According to my pre-knowledge of this article I was taught to boil water to a rolling boil before adding pasta. I was also told at least two galloons of water per each pound of pasta. According to the article by McGee my grandmother was off by a long shot.
Harold McGee stated traditionally four to six quarts should be brought to a full rolling boil, then well salt the water The reasoning is “the usual rationales are that abundant water quickly recovers the boil when the pasta is added, gives the noodles room so that they don’t stick to one another, and dilutes the starch they release, so they don’t end up with a ‘gluey’ surface.”
McGee believes that it is possible to cook pasta successfully with less water then the traditional. The rough figures McGee stated says if we all cut our pasta water, it would be between 250,000-500,000 barrels of oil, or $10 million to $20 million at current prices.
To break down pasta cooking…
Traditional Cooking Experimental cooking
4 to 6 qts of water 2 qts of water
Rolling boil cold temp
Salted 2 teaspoons salt
1# pasta 1 #Pasta
My Detective Work…
I tested this theory on my slowest day at the JWU Radisson I took two identical pots and heated four quarts of water in one then six quarts in another, both received two tablespoons of salt and two pounds of dry pasta instead of going with a subjective analysis like McGee, I decided to go along with a more scientific approach. I cooked the pasta until equally done (al denté). From there I decided to weight the pasta, granted I could not accurately determine the starch less versus water absorbed. In turn this was more for personal curiosity, but the two pounds of pasta did not vary in weight. What varied was the clearness or viscosity of the boiling liquid.
In analysis of food and its responsive behaviors we used a variety of equipment to determine differences in scientific experiments. In turn the pasta cooked with in the two quarts less of water (four quarts all day) had a Brix Refractometer reading of dark blue number four which means there was a high concentration of sugars. Where the pasta cooked in six quarts had a lighter blue reading of +2. In turn there were more sugars in the four quarts versus six quarts sample.
You may be saying that’s obvious there is less water so the particles pulled off less liquid to float around in. So as any scientific analyzing chef would do, I rebalanced the water contents. I did so by taking one cup of four-quart solution and added ½ cup water and blended it with an emersion (or stick) blender. Finally I reanalyzed the solution to find a dark blue reading of +3. In turn both pastas really aren’t the same although they tasted the same and were cooked to the same point.
Until later with a fun food based entry,
This is Jason Soko CC signing out,
Goodbye and Happy Cooking!
Friday, April 8, 2011
Monday, April 4, 2011
"Fruit as Caviar"
Today I looked up an author for the New York Times; his name is Harold McGee writes about a variety of topics. He also has a lot of food based discussions too. One article that stood out as interesting was his article “Fruit Gets Dressed Up as Caviar.” The original article was written on March 22, 2006.
The article discussed the combination of food with three chemicals: Sodium Alginate, Sodium Citrate, and Calcium Chloride. The three chemicals combined in the right ratio can cause a sphere of yummieyness. The Sodium Citrate is also used as an anti-coagulant in the ice cream making industry. As for the Sodium Alginate it is used as a gelling agent when making preservatives.
The Breakdown:
The food product (weather it’s a fruit or vegetable) gets pureed down and sifted through a chinois to remove any sort of fibrous impurities. From there the process requires the bright white powder Sodium Citrate to be sifted together with the off white slightly tan powder, Sodium Alginate; and then mixed with puree.
Then the calcium chloride is blended into a solution with water. From there, you take a marinade injector or an eye drop applicator and fill it with the food puree, Sodium Alginate, and Sodium Citrate. Slowly one drop at a time drop the blend into the Calcium Chloride water. As it hits the substance will create a tear size ball.
The Reaction Breakdown:
The article “Fruit Gets dress UP as Caviar” did not talk about what causes the reaction, so I did further research. Since Chef Chemist Ferran Adria was the first to discover and apply this chemical reaction, I started with google.com and his name. That really didn’t supply much information. So the next search I looked up as “the science behind fruit Caviar” What I discovered is, the anti-coagulant (Sodium Citrate) creates heat as the solution hits and reacts with the Calcium Chloride. So in the right balance, the Calcium Chloride will cook the Sodium Alginate into a barrier around the remainder of the droplet, and at the same time the center will remain liquid, so as McGee described it as ”itsy-bitsy bursts of intensified flavor in your mouth, simulating a slightly tingly effervesce.”
