A Wonderleaf question
Why do we cook food?
a real page from the book
We cook food because heat makes many foods safer, softer, and better to eat. It breaks tough structures down, kills germs that can make people ill, and starts flavor-building changes that raw food cannot always give us: heat changes food.
One lovely detail is browning. When dry, hot surfaces meet sugars and proteins, bread crusts, roasted potatoes, and seared meat get their deep smell and color. That process has a name worth keeping: Maillard reaction.
Wonder words
- bacteria
- proteins
- temperature
- reaction
Try it out
Toast one slice of bread lightly and one darker, then smell both and talk about what heat changed.
Read the whole picture book
Watercolour scenes, straight answers, about three minutes cover to cover.
Open the picture bookKeep wondering
- Who invented pizza?
- How is chocolate made?
- How did people keep food fresh before refrigerators?
- Why do fruits taste sweeter when they are ripe?
- How does food turn into energy?
- Why does salt make food taste different?
One more wonder: Why is space so dark?
And the next question?
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