The kitchen as laboratory : reflections on the science of food and cooking / edited by Cesar Vega, Job Ubbink, and Erik van der Linden ; foreword by Jeffrey Steingarten.

Cover image for The kitchen as laboratory : reflections on the science of food and cooking / edited by Cesar Vega, Job Ubbink, and Erik van der Linden ; foreword by Jeffrey Steingarten.

ISBN:

9780231153447

Title:

The kitchen as laboratory : reflections on the science of food and cooking / edited by Cesar Vega, Job Ubbink, and Erik van der Linden ; foreword by Jeffrey Steingarten.

Author:

Vega, César.

Publication Information:

New York : Columbia University Press, c2012.

Physical Description:

xx, 312 p. : ill. ; 25 cm.

Series:

Arts and traditions of the table

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: One.The Science of a Grilled Cheese Sandwich / Jennifer Kimmel -- Two.Sound Appeal / Malcolm Povey -- Three.Mediterranean Sponge Cake / Sergio Laguarda -- Four.Spherification: Faux Caviar and Skinless Ravioli / Pere Castells -- Five.Konjac Dondurma: Designing a Sustainable and Stretchable "Fox Testicle" Ice Cream / Anne E. Mcbride -- Six.Stretchy Textures in the Kitchen: Insights from Salep Dondurma / Tim J. Foster -- Seven.Moussaka as an Introduction to Food Chemistry / Christos Ritzoulis -- Eight.The Sticky Science of Malaysian Dodol / Rajeev Bhat -- Nine.The Perfect Cookie Dough / H. Alexander Talbot -- Ten.To Bloom or Not to Bloom? / Richard Hartel -- Eleven.Bacon: The Slice of Life / Timothy Knight -- Twelve.Scandinavian "Sushi": The Raw Story / Louise M. Mortensen -- Thirteen.Maximizing Food Flavor by Speeding Up the Maillard Reaction / Martin Lersch -- Fourteen.Lighten Up! The Role of Gases in the Culinary Experience / Matt Golding --

Contents note continued: Fifteen.The Meringue Concept and Its Variations / Jonnie Boer -- Sixteen.Why Does Cold Milk Foam Better? Into the Nature of Milk Foam / Maria J. Galvez-Ruiz -- Seventeen.Ice Cream Unlimited: The Possibilities of Ingredient Pairing / Miriam Peters -- Eighteen.Egg Yolk: A Library of Textures / Cesar Vega -- Nineteen.Ketchup as Tasty Soft Matter: The Case of Xanthan Gum / Thomas Vilgis -- Twenty.Taste and Mouthfeel of Soups and Sauces / John R. Mitchell -- Twenty-One.Playing with Sound: Crispy Crusts / Susana Fiszman -- Twenty-Two.Baked Alaska and Frozen Florida: On the Physics of Heat Transfer / Adam Burbidge -- Twenty-Three.On Superb Crackling Duck Skin: An Homage to Nicholas Kurti / Nathan Myhrvold -- Twenty-Four.Sweet Physics: Sugar, Sugar Blends, and Sugar Glasses / Thomas Vilgis -- Twenty-Five.Coffee, Please, but No Bitters / Eke Marien -- Twenty-Six.Turning Waste into Wealth: On Bones, Stocks, and Sauce Reductions / Job Ubbink --

Contents note continued: Twenty-Seven.Restructuring Pig Trotters: Fine Chemistry Supporting the Creative Culinary Process / Julia Calvarro -- Twenty-Eight.Innovate: Old World Pizza Crust with New World Ingredients / Thomas M. Tongue Jr. -- Twenty-Nine.Eating Is Believing / Michael Bom Frøst -- Thirty.Molecular Gastronomy Is a Scientific Activity / Herve This -- Thirty-One.The Pleasure of Eating: The Integration of Multiple Senses / Andoni Luis-Aduriz -- Thirty-Two.On the Fallacy of Cooking from Scratch / David J. Mcclements -- Thirty-Three.Science and Cooking: Looking Beyond the Trends to Apply a Personal, Practical Approach / Michael Laiskonis.

