The Daily Tar HeelThursday, January 10, 19907
Chemist says new hamburger-
method reduces fat
cooking
(( 'W II .IIQWB
From Associated Press reports
BOSTON A chemist expen
menting on his kitchen stove has
' whipped up a formula for healthier
hamburger a way of cooking ground
during ordinary cooking. However, the
major difference is the composition of
the fat that is left behind. Small's way
replaces about two-thirds of the fat that
remains in conventional cooking with
We use the technique at home and
serve It to friends," said Small. "They
can't tell the difference. There is no oily
fat floating on the top of your spaghetti
sauce and no grease on tacos.
meat that takes out three-quarters of the polyunsaturates or monounsaturates
saturated fat and replaces it witn veg
, etable oil.
Dr. Donald Small said typical
A morii-inc rrnlrl lrlr f h nlpQtPml
r 11.U11J B w..www.v
'? levels nearly 10 points if they used his
method to cook one-third of their red
'"meat.
Frying hamburger Small's way re
squires several extra steps. The secret is
j. cooking the meat first in vegetable oil
.ana men rinsing u wun ooiung waicr.
;l Any amateur chef willing to take the
' f'time can easily do it.
fr' Small is a physical chemist and
"'physician at Boston University School
of Medicine with a long interest in heart
''"disease and fats and a yen for cooking!
, . "I like red meat, and I don't like
t, eating tofu," he said. "I thought if there
" was a way of removing saturated fat and
c," cholesterol from meat and it still tasted
" jOK, it would be worthwhile playing
with."
So Small set to work with his skillet.
The results of his dabbling were pub
lished in Thursday's New England
v Journal of Medicine in an article titled
"Chemistry in the Kitchen." .
Here's his recipe: Heat a pint of
vegetable oil to about 175 degrees. Add
two pounds of ground beef, pork or
lamb and stir until the meat juice begins
to boil. Cook and stir with the juice
barely bubbling for 10 more minutes
'' while breaking up the meat.
r Put the meat and oil into a strainer
; and save the liquid. Then pour a cup or
two of boiling water over the meat in the
strainer and save the water with the rest
'of the liquid. Put the liquid in the re-
frigerator for an hour and then skim off
the hardened fat.
zi Pour the rest of the fat-free liquid
1 back onto the meat.
The meat is then ready for use in any
'Vdish that requires ground meat, such as
spaghetti sauce, tacos, soup, meat loaf
J and casseroles.
y Dr. Scott Grundy, an authority on
'' diet and heart disease at the University
rof Texas, said some cooks who try to
H follow Small's method might be put off
by the expense of using vegetable oil
and the extra work needed to fix dinner.
"But in theory," he added, "it sounds
''' like a nice idea that could get rid of the
saturated fat in meat."
'- With his method, Small said, 72 per--cent
to 87 percent of saturated fat is
removed from raw ground beef or pork,
as well as nearly half of the cholesterol.
Mfaf cooked Small's, way is also
leaner overall. It removes 68 percent of
the total fat, compared with 59 percent
600-lb. butter
sculpture
draws crowd
'' From Associated Press reports
HARRISBURG, Pa. A sculptor
V spent three 14-hour days in a cooler to
create a startling likeness of Benjamin
' Franklin, knowing that it would end up
in peoples' stomachs just a few weeks
5 after it was done.
Raymond Mackintosh of Toronto
used about 600 pounds of Pennsylvania
butter to build the life-size sculpture of
s Franklin for a special display at the 75th
Pennsylvania Farm Show, running this
week through Friday.
The sculpture, displayed in a refrig
'jf erated booth, regularly draws a crowd.
It portrays one of the state's most
- colorful historical figures standing erect,
intently reading a piece of paper. He
holds a pair of glasses in one hand near
'J his chin.
fj Tt Jc Ht?i51fH Hnwn tr the knsft
V wrinkles in his hosiery, the ruffles at the
- j bottom of his sleeves, the frayed edges
of the paper and the buckles on his
shoes.
n- "I wouldn't have the patience for
5 that," said one spectator, Joanne Herr of
k Columbia. "He did a good job.
-'j "It's an artistic way of promoting a
product," said her husband, Elmer.
Officials from the four dairy organi-jp-zations
that sponsored the sculpture
estimated its worth at about $5,000.
After the show ends Friday, the statue
"will be taken down and the butter do
i'nated to a local soup kitchen.
Mackintosh, who also has created
j special effects and masks for such films
" as "Jacob's Ladder," said he took a
; break from his current movie, "Body
j Parts," to shape Franklin in butter.
"Actually, it's an interesting material
; to work with," he said in an interview
j from the "Body Parts" set in Canada,
j "I had to work in cooler temperatures
i and it was cold. I was fighting hypo
j ahermia. Fatigue sets in quicker," he
said. You have to stay warm wnne
concentrating on what you're doing.
"Butter is tricky, but then you get
used to it. I like it, it's very responsive."
He used wooden and wire tools he
made himself to craft the intricate details.
The sculpture hides a steel frame that
supports its weight.
"I know it's a temporary thing, but if
people enjoy it, then it's fine. It lives on
S in their memory. A lot of people base
J past experiences on seeing a butter
sculpture. It sticks with them," he said.
So it's actually better."
Many health experts believe that
, saturated fat in the diet raises blood
levels of cholesterol, which in turn
causes heart disease. Dietary guidelines
recommend limiting saturated fat to 10
percent of the day's total calories.
Drs. Walter Willett and Frank Sacks
of Harvard. University called Small's
work a "delightful lesson in food composition."
Thursday, Jan. 10
CHRIS CHANDLER (political
satire) at Columbia Street Bakery. Call
967-9150 for details.
MOJO HEADS at Skylight Ex
change. Call 933-5550 for details.
"AMERICAN BUFFALO" by
David Mamet at the ArtsCenter, 8 p.m.
Call 929-ARTS for ticket information.
Friday, Jan. 11
DARK PATCHES FALL at Co
lumbia Street Bakery.
THE SEX POLICE at Cat's Cradle.
Tickets $5 at SchoolKids Records. Call
967-9053 for details.
CHRIS CHANDLER (political
satire) at Skylight Exchange.
PIERCE PETTIS at The Cave, $3.
Call 968-9308 for details.
"AMERICAN BUFFALO" by
David Mamet at the ArtsCenter, 8 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 12
ADA at Columbia Street Bakery.
THE JODYGRIND at Cat's
Cradle.
LOLI OATES at Skylight Ex
change. THE BAD DOG BLUES BAND at
The Cave.
"AMERICAN BUFFALO" by
David Mamet at the ArtsCenter, 8 p.m.
Sunday, Jan. 13
JAM w RICH CORTESE and
ART GRUSKIN at The Cave.
VOCAL DUETS AND SOLOS
FROM THE THEATRICAL
STAGE: MUSIC OF W.A.
MOZART, NOEL COWARD AND
LEONARD BERNSTEIN at Hill
Hall Auditorium, 8 p.m. Call 962
BACH for details.
OPEN JAZZ JAM at the Carrboro
ArtsCenter, 7:30 p.m. Participating
musicians admitted free.
"AMERICAN BUFFALO" at the
ArtsCenter, 3 p.m.
Tuesday, Jan. 15
IRISH MUSIC PICKING at Co
lumbia Street Bakery.
TRACY DRACH at The Cave.
I :
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