Why is the color of the Meat changing?
The science of cooking with Einstein Iyengar
Eeshan woke to the smell of his favourite lamb cutlets, that his mother was cooking. He washed up fast and ran to the kitchen to hug his mother.
“Thank you, Ma!” he said, “This day is going to start on a delicious note.”
Mrs. Iyengar laughed and said, “You are welcome, son.”
Eeshan noticed the color of the red meat, changing to brown when it was cooking and asked his mom, “Why is the color of the meat changing, ma?”
“Einstein Iyengar, there is science behind this,” answered his mother. She continued, “Most of the food we eat contains about 70-75% of water. In the case of red meat, it also contains proteins and fat.
When we heat the meat, the water begins to leach out. Any food while preparing reduces in size as it is cooked, as it releases water. The proteins react with the heat, and so the meat turns brown.”
“That was very insightful!” Eeshan said and continued, “But I have another question. The chapati that you are making- when you put it on the gas stove, how does it puff?”
“You noticed that I mixed water while making the batter? When I heat the chapati, the water in the batter changes into steam, and tries to escape, thus making the chapatti puff,” answered his mother.
“I just learned about physical states and physical changes in school. So water changes form here, from liquid to steam,” said Eeshan.
“That’s right, son! But cooking is more about practice than theory, so come on, start rolling chapatis!” said Mrs. Iyengar.
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