India’s modern-thinking as well as fusion food-advocating chefs, have adopted molecular gastronomy as the future of culinary expertise and innovation in the country.
“I think it is a sad reflection of our civilisation that while we can, and do, measure the temperature in the atmosphere of Venus, we do not try to know what goes on inside our soufflés,” reflected Hungarian-born physicist and cooking enthusiast Nicholas Kurti, almost 30 years ago.
Kurti is considered the father of the term ‘molecular gastronomy’. He used it to describe the discipline of physical science as it is applied to understanding traditional cooking methods.
Later, French chemist Hervé This adopted this term to investigate cooking myths. In less than a decade of the technology, techniques, and art of cooking, the new term was on its way to global popularity.
The thinking modern chef has adopted molecular gastronomy as the future of culinary expertise. Chefs are artists, so it remains for them an art, aided by scientific knowledge.
Chef Abhijit Saha, director and chef of Avante Garde Hospitality, Bangalore, who has recently set up Caperberry, a restaurant that dabbles in this technique, insists that it is just another way of making food better.
“There is a lot to understand about cooking, and to understand the science and apply that knowledge to get results that are different from ones we have been getting till now, is molecular gastronomy.
It is an attempt to create new flavors and textures by using the science behind cooking and harnessing its potential to make the maximum out of food, to get results that are different, surprising and interesting,” he insists.
Anil Chandhok, CEO, Chenab Impex, one of India’s best known suppliers of imported foods and implements, adds: “Molecular gastronomy was earlier known as kitchen chemistry, and research was conducted in this field by food technologists and chemists.
Later, some chefs began to experiment and use various natural chemicals such as gums (agar, aliginic acid, xanthan), and hydocolloids (foams, emulsions, solid gels), to create a new wave of cuisine in which the presentation, taste, and flavours were altered to generate a ‘wow’ feeling in the consumer.”
One first needs to understand the science, and the misconceptions around it. Firstly, there are no more chemicals used in molecular gastronomy than in regular food. Sodium chloride, for instance is used in food every day, as salt.
There have been so many kinds of preservatives and stabilisers that have been used in our fare for the longest time. Ninety percent of the additives that are used in molecular gastronomy are derived from natural ingredients like seaweeds and herbs, sometimes, even a root.
“The way that I define it, molecular gastronomy is the culmination of culinary arts, science, and artistry. Now that we understand the science behind it, we can help food look as well as taste better,” says Saha.
A combination of additives, special equipment, and creativity, makes molecular gastronomy interesting.
What looks like an egg yolk could actually be made from mango, similarly the pasta on your plate could be made of vegetable juice; a dessert that is frozen on the outside could be hot inside, and that lovely spoonful of pink cloud served with roast chicken ham could be beetroot foam.
Menus could be edible and caviar-like spheres of juices could grace your plate alongside other vegetables or meats. To make all of this possible, some important ingredients used are Agar Agar and Sodium Alginate, both derived from algae and seaweed (the latter used to form spheres).
Also helping in conjuring up these marvels, fat can be converted to powders using Tapioca Maltodextrin, a food starch, while Dextrose can be used to shorten the time needed to raise doughs.
Carrageenan and Gellan are gelling agents similar to Agar Agar. Isomalt, a variant of sugar used for sugar casting (sugar designs), is resistant to humidity and stays flexible longer than regular sugar.
A soy derivative, Lecithin is a natural emulsifier, used to stabilise foams, while Sodium Citrate, an odorless crystal can prevent fat globules from sticking together.
Activa or Transglutaminase, commonly known as meat glue, is used to chemically bond two or more proteins together while Xanthan Gum, which is produced from maize and soy meal, which can stabilise suspensions and emulsions, is used as a common substitute for eggs and gluten. Another such thickener is Espesantes.
Sous Vide cooking is one of the processes that helps food retain juices, while allowing for original as well as added flavours to seep in. Says Saha: “Harold McGee describes it as ‘one of the most important culinary innovations of modern times’. It involves two steps, and equipment.
The food is packed in a vacuum bag with the help of a vacuum packing machine and then immersed in a water bath heated to the optimal cooking temperature (usually between 60 and 62 degrees). This prevents the leaching out of juices, retains the tenderness and flavor while cooking the food to perfection.”
Flash-freezing is another technique, that suddenly cools either by pouring liquid nitrogen over a bowl of food or by placing food onto an anti-griddle.
“At minus 196°C liquid nitrogen cools the surface of food very quickly creating an interesting texture. At Caperberry, we use it for preparing chilled mousses called ‘cryo espuma’ that are frozen on the surface and soft within,” explains Saha.
Another innovative application is spherification. It is a process used very often, wherein any liquid is turned into a ball with elastic but solid outer covering, which bursts in the mouth in a riot of flavors. The chief additives used here are Sodium Alginate and Calcium Chloride (Calcic) for the bath.
Gellification is a commonly used process in this line of cooking, and uses a range of gellifiers.
Gellan allows the formation of firm gels that slice very cleanly and, because it withstands temperatures of 70C, is very useful for preparing hot gelatines.
Other gelling agents are Metil that gellifies when heat is applied, whilst in cold it acts as a thickener; Kappa, that produces gelatins with a firm, brittle texture; and Lota, which makes very elastic, soft gelatine.
Emulsification (emulsifiers) is a product line that allows the creation of airy, light texturas. The most commonly used additive is Lecite – it is a natural non-transgenic soy based emulsifier, in refined powder form. One of the most stable emulsifiers with aerating properties is Sucro, used to prepare oil in water type emulsions.
Glice is another, and it also integrates a watery medium into a fatty medium. Presenting endless possibilities is Crumiel, offering the easy, convenient use of honey in its crystallised state.
For making all this magic possible, various instruments can be used. Chief among them are the gas torch, used to caramelise sugars and brown meats; ultra sonic baths; Büchner funnel, for vacuum-filtering solids from liquids; rotary evaporator for distilling liquids without heating them; the anti-griddle, that instantly freezes food; the Gastrovac; Paco Jet; and Clifton Food Range.
The CO2 dispenser converts practically any liquid into an ethereal froth or foam. Among the implements required for this process are syringes that are used to create drops for making spheres; dosing spoons for larger spheres like ravioli and gnocchi; and finally, collecting spoons to remove and wash the spherical preparation from the Calcic bath.
One of the world’s best-known seller of these products is Sole Graells, which, in India, is distributed through Chenab Impex.
“Sole Graells is the sales face of El Bulli, renowned internationally for the molecular cuisine of chefs Ferran and Albert Adria. These Texturas are the original products from source and are of the highest quality. They are the same products as used in the El Bulli kitchen,” says Chandhok.
“We also sell the instruments used in El Bulli Texturas (syringes, spoons, and so on), packaged in the kits.”
Molecular gastronomy is something that has not really come of age in India, but is well on its way, thanks to culinary connoisseurs like Saha and Chandhok.
