Cooking is chemistry
Why do we cook? To create flavour, to aid digestion and to release nutrients from our food.
Every time we fry, steam, boil, or bake a series of chemical reactions take place that are key to a dish\u2019s success.
In this programme Ruth Alexander puts questions from the BBC World Service audience to Dr Stuart Farrimond in the UK, author of \u2018The Science of Cooking\u2019. Susannah and Aaron Rickard in Australia tell Ruth about the chemical reactions they discovered when researching their cookbook \u2018Cooking with Alcohol\u2019. And Krish Ashok in India, author of \u2018Masala Lab: The Science of Indian Cooking\u2019, explains the science behind the culinary wisdom of your parents and grandparents.
If you\u2019d like to contact the programme email thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk
Presented by Ruth Alexander.
Produced by Beatrice Pickup.
(Image: two young girls wearing goggles and aprons conducting a science experiment. Credit: Getty Images/ BBC)