onion finely.
- Fry onion in a pan in oil, then carrots and pepper - all for 20 minutes.
- Squeeze the garlic through a press.
- Chop the greens finely.
- Mix the meat with a vegetable roast, as well as herbs and garlic, put in a jelly dish.
- Pour in the broth and clean for 5-8 hours in the refrigerator until completely solidified.
What harm can be from jelly
Cholesterol is partly a mythical source of the harmful properties of aspic. Indeed, a passion for the fattest and the most rich can aggravate heart disease and contribute to the appearance of deposits on the walls of blood vessels.
But if you eat jellied meat no more than 2-3 times a week - nothing like this will happen.
But the growth hormone present in principle in any meat broth is underestimated in vain. Its accumulation in the body over time provokes the development of inflammatory processes and hypertrophy of muscle tissues (out of strict control, this process is dangerous for the musculoskeletal system and the body as a whole).
An abundance of garlic, as well as horseradish and mustard, traditionally served with jelly, are not useful for chronic diseases of the liver and gall bladder, gastrointestinal tract (gastritis, reflux esophagitis).
Jelly from pork can also harm the gallbladder - the meat contains the substance histamine, which can provoke pathological processes in this organ, as well as thrombophlebitis and skin diseases. However, most importantly, again - do not overeat.
With many joint diseases (including gout), jellied meat is banned due to its high purine content. These same compounds make it an undesirable food for pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas).
But with diabetes, aspic without harm (if it is not very fat) is gradually allowed.
