Cooking is the process of preparing food Food is any substance or materials eaten or drunk to provide nutritional support for the body or for pleasure. It usually consists of plant or animal origin, that contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals, and is ingested and assimilated by an organism to produce energy, stimulate growth, and by applying heat In physics and thermodynamics, heat is the process of energy transfer from one body or system to another due to thermal contact, which in turn is defined as an energy transfer to a body in any other way than due to work performed on the body. Cooks select and combine ingredients An ingredient is a substance that forms part of a mixture . For example, in cooking, recipes specify which ingredients are used to prepare a specific dish. Many commercial products contain a secret ingredient that is purported to make them better than competing products. In the pharmaceutical industry, an active ingredient is that part of a using a wide range of tools and methods. In the process, the flavor Flavor or flavour is the sensory impression of a food or other substance, and is determined mainly by the chemical senses of taste and smell. The "trigeminal senses", which detect chemical irritants in the mouth and throat as well as temperature and texture, is also very important to the overall Gestalt of flavor perception. The flavor, texture, appearance, and chemical properties Chemistry is the science of matter and the changes it undergoes. The science of matter is also addressed by physics, but while physics takes a more general and fundamental approach, chemistry is more specialized, being concerned with the composition, behavior, structure, and properties of matter, as well as the changes it undergoes during chemical of the ingredients can change. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely across the world, reflecting unique environmental, economic, and cultural traditions. Cooks themselves also vary widely in skill and training.
Preparing food with heat or fire The control of fire by early humans was a turning point in human cultural evolution that allowed for humans to proliferate due to the incorporation of cooked proteins and carbohydrates, expansion of human activity into the night hours and colder climates, and protection from predators is an activity unique to humans, and some scientists believe the advent of cooking played an important role in human evolution.[1] Most anthropologists believe that cooking fires first developed around 250,000 years ago. The development of agriculture Agriculture is the production of food and goods through farming. Agriculture was the key development that led to the rise of human civilization, with the husbandry of domesticated animals and plants creating food surpluses that enabled the development of more densely populated and stratified societies. The study of agriculture is known as, commerce and transportation between civilizations in different regions offered cooks many new ingredients. New inventions and technologies, such as pottery Pottery is the ceramic ware made by potters. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery can also refer to the material of which the potteryware is made. Major types of pottery include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. Pottery is one of the oldest human technologies and art-forms, and remains a major industry today for holding and boiling water, expanded cooking techniques. Some modern cooks apply advanced scientific techniques to food preparation.
Contents |
History of cooking
Historical Oven An oven is an enclosed compartment for heating, baking or drying. It is most commonly used in cooking and pottery. Ovens used in pottery are also known as kilns. An oven used for heating or for industrial processes is called a furnace or industrial oven. In modern times the oven is used to cook and heat food in many households across the globe cooking depicted in a painting by Jean-François Millet Jean-François Millet was a French painter and one of the founders of the Barbizon school in rural France. Millet is noted for his scenes of peasant farmers; he can be categorized as part of the naturalism and realism movements Cooking utilizes many foods Food is any substance or materials eaten or drunk to provide nutritional support for the body or for pleasure. It usually consists of plant or animal origin, that contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals, and is ingested and assimilated by an organism to produce energy, stimulate growth, and. See also: Culinary arts Culinary art is the art of preparing and/or cooking foods. The word "culinary" is defined as something related to, or connected with, cooking or kitchens. A culinarian is a person working in the culinary arts. A culinarian working in restaurants is commonly known as a cook or a chef. Culinary artists are responsible for skillfullyThere is no clear evidence as to when cooking was invented. Primatologist Primatology is the study of primates. It is a diverse discipline and primatologists can be found in departments of biology, anthropology, psychology and many others. It is a branch of physical anthropology, which, in itself, studies the genus Homo, especially Homo sapiens. The fields cross over in the study of the hominids, which include all ape- Richard Wrangham Richard W. Wrangham is a British primatologist. He is the Ruth Moore Professor of Biological Anthropology at Harvard University and his research group is now part of the newly established Department of Human Evolutionary Biology stated that cooking was invented as far back as 1.8 million to 2.3 million years ago.[2] Other researchers believe that cooking was invented as late as 40,000 or 10,000 years ago. Evidence of fire is inconclusive as wildfires started by lightning-strikes are still common in East Africa and other wild areas, and it is difficult to determine as to when fire was used for cooking, as opposed to just being used for warmth or for keeping predators away. Most anthropologists contend that cooking fires began in earnest barely 250,000 years ago, when ancient hearths, earth ovens, burnt animal bones, and flint appear across Europe and the middle East. Back 2 million years ago, the only sign of fire is burnt earth with human remains, which most anthropologists consider coincidence rather than evidence of intentional fire.[citation needed]