So in turn, the “caviar” has an eggshell around a soft embryo of puree that stayed uncooked. The wrong solution can create a fun different response. Too much Calcium Chloride will cause too much heat and cook the droplet straight though into a firm solid bead of gelatinized puree. Too little can create a “pasta-less ravioli puree.” The sack of puree would not hold a defined shape it would roll and plop around a like a stop and shop bag filled and tied half full of water.
While I was reading about the fruit caviar the thought of application popped into my head. “What if…” was my main thought pattern. An example is”What if I could make a tear drop Tabasco caviar for oysters on the half shell.” Or “What if I could make chocolate caviar into a bite size S’more with a custom gram cracker shell the size of a dime,” but these are for another journal on another day after another session of cruising the internet. Until then I will wait for my Sodium Alginate, Sodium Citrate, and Calcium Chloride to come.
Until later with a fun food based entry,
This is Jason Soko CC signing out,
Goodbye and Happy Cooking!
The article discussed the combination of food with three chemicals: Sodium Alginate, Sodium Citrate, and Calcium Chloride. The three chemicals combined in the right ratio can cause a sphere of yummieyness. The Sodium Citrate is also used as an anti-coagulant in the ice cream making industry. As for the Sodium Alginate it is used as a gelling agent when making preservatives.
The Breakdown:
The food product (weather it’s a fruit or vegetable) gets pureed down and sifted through a chinois to remove any sort of fibrous impurities. From there the process requires the bright white powder Sodium Citrate to be sifted together with the off white slightly tan powder, Sodium Alginate; and then mixed with puree.
Then the calcium chloride is blended into a solution with water. From there, you take a marinade injector or an eye drop applicator and fill it with the food puree, Sodium Alginate, and Sodium Citrate. Slowly one drop at a time drop the blend into the Calcium Chloride water. As it hits the substance will create a tear size ball.
The Reaction Breakdown:
The article “Fruit Gets dress UP as Caviar” did not talk about what causes the reaction, so I did further research. Since Chef Chemist Ferran Adria was the first to discover and apply this chemical reaction, I started with google.com and his name. That really didn’t supply much information. So the next search I looked up as “the science behind fruit Caviar” What I discovered is, the anti-coagulant (Sodium Citrate) creates heat as the solution hits and reacts with the Calcium Chloride. So in the right balance, the Calcium Chloride will cook the Sodium Alginate into a barrier around the remainder of the droplet, and at the same time the center will remain liquid, so as McGee described it as ”itsy-bitsy bursts of intensified flavor in your mouth, simulating a slightly tingly effervesce.”
So in turn, the “caviar” has an eggshell around a soft embryo of puree that stayed uncooked. The wrong solution can create a fun different response. Too much Calcium Chloride will cause too much heat and cook the droplet straight though into a firm solid bead of gelatinized puree. Too little can create a “pasta-less ravioli puree.” The sack of puree would not hold a defined shape it would roll and plop around a like a stop and shop bag filled and tied half full of water.
While I was reading about the fruit caviar the thought of application popped into my head. “What if…” was my main thought pattern. An example is”What if I could make a tear drop Tabasco caviar for oysters on the half shell.” Or “What if I could make chocolate caviar into a bite size S’more with a custom gram cracker shell the size of a dime,” but these are for another journal on another day after another session of cruising the internet. Until then I will wait for my Sodium Alginate, Sodium Citrate, and Calcium Chloride to come.
Until later with a fun food based entry,
This is Jason Soko CC signing out,
Goodbye and Happy Cooking!
Friday, April 1, 2011
Getting Started
As anyone who knows me knows I hold education in high regards. The term EDUCATION dose not need to be formal high school or college education but more like just the self-fulfillment of learning new things. When I say things I mean new facts or well anything. I everyday attempt to cruise through out the Internet for new knowledge in food.
Here on my blog I will post weekly recipes, articles of interest to me based upon food, proper cooking tid-bits & whatever else i damn well please, i guess.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
