Why Food Should Be Cooked
THE object of cooking the food is to dissolve the adhesive substance which holds the fibers of food together, so that the digestive fluids can the more readily act upon every part of the food. 'The starch granules of corn, wheat, rye, and other grains, with those of the potato, turnip, and other vegetables, are very difficult of digestion in a raw state. The digestive fluids act upon them slowly and only with great difficulty, owing to their insolubility. When subjected to heat, these granules swell very greatly in size, and rupture, when they become easily soluble. This effect of heat is familiarly illustrated in the parching of corn, the effect upon the whole kernel being due to a similar effect upon each individual granule. The indigestibility of raw fruits is due to unruptured starch granules which they contain; hence they are improved by cooking.'—Pacific Journal of Health.