![Flickr edsel 2616056659--Eggs Benedict](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Flickr_edsel_2616056659--Eggs_Benedict.jpg)
Molecular gastronomy is the
scientific
Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe.
Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...
approach of
nutrition
Nutrition is the biochemical and physiological process by which an organism uses food to support its life. It provides organisms with nutrients, which can be metabolized to create energy and chemical structures. Failure to obtain sufficient ...
from primarily the perspective of
chemistry. The composition (
molecular structure
Molecular geometry is the three-dimensional arrangement of the atoms that constitute a molecule. It includes the general shape of the molecule as well as bond lengths, bond angles, torsional angles and any other geometrical parameters that deter ...
), properties (
mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...
,
viscosity
The viscosity of a fluid is a measure of its resistance to deformation at a given rate. For liquids, it corresponds to the informal concept of "thickness": for example, syrup has a higher viscosity than water.
Viscosity quantifies the inte ...
, etc) and transformations (
chemical reaction
A chemical reaction is a process that leads to the IUPAC nomenclature for organic transformations, chemical transformation of one set of chemical substances to another. Classically, chemical reactions encompass changes that only involve the pos ...
s,
reactant
In chemistry, a reagent ( ) or analytical reagent is a substance or compound added to a system to cause a chemical reaction, or test if one occurs. The terms ''reactant'' and ''reagent'' are often used interchangeably, but reactant specifies a ...
products
Product may refer to:
Business
* Product (business), an item that serves as a solution to a specific consumer problem.
* Product (project management), a deliverable or set of deliverables that contribute to a business solution
Mathematics
* Produ ...
) of an ingredient are addressed and utilized in the preparation and appreciation of the
ingested products. It is a branch of
food science
Food science is the basic science and applied science of food; its scope starts at overlap with agricultural science and nutritional science and leads through the scientific aspects of food safety and food processing, informing the development ...
that approaches the preparation and
enjoyment
Happiness, in the context of mental or emotional states, is positive or pleasant emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy. Other forms include life satisfaction, well-being, subjective well-being, flourishing and eudaimonia.
Sinc ...
of nutrition from the perspective of a scientist at the scale of
atom
Every atom is composed of a nucleus and one or more electrons bound to the nucleus. The nucleus is made of one or more protons and a number of neutrons. Only the most common variety of hydrogen has no neutrons.
Every solid, liquid, gas, ...
s,
molecule
A molecule is a group of two or more atoms held together by attractive forces known as chemical bonds; depending on context, the term may or may not include ions which satisfy this criterion. In quantum physics, organic chemistry, and bioche ...
s, and
mixtures.
Nicholas Kurti
Nicholas Kurti, ( hu, Kürti Miklós) (14 May 1908 – 24 November 1998) was a Hungarian-born British physicist who lived in Oxford, UK, for most of his life.
Career
Born in Budapest, Kurti went to high school at the Minta Gymnasium, but due ...
,
Hungarian physicist, and
Hervé This
Hervé This (; born 5 June 1955 in Suresnes, Hauts-de-Seine, sometimes named Hervé This-Benckhard, or Hervé This vo Kientza) is a French physical chemist who works for the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique at AgroParisTech, in Pa ...
, at the
INRA in France, coined "Molecular and Physical Gastronomy" in 1988.
While there are those who label others' work as gastronomy, there is a population of chefs who identify as autonomous individuals in their field as chefs.
Examples
Eponymous recipes
New dishes named after famous scientists include:
*Gibbs – infusing
vanilla
Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the Mexican species, flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia'').
Pollination is required to make the p ...
pods in
egg
An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the a ...
white with sugar, adding
olive oil and then
microwave
Microwave is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths ranging from about one meter to one millimeter corresponding to frequencies between 300 MHz and 300 GHz respectively. Different sources define different frequency ra ...
cooking. Named after physicist
Josiah Willard Gibbs
Josiah Willard Gibbs (; February 11, 1839 – April 28, 1903) was an American scientist who made significant theoretical contributions to physics, chemistry, and mathematics. His work on the applications of thermodynamics was instrumental in t ...
