Category "chemistry"

What is the difference between a thickener and an emulsifier?

I ask this because I have used a minuscule amount of Xanthan Gum to slightly thicken a chilli sauce I have made. However upon looking at the ingredients of many

Is there a comprehensive overview of food colors?

I found a small list of food additives compiled by the FDA, but it looks rather incomplete and somewhat unspecific. For example, some colors like gold (probabl

How can I find out if yeast or yeast producing are present in foods?

How can I know if a food or ingredient contains yeast or yeast-producing ingredient? My condition requires yeast-free foods and ingredients.

Baking soda for soaking chickpeas [duplicate]

This source claims that adding baking soda is crucial when soaking chickpeas. Is this true, and if so, what is the reason that this works?

Does cooking vegetables increase their flavor?

Is there some scientific explanation for why one cooks vegetables? I mean apart from increasing the ability to digest. Are there flavor enhancements going on?

How to make hard candy with only fruit as a sweetener

I have a child with a restricted diet that can have no added sugar or other form of sweetener, with the exception of fruit juice. He is in desperate need of co

Why do we dimple a focaccia?

When I was making a focaccia earlier today, I realised that I've never been told why we dimple them before baking. A quick Googling didn't reveal anything, so I

Storing Transglutaminase once opened

I have a sealed packet of Transglutaminase/Activa powder. However its much more than I need for this recipe. I know it deactivates quickly after being exposed t

preparing lupini beans?

Lupini beans are an ancient and delicious snack food widely consumed around the Mediterranean and elsewhere. But they naturally contain high levels of toxic al

How do I measure the ripeness of my tomatoes?

In my quest for a perfect shakeshouka (eggs in poultry) I figured out I need less acidity in the dish, and have read that acidity in tomatoes varies widely. I h

Why my meatballs sweated all of their fat?

I have made simple meatballs with red onions, some eggs, drizzle of olive oil and chopped scallions. Put them into the oven at 220c (440f) and this is what came

Does chlorine evaporate from water when cooking?

Most municipal water supplies in the U.S. include noticeable levels of chlorine or chloramine added to kill microbes, and often adds an objectionable chemical s

How does the meat in Weisswurst get so white?

I have looked for the answer online, but no luck so far. Does the ice "burn" the meat and it gets white? How does it work?

Why does my LN2 evaporate so quickly?

Just made my first attempt at cooking using liquid nitrogen. Decided to start easy, and make a 0.5L batch of ice cream, along with some powdered peanut-butter

How to sweeten bread without sugar

I know that sugar molecules are large and too many of them can prevent a proper gluten network from forming when making bread. What other things can be used to

Can one bake a cake with a cooked egg instead of a raw one?

This recent question about a person who wanted to bake a cake but only had a cooked egg left suggested me an even stupider one: is it possible to bake a cake wi

Can one use cooked egg to make fried eggs (sunny side up)? [duplicate]

As a kid, I never really liked cooked eggs, but fried ones. Naturally, I've always wondered if cooked eggs could be reused to make fried eggs

Does sputtering butter mean that water is present?

When I place a pat of butter in a hot pan, the butter melts and begins to sputter and steam. Then steam bubbles pop which sends tiny grease drops flying out of

Can bananas really be ripened through oven baking?

I am following a diet for IBS called the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD). Only bananas that are ripe, i.e. well spotted, can be consumed. Green and non-spotty

What is the film on top of tea?

The quiet surface of a cup of tea always seems to be covered by a thin, immovable film, even when convection currents are still moving things around inside the