However, some Fire-cracked rock, such as that in Central Texas (United States) are burned rock middens A midden, also known as a kitchen midden, or a shell heap , is a dump for domestic waste. The word is of Scandinavian via Middle English derivation, but is used by archaeologists worldwide to describe any kind of feature containing waste products relating to day-to-day human life. They may be convenient, single-use pits created by nomadic groups, or enormous piles fire-damaged rock dated to c. 3,500 years ago. These may represent the remains of earth ovens used in cooking since they contain evidence of Dasylirion wheeleri bulbs and other plants. In Great Britain Great Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island. With a population of about 59.8 million people in mid-2009, it is the third most populated island on Earth. Great Britain is surrounded by over 1,000 smaller islands and islets. The island of similar Neolithic The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in the Middle East that is traditionally considered the last part of the Stone Age. The Neolithic followed the terminal Holocene Epipalaeolithic period, beginning with the rise of farming, which produced the ", Bronze Age The Bronze Age of a culture is the period when the most advanced metalworking in that culture used bronze. This could either have been based on the local smelting of copper and tin from ores, or trading for bronze from production areas elsewhere. Many, though not all, Bronze Age cultures flourished in prehistory and Iron Age In archaeology, the Iron Age is the historical period in any area during which cutting tools and weapons were mainly made of iron or steel. The adoption of this material coincided with other changes in society, including differing agricultural practices, religious beliefs and artistic styles features exist, but are commonly called 'burnt mounds'.[3]
Ingredients in cooking
Most ingredients in cooking are derived from living things. In biology, an organism is any contiguous living system . In at least some form, all organisms are capable of response to stimuli, reproduction, growth and development, and maintenance of homoeostasis as a stable whole. An organism may either be unicellular (single-celled) or be composed of, as in humans, many trillions of cells grouped into Vegetables, fruits, grains and nuts come from plants, while meat, eggs, and dairy products come from animals. Mushrooms and the yeast used in baking are kinds of fungi A fungus ) is a member of a large group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, Fungi (pronounced /ˈfʌndʒaɪ/ or /ˈfʌŋɡaɪ/), that is separate from plants, animals and bacteria. One major difference is that fungal. Cooks also utilize water and minerals such as salt. Cooks can also use wine Wine is an alcoholic beverage, typically made of fermented grape juice. The natural chemical balance of grapes is such that they can ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes or other nutrients. Wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast consumes the sugars found in the grapes and converts them, an alcohol-based liquid from the fermentation of juices of grapes or other fruits.
Naturally occurring ingredients contain various amounts of molecules called proteins, carbohydrates and fats. They also contain water and minerals. Cooking involves a manipulation of the chemical properties of these molecules.
Proteins
Various raw meats Meat is animal flesh that is used as food. Most often, this means the skeletal muscle and associated fat, but it may also describe other edible tissues such as organs, livers, skin, brains, bone marrow, kidneys, or lungs. The word meat is also used by the meat packing industry in a more restrictive sense—the flesh of mammalian species raised and Red kidney beans The common bean, Phaseolus vulgaris, is an herbaceous annual plant domesticated independently in ancient Mesoamerica and the Andes, and now grown worldwide for its edible bean, popular both dry and as a green bean. The leaf is occasionally used as a leaf vegetable, and the straw is used for fodder. Botanically, the common bean is classified as a contain protein. Main article: Protein Proteins are organic compounds made of amino acids arranged in a linear chain and folded into a globular form. The amino acids in a polymer are joined together by the peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of adjacent amino acid residues. The sequence of amino acids in a protein is defined by the sequence of a gene, which is encodedEdible animal material, including muscle Muscle is the contractile tissue of animals and is derived from the mesodermal layer of embryonic germ cells. Muscle cells contain contractile filaments that move past each other and change the size of the cell. They are classified as skeletal, cardiac, or smooth muscles. Their function is to produce force and cause motion. Muscles can cause, offal Offal is a culinary term used to refer to the entrails and internal organs of a butchered animal. The word does not refer to a particular list of organs, but includes most internal organs other than muscles or bones. Note that as an English collective noun, the term "offal" is used in the same form for singular and plural — without a, milk Milk is a translucent white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It provides the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. The early lactation milk is known as colostrum, and carries the mother's antibodies to the baby. It can reduce the risk of many diseases in the baby. The, eggs An egg is a spheroid or ovoid shaped cell laid by females of many different species, including birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Eggs have been eaten by mankind for millennia. Bird eggs consist of a protective eggshell, albumen (egg white), and vitellus (egg yolk), contained within various thin membranes and egg whites Egg white is the common name for the clear liquid contained within an egg. It is the cytoplasm of the egg, which until fertilization is a single cell (including the yolk). It consists mainly of about 15% proteins dissolved in water. Its primary natural purpose is to protect the egg yolk and provide additional nutrition for the growth of the embryo,, contains substantial amounts of protein. Almost all vegetable The noun vegetable usually means an edible plant or part of a plant other than a sweet fruit or seed. This usually means the leaf, stem, or root of a plant matter (in particular legumes A legume