(1839–1903).
*Vauquelin – using
orange juice
Orange juice is a liquid extract of the orange tree fruit, produced by squeezing or reaming oranges. It comes in several different varieties, including blood orange, navel oranges, valencia orange, clementine, and tangerine. As well as vari ...
or
cranberry juice
Cranberry juice is the liquid juice of the cranberry, typically manufactured to contain sugar, water, and other fruit juices. Cranberry – a fruit native to North America – is recognized for its bright red color, tart taste, and versat ...
with
added sugar when whipping eggs to increase the
viscosity
The viscosity of a fluid is a measure of its resistance to deformation at a given rate. For liquids, it corresponds to the informal concept of "thickness": for example, syrup has a higher viscosity than water.
Viscosity quantifies the inte ...
and to stabilize the foam, and then
microwave
Microwave is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths ranging from about one meter to one millimeter corresponding to frequencies between 300 MHz and 300 GHz respectively. Different sources define different frequency ra ...
cooking. Named after
Nicolas Vauquelin (1763–1829), one of
Lavoisier's teachers.
*Baumé – soaking a whole egg for a month in
alcohol to create a coagulated egg. Named after the French chemist
Antoine Baumé (1728–1804).
History
![Hestonregentspark](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Hestonregentspark.jpg)
There are many branches of food science that study different aspects of food, such as safety, microbiology, preservation, chemistry, engineering and physics. Until the advent of molecular gastronomy, there was no branch dedicated to studying the chemical processes of cooking in the home and in restaurants. Food science has primarily been concerned with industrial food production and, while the disciplines may overlap, they are considered separate areas of investigation.
The creation of the discipline of molecular gastronomy was intended to bring together what had previously been fragmented and isolated investigations into the chemical and physical processes of cooking into an organized discipline within food science, to address what the other disciplines within food science either do not cover, or cover in a manner intended for scientists rather than cooks.
The term "molecular and physical gastronomy" was coined in 1988 by Hungarian physicist
Nicholas Kurti
Nicholas Kurti, ( hu, Kürti Miklós) (14 May 1908 – 24 November 1998) was a Hungarian-born British physicist who lived in Oxford, UK, for most of his life.
Career
Born in Budapest, Kurti went to high school at the Minta Gymnasium, but due ...
and French physical chemist
Hervé This
Hervé This (; born 5 June 1955 in Suresnes, Hauts-de-Seine, sometimes named Hervé This-Benckhard, or Hervé This vo Kientza) is a French physical chemist who works for the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique at AgroParisTech, in Pa ...
. In 1992, it became the title for a set of workshops held in
Erice
Erice (; scn, Èrici) is a historic town and ''comune'' in the province of Trapani, Sicily, in southern Italy.
Geography
The main town of Erice is located on top of Mount Erice, at around above sea level, overlooking the city of Trapani, the ...
, Italy (originally titled "Science and Gastronomy")
that brought together scientists and professional cooks for discussions about the science behind traditional cooking preparations. Eventually, the shortened term "molecular gastronomy" became the name of the approach, based on exploring the science behind traditional cooking methods.
Kurti and This considered the creation of a formal discipline around the subjects discussed in the meetings.
After Kurti's death in 1998, the name of the Erice workshops were changed by This to "The International Workshop on Molecular Gastronomy 'N. Kurti'". This remained the sole director of the subsequent workshops from 1999, and continued his research in the field of molecular gastronomy at the Inra-AgroParisTech International Centre for Molecular Gastronomy, remaining in charge of organizing the international meetings.
Precursors
The idea of using techniques developed in
chemistry to study food is not a new one, for instance the discipline of
food science
Food science is the basic science and applied science of food; its scope starts at overlap with agricultural science and nutritional science and leads through the scientific aspects of food safety and food processing, informing the development ...
has existed for many years. Kurti and This acknowledged this fact and though they decided that a new, organized and specific discipline should be created within food science that investigated the processes in regular cooking (as food science was primarily concerned with the nutritional properties of food and developing methods to process food on an industrial scale), there are several notable examples throughout history of investigations into the science of everyday cooking recorded as far as back to 18th century.
