Neither a beer nor a wine, sake is like their often-forgotten cousin, an alcoholic drink made from fermented rice. Typically paired with sushi and lighter Japanese fare, sake can be described as being fruity, flowery, and astoundingly complex. The origins of sake are largely unknown, but some historians guess that like many fermented foods, its … Continue reading
Tea is the perfect beverage. It can be bitter and astringent, or creamy and smooth. You can choose a variety with a high caffeine content for a study session, or a tea with less caffeine for bedtime. Make a refreshing iced tea in the summer, or brew it hot and serve it to an … Continue reading
Dr. Kent Kirshenbaum received his PhD in Pharmaceutical Chemistry at UCSF, is an NSF Career Award recipient, and is currently a professor of Chemistry at NYU. His research focuses on the creation of new peptide-based macromolecules that can be used as research tools or therapeutic strategies. In 2012, he filed a patent for a foaming agent which acts … Continue reading
Cranberries are harvested in late autumn, just in time to celebrate the holidays. Whether you prefer to enjoy cranberries in a jam, as a sauce from the can, juiced, dried, or fresh, there’s no denying that cranberries are festive. They’re tart, dark red, and pair really well with a turkey dinner (according to science). Continue reading
A charcuterie board is the perfect accompaniment to any gathering and rivals a cheese plate as a crowd-pleaser. It’s low maintenance, delicious, and will almost certainly have a taste or texture to appeal to the pickiest of palates. Meat comes in an array of textures, fat content, and flavors, which vary species to species and … Continue reading
Wine and food pairing may seem like a refined art form, cultivated through trial and error to best suit the individual, but what if we told you there was also a science to it? When it comes to wines, the word “tannin” is thrown around a lot. In broad terms, tannins are a type of … Continue reading
Given the popularity of cheese and the seeming ubiquitous goal towards eating less fat, it is no surprise that reduced- and low-fat cheeses have great market potential. Though as many cheese companies have discovered, reducing the amount of fat for the sake of fewer calories sacrifices that rich, bold, creamy flavor of cheese. Fat is … Continue reading
Biochemists discover the remains of prehistoric cheese, while Modern Farmer looks at Chobani’s acid whey problem. Continue reading
Turkey is the star of the most famous dinner of the year; it is also the victim of a myth that persists every holiday season. At the end of Thanksgiving dinner, there’s a good chance that someone will mention that a molecule called tryptophan is the culprit for the post-feast drowsiness. The science seems sound … Continue reading
A science and food geek, Jeff Potter is the author of Cooking for Geeks: Real Science, Great Hacks, and Good Food, which the Washington Post called “one of the most useful books on understanding cooking.” He can be seen on TV engineering the world’s largest donut and is currently obsessed with the science of beverages. Check out more of … Continue reading
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