in botanical writing is a plant in the family Fabaceae , or a fruit of these specific plants. A legume fruit is a simple dry fruit that develops from a simple carpel and usually dehisces (opens along a seam) on two sides. A common name for this type of fruit is a pod, although "pod" is also applied to a few other fruit types, and seeds A seed ( /ˈsiːd/ ) is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant. The formation of the seed completes the process of reproduction in seed) also includes proteins, although generally in smaller amounts. These may also be a source of essential amino acids An essential amino acid or indispensable amino acid is an amino acid that cannot be synthesized de novo by the organism , and therefore must be supplied in the diet. When proteins Proteins are organic compounds made of amino acids arranged in a linear chain and folded into a globular form. The amino acids in a polymer are joined together by the peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of adjacent amino acid residues. The sequence of amino acids in a protein is defined by the sequence of a gene, which is encoded are heated they become denatured and change texture. In many cases, this causes the structure of the material to become softer or more friable Often, substances designated as being hazardous, such as asbestos or crystalline silica are referred to as being friable if they are present in such a state that it is possible for small particles to easily become dislodged, thus enabling them to become respirable , posing a health hazard - meat becomes cooked. In some cases, proteins can form more rigid structures, such as the coagulation of albumen Egg white is the common name for the clear liquid contained within an egg. It is formed from the layers of secretions of the anterior section of the hen's oviduct during the passage of the egg. It forms around either fertilized or unfertilized egg. It consists mainly of about 15% proteins dissolved in water. Its primary natural purpose is to in egg whites. The formation of a relatively rigid but flexible matrix from egg white provides an important component of much cake Cake is a form of food, typically a sweet, baked dessert. Cakes normally contain a combination of flour, sugar, eggs, and butter or oil, with some varieties also requiring liquid and leavening agents (such as yeast or baking powder). Flavorful ingredients like fruit purées, nuts or extracts are often added, and numerous substitutions for the cookery, and also underpins many desserts based on meringue Meringue is a type of dessert made from whipped egg whites and sugar. Some meringue recipes call for adding a binding agent such as cream of tartar or the cornstarch found in confectioner's sugar. Meringues are often flavoured with vanilla and a small amount of almond or coconut extract. They are light, airy and sweet.
Carbohydrates
Grain Cereals, grains, or cereal grains are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their fruit seeds (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis): the endocarp, germ, and bran. Cereal grains are grown in greater quantities and provide more food energy worldwide than any other type of crop; they are therefore staple crops. Grain is both a products are often baked, and are rich sources of complex and simple carbohydrates. Main article: Carbohydrates A carbohydrate is an organic compound with the empirical formula Cmn, that is, consists only of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, with the last two in the 2:1 atom ratio. Carbohydrates can be viewed as hydrates of carbon, hence their name. Structurally however, it is more accurate to view them as polyhydroxy aldehydes and ketonesCarbohydrates include the common sugar, sucrose Sucrose is the organic compound commonly known as table sugar and sometimes called saccharose. This white, odorless, crystalline powder has a pleasing, sweet taste. It is best known for its role in human nutrition. The molecule is a disaccharide derived from glucose and fructose with the molecular formula C12H22O11. About 150,000,000 tonnes are (table sugar), a disaccharide, and such simple sugars Sugar is an informal term for a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose characterized by a sweet flavor. In food, sugar almost exclusively refers to sucrose, which primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet. Other sugars are used in industrial food preparation, but are usually known by more specific as glucose Glucose , a simple sugar (monosaccharide), is an important carbohydrate in biology. Cells use it as a source of energy and a metabolic intermediate. Glucose is one of the main products of photosynthesis and starts cellular respiration. Starch and cellulose are polymers derived from the dehydration of glucose. The name "glucose" comes (from the digestion of table sugar) and fructose Fructose, or fruit sugar, is a simple monosaccharide found in many foods. It is one of the three important dietary monosaccharides along with glucose and galactose. The organic fructose molecule was first discovered by Augustin-Pierre Dubrunfaut in 1847. Fructose is a white solid that dissolves in water – it is the most water-soluble of all the (from fruit), and starches Starch or amylum is a carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined together by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by all green plants as an energy store. It is the most important carbohydrate in the human diet and is contained in such staple foods as potatoes, wheat, maize , rice, and cassava from sources such as cereal flour, rice Rice is the seed of the monocot plant Oryza sativa. As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East and South Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and the West Indies. It is the grain with the second-highest worldwide production, after maize, arrowroot Arrowroot, or obedience plant , is a large perennial herb of genus Maranta found in rainforest habitats. Arrowroot is also the name of the edible starch from the rhizomes (rootstock) of West Indian arrowroot, potato The potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae family . The word potato may refer to the plant itself as well as the edible tuber. In the region of the Andes, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species. Despite being first introduced outside the Andes region four centuries ago,. The interaction of heat and carbohydrate is complex.