Marie-Antoine Carême (1784–1833)
The concept of molecular gastronomy was perhaps presaged by
Marie-Antoine Carême
Marie Antoine (Antonin) Carême (; 8 June 178412 January 1833) was a French chef and an early practitioner and exponent of the elaborate style of cooking known as ''grande cuisine'', the "high art" of French cooking: a grandiose style of cookery ...
, one of the most famous French chefs, who said in the early 19th century that when making a food stock "the broth must come to a boil very slowly, otherwise the albumin coagulates, hardens; the water, not having time to penetrate the meat, prevents the gelatinous part of the osmazome from detaching itself."
Evelyn G. Halliday and Isabel T. Noble
In 1943 the
University of Chicago Press
The University of Chicago Press is the largest and one of the oldest university presses in the United States. It is operated by the University of Chicago and publishes a wide variety of academic titles, including ''The Chicago Manual of Style'', ...
published a book titled ''Food Chemistry and Cookery'' by the then
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...
Associate Professor of Home Economics Evelyn G. Halliday and
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...
Associate Professor of Home Economics Isabel T. Noble. In the foreword of the 346-page book, the authors state that, "The main purpose of this book is to give an understanding of the chemical principles upon which good practices in food preparation and preservation are based."
The book includes chapters such as "The Chemistry of Milk", "The Chemistry of Baking Powders and Their Use in Baking", "The Chemistry of Vegetable Cookery" and "Determination of Hydrogen Ion Concentration" and contains numerous illustrations of lab experiments including a ''Distillation Apparatus for Vegetable Samples'' and a ''Pipette for Determining the Relative Viscosity of Pectin Solutions''.
The professors had previously published ''The Hows and Whys of Cooking'' in 1928.
Belle Lowe
In 1932, Belle Lowe, then the professor of Food and Nutrition at
Iowa State College
Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the n ...
, published a book titled ''Experimental Cookery: From The Chemical And Physical Standpoint'' which became a standard textbook for home economics courses across the United States. The book is an exhaustively researched look into the science of everyday cooking referencing hundreds of sources and including many experiments. At a length of over 600 pages with section titles such as "The Relation Of Cookery To Colloidal Chemistry", "Coagulation Of Proteins", "The Factors Affecting The Viscosity Of Cream And Ice Cream", "
Syneresis", "Hydrolysis Of Collagen" and "Changes In Cooked Meat And The Cooking Of Meat", the volume rivals or exceeds the scope of many other books on the subject, at a much earlier date.
Elizabeth Cawdry Thomas
Though rarely credited, the origins of the Erice workshops (originally entitled "Science and Gastronomy") can be traced back to cooking teacher Elizabeth Cawdry Thomas, who studied at
Le Cordon Bleu in London and ran a cooking school in
Berkeley, California
Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and E ...
. The one-time wife of a
physicist
A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe.
Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...
, Thomas had many friends in the scientific community and an interest in the science of cooking. In 1988, while attending a meeting at the Ettore Majorana Center for Scientific Culture in Erice, Thomas had a conversation with Professor Ugo Valdrè of the
University of Bologna
The University of Bologna ( it, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, UNIBO) is a public research university in Bologna, Italy. Founded in 1088 by an organised guild of students (''studiorum''), it is the oldest university in continu ...
, who agreed with her that the science of cooking was an undervalued subject, and encouraged Kurti to organize a workshop at the Ettore Majorana Center. However nothing happened until Kurti met Hervé This: both approached the director of the Ettore Majorana center, physicist
Antonino Zichichi Antonino may refer to:
* Antonino (name), a given name and a surname (including a list of people with the name)
* Antonino, Kansas, an unincorporated community in Ellis County, Kansas, United States
See also
* Antoniano (disambiguation)
* Antoñ ...
, who liked the idea. They invited the food science writer
Harold McGee
Harold James McGee (born October 3, 1951) is an American author who writes about the chemistry and history of food science and cooking. He is best known for his seminal book '' On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen'' first pu ...
to join them as invited co-director of the first workshops in 1992.
