Why do we cook food?

We cook food because heat makes it safer, softer, and easier for our bodies to use. It changes tough plant parts, firms up runny egg, and destroys many germs in raw meat or muddy vegetables. Cooking also gives food new tastes that plain raw ingredients do not have.

One tasty trick happens when hot, dry food starts to brown. Sugars and proteins make hundreds of new flavor bits, which is why toast, roasted potatoes, and cookies smell so different from their uncooked beginnings. A wet pan slows that browning down.