Tag Archive for: science and cooking

Microbes & the Future

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The vanillin (major flavor compound in vanilla beans) found in most food products on the market is derived from a three-step synthetic process that converts the molecule guaiacol to vanillin. Both natural and chemical methods for this conversion has shown to be expensive and environmentally burdensome, but biotech company Gen9 is providing a more promising route to synthesize vanillin that begins with glucose, using yeast to “ferment it just like beer.” David Chang of Momofuku and microbiologist Ben Wolfe further elaborate on how microbes may very well be the future of food.
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Harvard EdX Course: Science and Cooking

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If you’ve ever wanted to take a class at Harvard, here’s your chance! Harvard is offering an online EdX version of its popular course “SPU27x: Science and Cooking – From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Physics.” Class starts October 8th and registration for the course is FREE.

During each week of the course, Ferran Adrià and other top chefs will reveal the secrets of some of their most famous culinary creations—often right in their own restaurants. Alongside this cooking mastery, the Harvard instructors will explain the science behind the recipe. Other guest instructors include David Chang, Wylie Dufresne, Dave Arnold, and Harold McGee.

Register for “Science and Cooking” at EdX