Food ScienceABC Lesson 5Functions of Ingredients: Food Science & Alternatives

Quotes“Some people like to paint pictures, or do gardening, or build a boat in the basement. Other people get a tremendous pleasure out of the kitchen, because cooking is just as creative and imaginative an activity as drawing, or wood carving, or music.”

– Julia Child

Food Rules#3 – Avoid food products containing ingredients that no ordinary human would keep in the pantry.

#33 – Eat some foods that have been predigested by bacteria or fungi.

#39 – Eat all the junk food you want as long as you cook it yourself.

Food ScienceFood Science can be defined as the application of the principles of science, engineering and mathematics in order to study and acquire new knowledge on the physical, chemical and biochemical nature of foods. Food science is a broad field that is composed of specializations in food microbiology, food chemistry and food engineering. Food science also involves the study of sensory properties of food, and therefore, the psychology of food choice. From the information gathered by food science, the corresponding technologies can be applied to the utilization, processing, preservation and storage of food. This is known as food technology.

Food PreservationThermalLow TemperatureDehydrationBiotechnologyIrradiation

Food AdditivesColouringPreservativesAntioxidants and Acidity RegulatorsThickenersStabilizersEmulsifierspH RegulatorsAnti-Caking AgentsFlavour EnhancersSweeteners

Taste MakersWho is creating the flavour of food?Why?Do consumers care how their food is flavoured?Should they?

Baking Soda vs. Baking Powder

They both create gas, which makes baked goods rise. Each contains sodium bicarbonate, an alkaline chemical that gives off carbon dioxide when mixed with an acid. Baking soda consists purely of sodium bicarbonate, so recipes using it must include an acidic ingredient like lemon juice, buttermilk, or brown sugar (the molasses in brown sugar is acidic) to activate it. Baking powder contains some baking soda, cornstarch to keep it from clumping, and one or more acidic salts, which act as the activating/neutralizing agents for the bicarbonate.The two leavening agents work at different speeds. Baking soda produces gas immediately upon contact with liquid acid. Remember when you were a kid and you’d mix it with Coke to get a crazy foaming effect? So your dough or batter begins rising the minute you mix in the soda. Baking powder, on the other hand, creates a little gas when you first mix it in (that’s the baking soda working), and then more when the acidic salts have had a chance to fully dissolve, and yet a little more when your product is put in the oven.

Molecular GastronomyMolecular gastronomy or molecular cuisine is the science of cooking but it is commonly used to describe a new style of cuisine in which chefs explore new culinary possibilities in the kitchen by embracing sensory and food science, borrowing tools from the science lab and ingredients from the food industry and concocting surprise after surprise for their diners. Formally, the term molecular gastronomy refers to the scientific discipline that studies the physical and chemical processes that occur while cooking. Molecular gastronomy seeks to investigate and explain the chemical reasons behind the transformation of ingredients, as well as the social, artistic and technical components of culinary and gastronomic phenomena in general. The term Molecular Gastronomy was born in 1992.

Definitions of Molecular GastronomyThe application of scientific principles to the understanding and improvement of domestic and gastronomic food preparation. (Peter Barham)

The art and science of choosing, preparing and eating good food. (Thorvald Pedersen)

The scientific study of deliciousness. (Harold McGee)

Combining the 'know how' of cooks with the 'know why' of scientists

IngredientsE322 Lecithin E327 Calcium lactateE331 Sodium citrates E400 Alginic acidE401 Sodium alginate E402 Potassium alginateE403 Ammonium alginate E404 Calcium alginateE406 Agar E407 CarrageenanE407a Eucheuma seaweed E410 Locust bean gum (Carob gum)E412 Guar gum E413 TragacanthE414 Acacia gum E415 Xanthan gumE416 Karaya gumE417 Tara gumE418 Gellan gum E422 GlycerolE425 Konjac E440 PectinsE441 Gelatine E461 Methyl celluloseE463 Hydroxypropyl cellulose E464 Hydroxy propyl methyl celluloseE466 Carboxymethyl cellulose E473 Sucrose esters of fatty acidsE474 Sucroglycerides E621 Monosodium glutamateE631 Disodium inosinate E636 MaltolE953 Isomalt E1103 InvertaseE1400 Dextrin Transglutaminase (no E-number)

RestaurantsFrench LaundryAlineaThe Fat DuckelBulliNoma

Pesticides / HerbicidesSome of the chemicals used in farming may remain on or in the food we eat. These may cause us harm.Farmers spray pesticides on crops to kill the insects that may reduce crop yield. They also spray herbicides to kill weeds that may compete with the crops. Some of these chemicals may remain on the surface of, for example, fruit. Others may be absorbed by the plant and therefore be present in the crop.

Environmental Concerns

Other agricultural practices can impact the climate. Synthetic pesticides and fertilizers are widely used in agriculture, and are often made from fossil fuels. Manufacturing and transporting these chemicals uses significant quantities of energy and produces greenhouse gases. Not surprisingly, studies have shown that chemical farming uses considerably more energy per unit of production than organic farms, which do not use these chemical inputs. In addition, the use of synthetic nitrogen fertilizers in soils produces nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas that is approximately 300 times more powerful than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere. - David Suzuki

Genetically Modified Food

Transgenic CropsLabeling DiscourseWhat is the Intended Function of GM Food?Main 4:

CornSoybeanCottonCanola

Function of Transgenic Crops

Pros1.2.3.4.5.

Cons1.2.3.4.5.