Subject Term:

Added Author:

Format:

Books

Publication Date:

2012

Publication Information:

New York : Columbia University Press, c2012.

Available:*

Shelf Number	Material Type	Copy	Shelf Location	Status
664.07 KIT	Book	1	Standard shelving location	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

Eating is a multisensory experience, yet chefs and scientists have only recently begun to deconstruct food's components, setting the stage for science-based cooking . In this global collaboration of essays, chefs and scientists advance culinary knowledge by testing hypotheses rooted in the physical and chemical properties of food. Using traditional and cutting-edge tools, ingredients, and techniques, these pioneers create, and sometimes revamp, dishes that respond to specific desires and serve up an original encounter with gastronomic practice.

From the seemingly mundane to the food fantastic--from grilled cheese sandwiches, pizzas, and soft-boiled eggs to Turkish ice cream, sugar glasses, and jellified beads--the essays in The Kitchen as Laboratory cover a range of creations and their history and culture. They consider the significance of an eater's background and dining atmosphere and the importance of a chef's methods, as well as the strategies used to create a great diversity of foods and dishes. This collection will delight experts and amateurs alike, especially as restaurants rely more on science-based cooking and recreational cooks increasingly explore the physics and chemistry behind their art. Contributors end each essay with their personal thoughts on food, cooking, and science, offering rare insight into a professional's passion for playing with food.

Author Notes

César Vega holds a Ph.D. in food science and a culinary degree from Le Cordon Bleu and is research manager at Mars Botanical, a division of Mars, Inc. He has consulted with several avant-garde restaurants on aspects relating to science-based cooking, and he regularly teaches seminars on the relation between science and cooking.

Job Ubbink is a senior consultant at Food Concept and Physical Design in Flüh, Switzerland. Trained as a physical chemist and biophysicist, he has more than twelve years of R&D experience in the food industry. Along with his research on food material science and food biophysics, he is a passionate cook devoted to developing sustainable food practices and culture.

Erik van der Linden is professor of physics and physical chemistry of foods at Wageningen University. From 1991 to 1997, he worked at the interface of science and industry at Unilever Research in the Netherlands and in the United States, leading innovation projects on structural and sensory aspects of detergents, cosmetics, and foods. He earned his M.Sc. degree in theoretical physics and his Ph.D. at Leiden University and was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship at Emory University, where he focused on the stability of oil in water emulsions.

Reviews (1)

Choice Review

This excellent "fusion" of science and food and cooking is an anthology of 33 essays, written by 53 individuals. The editors are food scientists, and the other contributors are scientists, chefs, or both. Science has increasingly influenced cooking from nouvelle cuisine through molecular gastronomy to "new gastronomy." Notable chapters include the first, on grilled cheese sandwiches, focusing on the melting properties of cheeses with implications for fondue. The second chapter examines the gastronomic effects of sound via the crispness of french fries, potato chips, and fowl. Other chapters discuss moussaka, chocolate chip cookies, meringues, egg yolks, ice creams and sorbets, soups and sauces, ketchup, and coffee flavor. The legendary Herve This (Building a Meal, CH, Sep'09, 47-0234) recaps molecular gastronomy. Contributors also discuss how to speed up the Maillard (browning) reaction with baking soda and how to improve classic pizza crusts. The book addresses the pleasure of eating in general and the controversies surrounding food science, processed foods, and "nutritionism" along with predictions of trends in cooking and food science. Details on chemistry, physics, and other aspects of food science pervade the book. A valuable resource for courses in food science and popular versions of chemistry and physics courses. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. R. E. Buntrock formerly, University of Maine