Nicholas Kurti
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
physicist Nicholas Kurti advocated applying scientific knowledge to culinary problems. He was one of the first television cooks in the UK, hosting a black-and-white television show in 1969 entitled ''The Physicist in the Kitchen'', where he demonstrated techniques such as using a syringe to inject hot mince pies with
brandy in order to avoid disturbing the crust.
[''How to Dunk a Doughnut: The Science Of Everyday Life'', Len Fisher, p.24] That same year, he held a presentation for the
Royal Society of London
The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
(also entitled "The Physicist in the Kitchen") in which he stated:
Kurti demonstrated making meringue in a
vacuum chamber
A vacuum chamber is a rigid enclosure from which air and other gases are removed by a vacuum pump. This results in a low-pressure environment within the chamber, commonly referred to as a vacuum. A vacuum environment allows researchers to con ...
, the cooking of sausages by connecting them across a car battery, the digestion of protein by fresh pineapple juice, and a reverse
baked alaska
Baked Alaska, also known as Bombe Alaska, ''omelette norvégienne, omelette surprise,'' or ''omelette sibérienne'' depending on the country, is a dessert consisting of ice cream and cake topped with browned meringue. The dish is made of ice cre ...
—hot inside, cold outside—cooked in a
microwave oven
A microwave oven (commonly referred to as a microwave) is an electric oven that heats and cooks food by exposing it to electromagnetic radiation in the microwave frequency range. This induces polar molecules in the food to rotate and produce ...
.
Kurti was also an advocate of
low temperature cooking
Low-temperature cooking is a cooking technique using temperatures in the range of about for a prolonged time to cook food. Low-temperature cooking methods include sous vide cooking, slow cooking using a slow cooker, cooking in a normal oven which ...
, repeating 18th century experiments by British scientist
Benjamin Thompson
Sir Benjamin Thompson, Count Rumford, FRS (german: Reichsgraf von Rumford; March 26, 1753August 21, 1814) was an American-born British physicist and inventor whose challenges to established physical theory were part of the 19th-century revolut ...
by leaving a lamb joint in an oven at . After 8.5 hours, both the inside and outside temperature of the lamb joint were around , and the meat was
tender and juicy.
With his wife Giana, Kurti edited an anthology on food and science by fellows and foreign members of the Royal Society.
Hervé This
Hervé This started collecting "culinary precisions" (old kitchen wives' tales and cooking tricks) the 24th of March 1980, and started testing these precisions to see which held up; his collection eventually numbered some 25,000. In 1995, he received a PhD in Physical Chemistry of Materials, for which he wrote his thesis on "La gastronomie moléculaire et physique" (molecular and physical gastronomy). He served as an adviser to the French minister of education, lectured internationally, and was invited to join the lab of Nobel-winning molecular chemist
Jean-Marie Lehn
Jean-Marie Lehn (born 30 September 1939) is a French chemist. He received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry together with Donald Cram and Charles Pedersen in 1987 for his synthesis of cryptands. Lehn was an early innovator in the field of supramole ...
.
This has published several books in French, four of which have been translated into English, including ''Molecular Gastronomy: Exploring the Science of Flavor'', ''Kitchen Mysteries: Revealing the Science of Cooking'', ''Cooking: The Quintessential Art'', and ''Building a Meal: From Molecular Gastronomy to Culinary Constructivism''.
He currently publishes a series of essays in French, and hosts free monthly seminars on molecular gastronomy at the
INRA in France. He gives free and public seminars on molecular gastronomy every month, and annually gives a public and free course on molecular gastronomy. Hervé This also authors a website and a pair of blogs on the subject in French, and publishes monthly collaborations with French chef
Pierre Gagnaire
Pierre Gagnaire (born 9 April 1950 in Apinac, Loire) is a French chef, and the head chef and owner of the eponymous Pierre Gagnaire restaurant at 6 rue Balzac in Paris (in the 8th arrondissement). Gagnaire is an iconoclastic chef at the forefron ...
on Gagnaire's website.
