The science of cooking involves understanding the chemical reactions that occur during cooking, including how heat affects food. Baking is a form of chemistry that involves understanding how ingredients work together to create a product greater than the sum of its parts. Understanding the science of baking allows bakers to create light and airy bread by introducing gas into the dough through yeast or leavening agents.
The science of cooking is a field of study that seeks to more easily understand and manipulate the scientific aspects of cooking in the kitchen. This typically involves understanding how applying heat can make changes to a dish, as well as understanding the chemicals involved in cooking many different foods. In many ways, baking is simply a form of chemistry that results in edible results rather than other chemical solutions or creations. The science of baking enables bakers and chefs to better understand how the cooking process transforms basic ingredients into a product much greater than the sum of its parts.
One of the most basic aspects of the science of baking is understanding how heat is applied to food and how that application changes food at a basic level. This extends beyond the science of cooking, as the application of heat is just as important in regards to other forms of cooking. From moist heat sources such as boiling, frying and steaming, to dry heat sources such as baking and grilling, not all heat types are created equal and the effects they have on a dish can vary widely. This kind of baking science is often evident in situations where breads are baked using moisture and dry heat or in the frying or boiling of donuts and bagels.
The science of baking really presents itself as a distinct field of culinary inquiry regarding the ingredients commonly used in baking and how these ingredients work together. For example, flour and water are two of the most common ingredients in baking bread, along with a leavening agent, and how these components work together controls the type of bread produced. Flour, when used in an appropriate ratio to other ingredients, produces gluten which forms strong but elastic bonds within a dough or batter.
This gluten is capable of stretching a lot. Some recipes call for testing the dough to make sure it can be stretched far enough that you can see it without tearing it. In some respects, gluten can be considered similar to chewing gum. Gluten can be similarly inflated and blown into a bubble, with enough force to hold its shape.
By understanding the science of baking, a baker knows that a form of gas must be introduced into a dough or batter to create these bubbles. This is usually done by adding yeast or a leavening agent. Yeast is a microorganism that eats sugars and produces gas, while acids and bases from leavening agents such as baking soda and baking powder can also produce gas, and these work to inflate the gluten into bubbles. A baker versed in the principles of the science of baking understands that as the dough bakes into bread, these bubbles are held in by the force of the gluten and the resulting bread will be light and airy.
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