Researches on the Chemistry of Food, he
said that this could be done by heating the
meat quickly enough that the juices are
immediately sealed inside. He explained
what happens when a piece of meat is
plunged into boiling water, and then the
temperature reduced to a simmer:
When it is introduced into the boiling
water, the albumen immediately coagulates
from the surface inwards, and in this state
forms a crust or shell, which no longer
permits the external water to penetrate into
the interior of the mass of flesh.... The
flesh retains its juiciness, and is quite as
agreeable to the taste as it can be made by
roasting; for the chief part of the sapid
[flavorful] constituents of the mass is
retained, under these circumstances, in the
flesh.
And if the crust can keep water out during
boiling, it can keep the juices in during