Objectives
The objectives of molecular gastronomy, as defined by Hervé This, are seeking for the mechanisms of culinary transformations and processes (from a chemical and physical point of view) in three areas:
#the social phenomena linked to culinary activity
#the artistic component of culinary activity
#the technical component of culinary activity
The original fundamental objectives of molecular gastronomy were defined by This in his doctoral dissertation as:
#Investigating culinary and gastronomical proverbs, sayings and old wives' tales
#Exploring existing recipes
#Introducing new tools, ingredients and methods into the kitchen
#Inventing new dishes
#Using molecular gastronomy to help the general public understand the contribution of science to society
Hervé This later recognized points 3, 4, and 5 as being not entirely scientific endeavors (more application of technology and educational), and has revised the list.
Areas of investigation
Prime topics for study include
*How ingredients are changed by different cooking methods
*How all the senses play their own roles in our appreciation of food
*The mechanisms of aroma release and the perception of taste and flavor
*How and why we evolved our particular taste and flavor sense organs and our general food likes and dislikes
*How cooking methods affect the eventual flavor and texture of food ingredients
*How new cooking methods might produce improved results of texture and flavor
*How our brains interpret the signals from all our senses to tell us the "flavor" of food
*How our enjoyment of food is affected by other influences, our environment, our mood, how it is presented, who prepares it, etc.
Chefs
![Achatz](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/Achatz.jpeg)
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the term started to be used to describe a new style of cooking in which some chefs began to explore new possibilities in the kitchen by embracing science, research, technological advances in equipment and various
natural gum
Natural gums are polysaccharides of natural origin, capable of causing a large increase in a solution's viscosity, even at small concentrations. They are mostly botanical gums, found in the woody elements of plants or in seed coatings.
Human ...
s and
hydrocolloids produced by the commercial
food processing industry. It has since been used to describe the food and cooking of a number of famous chefs, though many of them do not accept the term as a description of their style of cooking.
Chefs who are often associated with molecular gastronomy because of their embrace of science include
Heston Blumenthal
Heston Marc Blumenthal (; born 27 May 1966) is a British celebrity chef, TV personality and food writer. Blumenthal is regarded as a pioneer of multi-sensory cooking, food pairing and flavour encapsulation. He came to public attention with u ...
,
Grant Achatz
Grant Achatz ( ) (born April 25, 1974) is an American chef and restaurateur often recognized for his contributions to molecular gastronomy or progressive cuisine. His Chicago restaurant Alinea has won numerous accolades and Achatz himself has w ...
,
Ferran Adrià
Ferran Adrià i Acosta (; born 14 May 1962) is a Spanish chef. He was the head chef of the ''El Bulli'' restaurant in Roses, Girona, Roses on the Costa Brava and is considered one of the best chefs in the world. He has often collaborated with h ...
,
José Andrés
José Ramón Andrés Puerta (born 13 July 1969) is a Spanish chef, and founder of World Central Kitchen (WCK), a non-profit devoted to providing meals in the wake of natural disasters. A Spanish-born and raised cook, he is often credited with b ...
,
Marcel Vigneron
Marcel Vigneron is an American celebrity chef best known for his award-winning restaurant and catering company, Wolf, in Los Angeles. Marcel was also the runner-up of the second season of ''Top Chef'', which aired in 2006–2007. In 2011, he ha ...
,
Homaro Cantu
Homaro "Omar" Cantu Jr. (September 23, 1976 – April 14, 2015) was an American chef and inventor known for his use of molecular gastronomy. As a child, Cantu was fascinated with science and engineering. While working in a fast food restaurant, he ...
,
Michael Carlson Michael Carlson (born June 5, 1974) is a chef and restaurateur from Chicago, Illinois. After dropping out of culinary school, Carlson got his start in the industry working under Paul Bartolotta. From there he studied abroad in Italy under Valentin ...
