Molecular Gastronomy in the News

[Kouign Aman]

Molecular-gastronomy-revolutionizes-dining-experience-in-some-famous-restaurants

Finally, chemists are catching up to eGullet.

[AlexForbes]

What happened to the idea that we'd moved beyond the term molecular gastronomy? Suddenly, it seems to be back with a vengeance. 60 Minutes used it abundantly in a recent profile of José Andrés, now I see it here...

Funny...

I gather chefs don't like the term at all, since it put them in trouble with naysayers that accused them of cooking with "unnatural" chemicals and other "lab-associated stuff".

I switched to tecnoemotional cuisine quite a while ago...

[Dakki]

I always thought it was used a bit tongue-in-cheek. "Look at us, using newfangled digital thermometers instead of sticking our hands in the oven! We're reading books on the chemistry of the Maillard reaction and using stuff we can't even pronounce to enhance umami! My old chef thought umami was a small flightless bird native to Madagascar! We ain't chefs, we're like scientists of taste! We're molecular gastronomers!"

But then I also thought "flexitarian" was a joke, like the seafood diet joke (I see food, I eat it).

[roosterchef21]

The worst part is the term Molecular Gastronomy is used incorrectly...

[J.Stevens]

i dont know why we cant just call it something like new cuisine ... it not only scares customers but also scares chefs from creating with the products

[roosterchef21]

i think people get mixed up between Molecular Gastronomy and Molecular Cooking. I also think people think that deconstructed means Molecular Cooking even though it often uses Molecular Cooking techniques...

[Kouign Aman]

I just found it interesting that some chemists finally noticed this is going on, and that people paid money to eat it, and thus concluded it must result in good, interesting, tasty, fun food.

Hello!

[roosterchef21]

Posted this on a separate forum. Does this make sense?

Ok.... I feel like I need to define Molecular Gastronomy.

There are two terms in play here; Molecular Gastronomy and Molecular Cooking. Molecular Gastronomy is the science that refers to the exploration of culinary techniques and transformations that occur during cooking. A Molecular Gastronomist researches these ideas and in turn enables chefs/cooks to use it in a practical way. Molecular Cooking refers to the process of using these theories to output a product that is a commodity . A chef does this. Think of Gastronomy as the science and Cooking as the final technology behind the science.

Now, Molecular Cooking does not refer to combining ingredients that complement each other. Well it sort of does but it doesn't. The whole basis behind producing a dish on any level is to create a dish that tastes good. It doesn't matter whether it's classical French or Molecular Cooking. Molecular Cooking uses those techniques and transformations previously researched in to produce a dish. Techniques and tools used could include anti-griddle, freeze drying, gels, spherification, airs and a whole heap of other stuff. So for example, a simple salad of tomato, basil, olive oil and mozzarella might use a number of techniques:

Tomato: Freeze dried tomato; tomato air

Basil: basil gel; basil spaghetti

Olive oil: olive oil soil; olive oil caviar (spherification)

Mozzarella: anti-griddled mozzarella;

As I said earlier, Molecular Cooking does involve combining ingredients in ways that complement each other. This is more on the Molecular Gastronomy side though and is an almost separate discipline. This is talking about the Volatile Compounds in food. These are the compounds found in food that give it's various flavor profiles, and, when combined with other foods, naturally complement each other. An example could be tomato and basil (again). Although it is researched by Molecular Gastronomists, and can well be a separate discipline altogether, chefs can and do dabble in this. There are plenty of books around that have the volatile compounds of food in them, and a really keen chef or cook can buy them and start playing.

This is where places like elBulli and come in. They (used to) close for six months of a year just to research new techniques, transformations and combinations for the next season. They combine Molecular Gastronomy, Molecular Cooking and Volatile Compound research into a restaurant. This is why elBulli was such an important restaurant. They were an actual restaurant researching and pushing boundaries and then selling those boundaries as a commodity. They were on the front line of all this representing these disciplines at a place where the average consumer could experience. Whether you love or hate these disciplines, there is no doubting elBulli' importance.

Deconstruced food is another term bandied around. It's not quite Molecular Cooking, although it often uses those techniques. Rather it is breaking down a dishes individual components into a single item, changing it considerably and putting the thing back together.