carried in the water. If meat is cooked in
water, then gelatin can be freed from the
connective tissue and extracted over a long
period of time. When cooks make stocks,
extraction times range from less than an hour
for fish, to a few hours for chicken or veal
stocks, to a day for beef. Optimum extraction
times depend on the size of the bones and
meat pieces, and on the age of the animal; the
more cross-linked collagen of a steer takes
longer to free than the collagen from a veal
calf. At long extraction times, the gelatin
molecules that have already been dissolved
are gradually broken down into smaller pieces
that are less efficient thickeners.
Meat Stocks and Sauces
There are several general strategies for
making meat and fish sauces. The simplest of
them center on the juices produced when the
meat for the final dish is cooked, which can be