Long-chain sugars Polysaccharides are polymeric carbohydrate structures, formed of repeating units joined together by glycosidic bonds. These structures are often linear, but may contain various degrees of branching. Polysaccharides are often quite heterogeneous, containing slight modifications of the repeating unit. Depending on the structure, these macromolecules such as starch tend to break down into simpler sugars when cooked, while simple sugars can form syrups. If sugars are heated so that all water of crystallisation is driven off, then caramelization starts, with the sugar undergoing thermal decomposition with the formation of carbon, and other breakdown products producing caramel. Similarly, the heating of sugars and proteins elicits the Maillard reaction, a basic flavor-enhancing technique.
An emulsion of starch with fat or water can, when gently heated, provide thickening to the dish being cooked. In European cooking, a mixture of butter and flour called a roux is used to thicken liquids to make stews or sauces. In Asian cooking, a similar effect is obtained from a mixture of rice or corn starch and water. These techniques rely on the properties of starches to create simpler mucilaginous saccharides during cooking, which causes the familiar thickening of sauces. This thickening will break down, however, under additional heat.
Fats
Tempura Deep fried shrimp is usually cooked in vegetable oil and is often served with cocktail sauce and tartar sauce, or with sweet and sour sauce. Main article: FatTypes of fat include vegetable oils and animal products such as butter and lard. Fats can reach temperatures higher than the boiling point of water, and are often used to conduct high heat to other ingredients, such as in frying or sautéing.
Water
Water is often used to cook foods such as noodles. Main article: WaterCooking often involves water which is frequently present as other liquids, both added in order to immerse the substances being cooked (typically water, stock or wine), and released from the foods themselves. Liquids are so important to cooking that the name of the cooking method used may be based on how the liquid is combined with the food, as in steaming, simmering, boiling, braising and blanching. Heating liquid in an open container results in rapidly increased evaporation, which concentrates the remaining flavor and ingredients - this is a critical component of both stewing and sauce making.
Vitamins and minerals
Main articles: Vitamins and MineralsVitamins are materials required for normal metabolism but which the body cannot manufacture itself and which must therefore come from soil. Vitamins come from a number of sources including fresh fruit and vegetables (Vitamin C), carrots, liver (Vitamin A), cereal bran, bread, liver e ( B vitamins), fish liver oil (Vitamin D) and fresh green vegetables (Vitamin K). Many minerals are also essential in small quantities including iron, calcium, magnesium and sulphur; and in very small quantities copper, zinc and selenium. The micronutrients, minerals, and vitamins[4] in fruit and vegetables may be destroyed or eluted by cooking. Vitamin C is especially prone to oxidation during cooking and may be completely destroyed by protracted cooking.[5]
Cooking methods
A Sunday roast consisting of roast beef, roast potatoes, vegetables, and yorkshire pudding A Braised pot roast dish.| This section requires expansion. |
See also Category:Cooking techniques
There are very many methods of cooking, most of which have been known since antiquity. These include baking, roasting, sauteing, stewing, frying, grilling, barbecuing, smoking, boiling, steaming and braising. A more recent innovation is microwaving. Various methods use differing levels of heat and moisture and vary in cooking time. The method chosen greatly affects the end result. Some foods are more appropriate to some methods than others. Some major hot cooking techniques include:
Roasting
- Roasting - Barbecuing - Grilling - Rotisserie - Searing
Baking
- Baking - Baking Blind - Broiling - Flashbaking
|
Sat, 28 Aug 2010 23:19:43 GMT+00:00
Mason City Globe Gazette We'll be busy cooking the next meal, playing some more games, probably getting another challenge. In the early afternoon, Troop 14 of Mason City was ... Boy Scout Troop 4 spends the summer on the go La Jolla Light
329px x 579px | 47.70kB
[source page]
some great ideas on cooking for a low protein diet but also gave the HCPs a chance to interact with each other work together and share their thoughts in a relaxed fun environment Mona Taylor a professional home economist who has a lot of experience in this specialised area led the day along with Julia Chalkley a professional chef This wasn t just a watch and learn
Tue, 23 Jan 2007 07:36:37 PST
Italian cooking is easy to learn - cook authentic Italian food, like Veal Spezzatino from the Liguria region of Italy. Traditional pasta dishes ... video.google.com.
Stefanos Evripidou
Sat, 28 Aug 2010 21:00:10 GM
But, like so many times before in the history of the talks, something's definitely . cooking. . The dynamics are there for major development, but not the final breakthrough, says University of Nicosia's international relations expert ...