,
Wylie Dufresne
Wylie Dufresne (born 1970) is the chef and owner of Du's Donuts and the former chef and owner of the wd~50 and Alder restaurants in Manhattan. Dufresne is a leading American proponent of molecular gastronomy, the movement to incorporate science ...
, and
Adam Melonas
Adam Melonas (born 10 November 1981 in Canberra, Australia) is an Australian chef of Greek heritage.
He currently is the founder and CEO of Chew LLC - a food innovation lab in Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the count ...
.
Despite their central role in the popularisation of science-based cuisine, both Adria and Blumenthal have expressed their frustration with the common mis-classification of their food and cooking as "molecular gastronomy",
On 10 December 2006 Blumenthal and Harold McGee published a 'Statement on the "New Cookery" in the Observer in order to summarise what they saw as the central tenets of modern cuisine. Ferran Adria of El Bulli and Thomas Keller of the French Laundry and Per Se signed up to this and together released a joint statement in 2006 clarifying their approach to cooking,
stating that the term "molecular gastronomy" was coined in 1992 for a single workshop that did not influence them, and that the term does not describe any style of cooking.
In February 2011,
Nathan Myhrvold
Nathan Paul Myhrvold (born August 3, 1959), formerly Chief Technology Officer at Microsoft, is co-founder of Intellectual Ventures and the principal author of '' Modernist Cuisine'' and its successor books. Myhrvold was listed as co-inventor ...
published the ''
Modernist Cuisine
''Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking'' is a 2011 cookbook by Nathan Myhrvold, Chris Young and Maxime Bilet. The book is an encyclopedia and a guide to the science of contemporary cooking.
It is notable for the use of elaborate e ...
'', which led many chefs to further classify molecular gastronomy versus modernist cuisine. Myhrvold believes that his cooking style should not be called molecular gastronomy.
Techniques, tools and ingredients
*
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide ( chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is trans ...
source, for adding bubbles and making
foams
Foams are materials formed by trapping pockets of gas in a liquid or solid.
A bath sponge and the head on a glass of beer are examples of foams. In most foams, the volume of gas is large, with thin films of liquid or solid separating the ...
*
Foam
Foams are materials formed by trapping pockets of gas in a liquid or solid.
A bath sponge and the head on a glass of beer are examples of foams. In most foams, the volume of gas is large, with thin films of liquid or solid separating the ...
s can also be made with an
immersion blender
An immersion blender, also known as a stick blender, mini blender, hand blender, or wand blender, is a kitchen blade grinder used to blend ingredients or purée food in the container in which they are being prepared. The immersion blender was inv ...
*
Liquid nitrogen, for flash freezing and shattering
*
Ice cream maker
domestic ice cream maker is a machine used to make small quantities of ice cream for personal consumption. Ice cream makers may prepare the mixture by employing the hand-cranking method or by employing an electric motor. The resulting prepar ...
, often used to make unusual flavors, including
savory
*
Anti-griddle, for cooling and freezing
*
Thermal immersion circulator
A thermal immersion circulator is an electrically powered device that circulates and heats a warm fluid kept at an accurate and stable temperature. It is used in process, environmental, microbiological, hazardous waste, and other laboratories. Sin ...
for
sous-vide
Sous vide (; French for 'under vacuum'), also known as low-temperature, long-time (LTLT) cooking, is a method of cooking in which food is placed in a plastic pouch or a glass jar and cooked in a water bath for longer than usual cooking times (us ...
(low temperature cooking)
*
Food dehydrator Tomato slices ready to be dried in a convection-type food dehydrator. In this model, multiple trays can be stacked on top of each other and warm air flows around the food.
A food dehydrator is a device that removes moisture from food to aid in its ...
*
Centrifuge
A centrifuge is a device that uses centrifugal force to separate various components of a fluid. This is achieved by spinning the fluid at high speed within a container, thereby separating fluids of different densities (e.g. cream from milk) or ...
*
Maltodextrin
Maltodextrin is a polysaccharide that is used as a food ingredient. It is produced from vegetable starch by partial hydrolysis and is usually found as a white hygroscopic spray-dried powder. Maltodextrin is easily digestible, being absorbed as ...
