Beating is a process of mixing food and is performed by rapidly moving the food in circular motion with the help of simple kitchen aids like a spoon or a fork or a kitchen aid specifically built for the purpose such as an electrical egg beater. The purpose of beating is to impart a light and airy texture to the substance that is being beaten. Many foods are beaten, one of the most common being egg, when a light and airy texture is required by certain recipes like the sponge cake. Beating is usually carried out as a sub-process in the preparation of food.
Certain ingredients are beaten and then combined with other ingredients for preparing the dish. For example, in the preparation of the sponge cake, the egg whites and yolks are beaten together well and mixed with flour and other ingredients to form the cake batter which is baked. Beating egg imparts a foamy and velvety texture to it. Other beaten foods include curd, cream, and butter etc. Popular dishes which are made with beaten ingredients include the traditional sponge cake, yogurt sauce, salmon dressing, chocolate butter icing, eggnog, angel food cake, avocado salad and creamy scrambled eggs.
The Process of Beating
Principle: Beating is essentially a way of mixing food to make it light and airy in texture by trapping air with rapid circular movements made in the food with the help of fork and spoon or an electrical beater. The action is aimed at mixing the entire food and is done by picking food from the lowermost part of the container and mixing it with food on the topmost part of the container.
Beating food is done manually and in modern times with the help of an electrical beater.
Beating Food Manually- Beating is best done by taking the food to be beaten in a bowl, holding it at an angle and stirring it rapidly in a circular pattern with a fork or a spoon. This motion usually lasts for a few minutes and results in the transformation of the beaten liquid into one with a foamy texture. When after beating, this ingredient is used with others for making a dish, the dish attains a spongy texture. For example, egg is invariably beaten in the process of cake-making with sugar, oil, or butter and then added to other ingredients. The resultant cake is found to be much softer and lighter in texture in comparison to cakes made without beating.
Beating food with a rotary beater- a rotary beater is a device that is specially made to beat food such as egg and cream. In its basic form, it comes with a beater made of metal or wood, and a handle. The handle is rotated manually and the beater rotates in the liquid executing the process of beating. Hand and stand mixers can also be used for the purpose of beating as a substitute for rotary beaters.
Beating with electric beater – the electric beater is a fully automated machine where no manual involvement is required. The ingredient to be beaten is poured into the container provided with the beater and the apparatus is switched off. After a couple of minutes or after the time specified by the recipe, the machine is switched off and a frothy light textured liquid results which is ready for usage in the preparation of a dish of choice.
Popular Dishes Prepared with Beaten Ingredients
Beating is a part of preparation of a number of popular dishes, some of which are discussed further:
· Angel Food Cake – This cake is specially named as Angel Food Cake because of its delicate, light and airy structure which is compared to the tenderness of an angel. This American sponge cake attains its characteristic structure mainly from the part of the process that involves beating the egg whites and also mixing it with other ingredients like sugar, cream and flavoring agent. Beating egg is the major process in the preparation of other sponge cakes too, in which the egg yolks are beaten separately with sugar and the egg whites are beaten separately till they attain a meringue-like consistency. The beating and sieving process are all purposed to trap in as much air as possible into the cake and make the texture of the cake lighter.
· Meringue – This is a dessert made with beaten egg whites. The egg white is beaten till stiff peaks are formed due to the rearrangement of the protein structure. The egg is beaten to form stiff, firm and soft peaks. Though a dessert by itself, a meringue is used as a topping on a number of other desserts like cookies and pies. A basic recipe for meringue involves beating egg whites and sugar with a whisk till it attains a shiny white structure and then continuing to beat the mixture with more sugar and flavoring agent till still long peaks are formed. The meringue thus formed can be baked.
· Egg Nog – also spelt as eggnog, this is a dairy products based beverage made using beaten egg. Preparation of eggnog involves beating the egg whites and yolks separately with sugar, pouring in rum, milk, cream, and whiskey and blending them with each other. The traditional version of this cream-colored beverage makes use of raw eggs which is not a healthy option and in the modern versions of this creamy drink, pasteurized eggs are used. Before serving, the beverage is garnished with nutmeg and cinnamon.
· Yogurt sauce – this is a dipping sauce or an accompaniment dish. Yogurt is beaten with a spoon or a fork lightly till it appears light and creamy. Seasonings which may be savory ones like garlic and herbs, or sweet seasonings are added to the yogurt which is beaten once more lightly to mix in the ingredients. The sauce maybe served immediately or chilled.
· Scrambled Eggs- this is a breakfast dish consisting of soft globules or coagulated pieces of eggs. The egg white and yellow are beaten together with milk, butter, oil or cream and poured into a pan with a bit of salt and pepper seasoning. Constant stirring of the mass over low heat results in the formation of egg curds. The beating of the egg gives the curds a spongy texture.
Beating, in the culinary context, may also refer to another technique which involves hitting a solid food very hard as a part of the cooking process. For example, in the preparation of beaten biscuits, the dough is beaten with a wooden mallet, till it blisters, prior to baking it.