Jeffrey SteingartenCésar vega and job ubbink and erik van der lindenJennifer KimmelMalcolm PoveyCristina De Lorenzo and Sergio LaguardaCéSar Vega and Pere CastellsArielle Johnson and Kent Kirshenbaum and Anne E. McbrideTim J. FosterChristos RitzoulisAlias A. Karim and Rajeev BhatAki Kamozawa and H. Alexander TalbotAmelia Frazier and Richard HartelTimothy KnightPia Snitkjaer and Louise M. MortensenMartin LerschMatt GoldingPeter Wierenga and Helen Hofstede and Erik Van Der Linden and Sidney Schutte and Jonnie BoerJulia Maldonado-Valderrama and Peter J. Wilde and María J. Gálvez-RuizElke Scholten and Miriam PetersCésar VegaThomas VilgisJohn R. MitchellPaula Varela and Susana FiszmanAdam BurbidgeChristopher Young and Nathan MyhrvoldNatalie Russ and Thomas VilgisJan Groenewold and Eke MarienJorge Ruiz and Julia CalvarroThomas M. Tongue Jr.Line Holler Mielby and Michael Bom FrøstHervé ThisJuan-Carlos Arboleya and Daniel Lasa and Oswaldo Oliva and Javier Vergara and Andoni Luis-AdurizCesar Vega and David J. McclementsMichael Laiskonis

Foreword	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xvii
Introduction: The Case for Science Inspired by the Kitchen	p. 1
1 The Science of a Grilled Cheese Sandwich	p. 7
2 Sound Appeal	p. 11
3 Mediterranean Sponge Cake	p. 18
4 Spherification: Faux Caviar and Skinless Ravioli	p. 25
5 Konjac Dondurma: Designing a Sustainable and Stretchable "Fox Testicle" Ice Cream	p. 33
6 Stretchy Textures in the Kitchen: Insights from Salep Dondurma	p. 41
7 Moussaka as an Introduction to Food Chemistry	p. 45
8 The Sticky Science of Malaysian Dodol	p. 52
9 The Perfect Cookie Dough	p. 59
10 To Bloom or Not to Bloom?	p. 65
11 Bacon: The Slice of Life	p. 73
12 Scandinavian "Sushi": The Raw Story	p. 83
13 Maximizing Food Flavor by Speeding Up the Maillard Reaction	p. 91
14 Lighten up! The Role of Gases in the Culinary Experience	p. 100
15 The Meringue Concept and Its Variations	p. 108
16 Why Does Cold Milk Foam Better? Into the Nature of Milk Foam	p. 117
17 Ice Cream Unlimited: The Possibilities of Ingredient Pairing	p. 123
18 Egg Yolk: A Library of Textures	p. 134
19 Ketchup as Tasty Soft Matter: The Case of Xanthan Gum	p. 142
20 Taste and Mouthfeel of Soups and Sauces	p. 148
21 Playing with Sound: Crispy Crusts	p. 155
22 Baked Alaska and Frozen Florida: On the Physics of Heat Transfer	p. 166
23 On Superb Crackling Duck Skin: An Homage to Nicholas Kurti	p. 176
24 Sweet Physics: Sugar, Sugar Blends, and Sugar Glasses	p. 186
25 Coffee, Please, but No Bitters	p. 196
26 Turning Waste into Wealth: On Bones, Stocks, and Sauce Reductions job ubbink	p. 206
27 Restructuring Pig Trotters: Fine Chemistry Supporting the Creative Culinary Process	p. 217
28 Innovate: Old World Pizza Crust with New World Ingredients	p. 224
29 Eating Is Believing	p. 233
30 Molecular Gastronomy Is a Scientific Activity	p. 242
31 The Pleasure of Eating: The Integration of Multiple Senses	p. 254
32 On the Fallacy of Cooking from Scratch	p. 264
33 Science and Cooking: Looking Beyond the Trends to Apply a Personal, Practical Approach	p. 273
Contributors	p. 289
Index	p. 299

Available:*

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

Summary

Author Notes

Reviews (1)

Choice Review

Table of Contents