– can turn a high-fat liquid into a powder
*
Sugar substitutes
*
Enzyme
Enzymes () are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecules known as products ...
s
*
Lecithin – an
emulsifier and non-stick agent
*
Hydrocolloids such as
starch,
gelatin,
pectin and
natural gum
Natural gums are polysaccharides of natural origin, capable of causing a large increase in a solution's viscosity, even at small concentrations. They are mostly botanical gums, found in the woody elements of plants or in seed coatings.
Human ...
s – used as
thickening agent
A thickening agent or thickener is a substance which can increase the viscosity of a liquid without substantially changing its other properties. Edible thickeners are commonly used to thicken sauces, soups, and puddings without altering the ...
s,
gelling agent
A gel is a semi-solid that can have properties ranging from soft and weak to hard and tough. Gels are defined as a substantially dilute cross-linked system, which exhibits no flow when in the steady-state, although the liquid phase may still dif ...
s,
emulsifying agents and
stabilizers, sometimes needed for foams
*
Transglutaminase
Transglutaminases are enzymes that in nature primarily catalyze the formation of an isopeptide bond between γ- carboxamide groups ( -(C=O)NH2 ) of glutamine residue side chains and the ε-amino groups ( -NH2 ) of lysine residue side ...
– a protein binder, called meat glue
*
Spherification – a
caviar
Caviar (also known as caviare; from fa, خاویار, khâvyâr, egg-bearing) is a food consisting of salt-cured roe of the family Acipenseridae. Caviar is considered a delicacy and is eaten as a garnish or a spread. Traditionally, the te ...
-like effect
*
Syringe, for injecting unexpected fillings
*Edible paper made from soybeans and potato starch, for use with edible fruit inks and an
inkjet printer
Inkjet printing is a type of computer printing that recreates a digital image by propelling droplets of ink onto paper and plastic substrates. Inkjet printers were the most commonly used type of printer in 2008, and range from small inexpensi ...
*Aromatic accompaniment: gases trapped in a bag, a serving device, or the food itself; an aromatic substance presented as a garnish or creative serveware;
or a smell produced by burning
*Presentation style is often whimsical or
avant-garde
The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...
, and may include unusual serviceware
*Unusual flavor combinations (
food pairing
Foodpairing, or the non-registered trademarked term food pairing, is a method for identifying which foods go well together from a flavor standpoint. The method is based on the principle that foods combine well with one another when they share ke ...
s) are favored, such as combining savory and sweet
*Using
ultrasound
Ultrasound is sound waves with frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing. Ultrasound is not different from "normal" (audible) sound in its physical properties, except that humans cannot hear it. This limit varies ...
to achieve more precise cooking times
Alternative names and related pursuits
The term ''molecular gastronomy'' was originally intended to refer only to the scientific investigation of cooking, though it has been adopted by a number of people and applied to cooking itself or to describe a style of cuisine.
![Ferran Adrià a El Bulli](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Ferran_Adri%C3%A0_a_El_Bulli.jpg)
Other names for the style of cuisine practiced by these chefs include:
*Avant-garde cuisine
*Culinary constructivism
*Cocina de vanguardia – term used by Ferran Adrià
*Emotional cuisine
*Experimental cuisine
*Forward-thinking movement – term used at
Grant Achatz
Grant Achatz ( ) (born April 25, 1974) is an American chef and restaurateur often recognized for his contributions to molecular gastronomy or progressive cuisine. His Chicago restaurant Alinea has won numerous accolades and Achatz himself has w ...
's
Alinea Alinea may refer to:
* Alinea (restaurant) in Chicago
* In several languages : an indenting or a pilcrow
The pilcrow, ¶, is a handwritten or typographical character used to identify a paragraph. It is also called the paragraph ma ...
*Kitchen science
*Modern cuisine
*Modernist cuisine, which shares its name with a
cookbook by
Nathan Myhrvold
Nathan Paul Myhrvold (born August 3, 1959), formerly Chief Technology Officer at Microsoft, is co-founder of Intellectual Ventures and the principal author of '' Modernist Cuisine'' and its successor books. Myhrvold was listed as co-inventor ...
