DailyDirt: How To Really Cook

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Chemistry labs are usually pictured as a clean room environment with an array of colorful liquids sitting in weird glass containers -- or sometimes as an RV racing through a desert with some crazy guy in a gas mask and dead drug dealers sliding around on the floor (a la Breaking Bad). But home kitchens are also a type of chemistry lab, and food science is getting more advanced as people with entirely too much free time (ahem, Nathan Myhrvold...) experiment with novel cooking techniques. Here are just a few links for budding home master chefs.

• If you want to grill a nice steak at home, don't try to mimic how your favorite steakhouse does it. Steakhouses optimize for speed, but at home, you can take your time and get it just the way you like it. [url]
• Some fancy cooking techniques have been called "molecular gastronomy" to describe the intersection of food science and chemistry/physics. The definition of this field of study hasn't quite been nailed down, but some chefs are starting to publish papers in scientific journals. [url]
• Harvard researchers and professional chefs are teaching an online course for haute cuisine techniques. This introductory course has no pre-requisites, and starts Oct 8th.... [url]

If you'd like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post via StumbleUpon.

Filed Under: chefs, chemistry, cooking, edx, food, haute cuisine, molecular gastronomy, science, steak

DailyDirt: I'd Like My Drink Sonicated, Not Stirred...

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Chemists routinely use equipment like rotary evaporators, centrifuges, and ultrasonicators to extract, separate, and mix various chemicals in the lab. But, the same equipment can also be used to prepare unique and tasty drinks. Why settle for ordinary? Classic beverages are getting a makeover thanks to the creative use of modern technology. Here are a few examples.

• Manhattan bar Booker & Dax uses molecular gastronomy techniques to give cocktails the "mad scientist" treatment. The bartenders are known to light drinks on fire with a 1,500-degree Fahrenheit red hot poker, extract essences from herbs with a rotary evaporator, clarify fruit juices with a centrifuge, and age wine or whiskey with ultrasonic waves. [url]
• In 2009, Coca-Cola introduced the Freestyle soda fountain, which features a touchscreen interface and more than 100 different flavor options that can be mixed however the user wants. The machines use "PurePour" technology -- originally designed for measuring exact amounts of dialysis and cancer drugs -- and they send data about beverage consumption, peak times, and popular locations to Coca-Cola's Atlanta headquarters, which can order the machines to stop serving drinks immediately in case a flavor is discontinued or recalled. [url]
• In 2011, Pepsi unveiled their Social Vending System, which features a touchscreen interface and allows users to gift a Pepsi drink to a friend, along with a recorded video message. The machine will send a text message to the friend with a special code that they can use to redeem their gift at the nearest Pepsi Social Vending System. [url]
• To discover more food-related links, check out what's floating around in StumbleUpon. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can also recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

Filed Under: beverages, chemistry equipment, drinks, food, molecular gastronomy, vending machines
Companies: coca-cola, pepsi

DailyDirt: Edible Clothing

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Generally, people try to keep food from dropping on their clothes and making a mess. But some fashion designers can't seem to keep from trying to make food items into something wearable. Here are just a few kinda nutty examples.

• The fad of molecular gastronomy has been crossed with handmade fashion accessories -- creating some wearable items that aren't too far from looking like marshmallow Peeps. These creations will be excellent garnish recipes for the "To Serve Man" cookbooks. [url]
• Denim isn't actually too easy to digest for most people, but scratch-and-sniff jeans could make some folks want to try a bite. The scent-filled denim could be fruit-flavored -- or possibly made to smell like Teen Spirit/bodysprays/etc. [url]
• Making clothes from edible pastry wrappers isn't just for kinky lingerie. Wearing fruit roll-ups doesn't sound too appealing for many situations, though... [url]
• To discover more food-related links, check out what's floating around in StumbleUpon. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can also recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

Filed Under: clothing, edible, fashion, food, molecular gastronomy

DailyDirt: Just Add Alcohol...

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

The new year is just around the corner, and the New Year's Eve parties wouldn't be complete without a few alcoholic beverages. But if you want to try something a little different, here are some other ways to imbibe ethanol.

• Making alcoholic ice cream isn't as simple as it might sound because the freezing point of alcohol is much lower than water. Add some gelatin to your concoction, and you can get a full cup of 80-proof alcohol into a quart of ice cream. [url]
• Bartenders are catching on to the molecular gastronomy fad with canisters of nitrous oxide and rotary evaporators. The laughing gas is not to be inhaled but used in flavor extraction processes... [url]
• Add vodka to gummi bears, refrigerate and wait. Eat. Repeat. That's a pretty simple recipe for getting some people drunk. [url]
• To discover more food-related links, check out what's floating around in StumbleUpon. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can also recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

Filed Under: alcohol, alcoholic, drunk, gummi bears, ice cream, molecular gastronomy, nitrous oxide