Extracts and concentrates

Extracts are made commercially, but were once produced in the kitchen. Meat, fish, and vegetable extracts may have a place in natural cooking, when you how to use them.

Extracts

They are concentrates made of meat, fish or vegetables. Some concentrates - sauces made of fermented fish, stock cubes - have been around for centuries.

Ancient Greeks and Romans produced sauced from the juices of dried and fermented fish used -particularly by Romans- to season seafood and meats, and as salad dressing.

In China and south Asia, there are today preparations very similar to the ancient ones.

Food extracts, as concentrated beef pastes and stock cubes, are made from the natural juices of the particular animal or vegetable. Colorings, spices, salt, monosodium glutamate, and sometimes preservatives, are added also. According to the degree of evaporation, a moist or dry extract can be obtained.

Fish pastes and sauces keep indefinitely; yeast and malt extracts keep indefinitely, too.

Fish extracts - Pastes or sauces produced from fermented, dried or salted fish.

Malted milk - First used as nutritious drink for infants or invalids, now malted milk products are used in crackers, cookies, mixes for cakes, creams, pie fillings and ice cream.

Malt extracts - Made by soaking powdered malt in water.

Meat extracts - Obtained mainly from beef.

Stock cubes - Dehydrated extracts from the juices of meat, fish or vegetables. Stock cubes can absorb moisture in damp conditions and should always be kept dry, preferably in airtight containers.

Yeast extracts - Yeast extracts have a similar taste and texture to meat extracts.