, and which is endorsed by Ferran Adrià of El Bulli and
David Chang
David Chang (Korean: ; born August 5, 1977) is an American restaurateur, author, podcaster, and television personality. He is the founder of the Momofuku restaurant group. In 2009, Momofuku Ko was awarded two Michelin stars, which the restaura ...
*Molecular cuisine
*Molecular cooking
*New cuisine
*New cookery
*Nueva cocina
*Progressive cuisine
*Techno-emotional cuisine—term preferred by
elBulli
El Bulli () was a restaurant near the town of Roses, Catalonia, Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Fu ...
research and development chef
Ferran Adrià
Ferran Adrià i Acosta (; born 14 May 1962) is a Spanish chef. He was the head chef of the ''El Bulli'' restaurant in Roses, Girona, Roses on the Costa Brava and is considered one of the best chefs in the world. He has often collaborated with h ...
*Technologically forward cuisine
*Vanguard cuisine
*Techno-cuisine
No singular name has ever been applied in consensus, and the term "molecular gastronomy" continues to be used often as a blanket term to refer to any and all of these things—particularly in the media.
Ferran Adrià
Ferran Adrià i Acosta (; born 14 May 1962) is a Spanish chef. He was the head chef of the ''El Bulli'' restaurant in Roses, Girona, Roses on the Costa Brava and is considered one of the best chefs in the world. He has often collaborated with h ...
hates the term "molecular gastronomy"
and prefers '
deconstructivist
Deconstructivism is a movement of postmodern architecture which appeared in the 1980s. It gives the impression of the fragmentation of the constructed building, commonly characterised by an absence of obvious harmony, continuity, or symmetry. ...
' to describe his style of cooking.
A 2006 open letter by Ferran Adria, Heston Blumenthal,
Thomas Keller
Thomas Aloysius Keller (born October 14, 1955) is an American chef, restaurateur, and cookbook author. He and his landmark Napa Valley restaurant, The French Laundry in Yountville, California, have won multiple awards from the James Beard Foun ...
and Harold McGee published in ''The Times'' used no specific term, referring only to "a new approach to cooking" and "our cooking".
See also
People
Restaurants
Subjects
References
Further reading
*Caporaso, Nicola, Diego Formisano (2016). Developments, applications, and trends of molecular gastronomy among food scientists and innovative chefs. Food Reviews International, 32(4), 417–435.
*Hoelscher, Dietmar, ''Molecular kitchen and moleculare mixology: you can do what you imagine'' (2008 DVD)
*Kurti, Nicholas, ''But the Crackling Is Superb'', Institute of Physics Publishing, 1998
*McGee, Harold, ''The Curious Cook''. North Point Press, Berkeley, 1990.
*McGee, Harold, ''On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen''. Scribner, New York, 2004. .
*
This, Hervé, ''Building a Meal: From Molecular Gastronomy to Culinary Constructivism'',
Columbia University Press
Columbia University Press is a university press based in New York City, and affiliated with Columbia University. It is currently directed by Jennifer Crewe (2014–present) and publishes titles in the humanities and sciences, including the fiel ...
2009
*This, Hervé, Pierre Gagnaire: ''Cooking: The Quintessential Art'',
University of California Press
The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by facult ...
2008
*This, Hervé, ''Kitchen Mysteries: Revealing the Science of Cooking''. Columbia University Press, New York, 2007
*This, Hervé, ''Molecular Gastronomy: Exploring the Science of Flavor''. Columbia University Press, New York, 2006.
* Wolke, Robert L., "What Einstein Told His Cook: Kitchen Science Explained" (2002, 350p)
External links
*
John Mariani
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second ...
,
Decline of Modernist Molecular CuisineJuly 24, 2013
esquire.com
*Grubstreet,
Rebuttal of John Marianis esquire article July 24, 2013
grubstreet
{{cuisine
Food science
1980s neologisms
Culinary terminology