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Sunday, February 22, 2009

Chemistry of Cooking

Hi folks,
This is for the the curious cooks who want to know why food gets cooked in a particular way.

If you have a scientific reason why foods taste/look the way they do, feel free to share the info. For eg. why do the perfect tikkis or dosas get that golden look which immediately make you drool? This is a reaction called Maillard named after the french chemist who observed it in the early twentieth century. Here, the nuclephilic amino group of the amino acide reacts with the carbonyl group of the sugar to form molecules with interesting flavours. The browning reaction is one such example and so is caramelization of sugar. By this process, hundreds of different flavours are created.

Put on your thinking cap and share the chemical fundas here on everything you have tried cooking. 

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

Creativity in cooking the simplest of recipes

Hi..

I've always loved simple food and strived towards making it look, taste and feel simply great. The humble brinjal is tossed up with a dash of onions, tomatoes and cheese and given an exotic name for the husband or an exciting story behind the recipe for my boys! Please do feel free to share your similar attempts and let us make the world enjoy the simple pleasures of cooking (not look at it as a boring chore!).

Happy cooking!