Molecular Gastronomy Trivia Quiz

Answer: Spherification

Spherification was introduced in 2003 by chef Ferrari Adria during a cooking experiment. Two of his famous dishes include spherical mango ravioli and liquid pea ravioli. The process of cooking by using chemical reactions has since then become very popular as a food science and culinary art.

Answer: True

Spherification makes juices, sauces, and soups look like little balls of caviar. This process mixes a liquid in sodium alginate, dropping it into a mixture of Calcium salt and water, then scooping the mixture out quickly enough so that it jellies on the outside and holds a liquid center.

Answer: Gelification

Gelification is known as the process of turning liquids into gelatinous forms. The gel forms and textures may vary depending on the additives used during the processing.

Answer: Reverse Spherification

Reverse Spherification takes the basic spherification technique and reverses the process. For example, instead of submerging sodium alginate in a bath of caldium lactate, the calcium content is submerged into a bath of sodium alginate, creating a thicker solid shell. The process is often used with dairy or alcohol contents that do not have to be consumed immediately.

Answer: Powderizing

Powderizing is a gastronomy technique of blending maltodextrin powder with a high fat content liquid to produce a powdery texture. New culinary advances include olive oil powder, peanut butter powder and popcorn powder.

Answer: Anti-griddle

New kitchen technology such as the anti-griddle can flash freeze and combine liquids quickly to form semi-frozen or frozen food forms with an outer solid shell and creamy center filling.

Answer: True

Transparent ravioli and fried mayonnaise are a few examples of what Molecular gastronomists create. Many chemical processes take place with the right apparatus and Molecular gastronomists have created the new trends in culinary appeal.

Answer: Umami

There are 5 known taste concepts: sweet, sour, bitter, salty and umami. Umami is a loan word from Japanese meaning a pleasant savory taste, corresponding to glutamates such as MSG.

Answer: Sous vide

Sous vide is a popular technique that involves sealing food in an airtight plastic bag and cooking it in a water bath for several hours on low heat. Sous vide cooking allows food to retain its moisture and flavor.

Answer: Herve This and Nicholas Kurti

The term molecular gastronomy was coined in 1988 by French chemist Hervé This and his partner Nicolas Kurti, an Oxford physicist. Heston Blumenthal and Rene Zedzepi are celebrity chefs whose restaurants were rated #1 in the world. Ferrari Adria was a pioneer in the creation of liquid spheres and Paco Roncero studied under Adria for ten years. Grant Achatz is a popular American restaurateur and Philip Preston is a culinary technologist who helped create the Anti-griddle.