The Chemistry of Cooking Laboratory Exercises: A Perspective to Increase Chemistry and Biology Access to Students by Using Approachable Experiments

Abstract

Teaching non‐science majors science is a fundamental requirement in most universities. Many universities include a laboratory or experiential experience for each student as part of their science course. The Science of cooking (biology, chemistry and biochemistry) style course is becoming a popular method to bring science theory, laboratory experience and inquiry to these students. One of the challenges to teach such a course is a lack of laboratory experiments appropriate for entry‐level students that integrate science, food and inquiry. We have created three laboratories that meet these goals and use inexpensive and safe chemistry techniques so that experiments can even be performed in a student's own kitchen. Each lab will be presented in three parts. First is a traditional, directed approach where students will be guided through procedural steps and observations. Each laboratory will also include an inquiry portion where they can form their own hypothesis based on background information and results of the first portion of the experiment. A third component for each lab will integrate food and cooking or baking to bring the scientific foundations to a fun and meaningful application. Some of the basic science concepts that will be examined are reaction kinetics, pH and buffers, macromolecule structure and function, and chemical vs. physical changes. We have prepared three such labs: Browning (Maillard) Reactions, Science of Spherification, and Baking Cookies. From these experiments, more students can learn the fundamental concepts of biology, chemistry and biochemistry and relate it to their daily activities.