• Question: what happens to food when it cooks?

    Asked by aamnaraza to Dalya, Derek, Sarah, Tim, Tom on 19 Jun 2011.
    • Photo: Dalya Soond

      Dalya Soond answered on 17 Jun 2011:

      It denatures, which means the 3D shape of the protein in the food breaks down.

    • Photo: Tom Crick

      Tom Crick answered on 18 Jun 2011:

      Excellent question, something that I had never really thought about!

      Preparing food with heat or fire is an activity unique to humans, and some scientists believe the advent of cooking played an important role in human evolution.

      Heat changes the structure and texture of proteins, carbohydrates and fats in the food we eat, which makes them edible and also nutritionally valuable! We are able to digest a lot of food raw, but I prefer my steaks medium rare…

      Question for you: why are eggs important for cakes?

    • Photo: Derek McKay-Bukowski

      Derek McKay-Bukowski answered on 19 Jun 2011:

      Good answers, Tom & Dalya. I can’t add to those!

    • Photo: Tim Millar

      Tim Millar answered on 19 Jun 2011:

      It warms up?

    • Photo: Sarah Thomas

      Sarah Thomas answered on 19 Jun 2011:

      I’d like to add that cooking food also kills off any bacteria that are growing on the food. Bacteria are pretty much everywhere! We need to kill the harmful ones off so that our food is safe to eat! 🙂

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