Library of Books, Links & More: KITCHEN / FOOD SCIENCE AND CHEMISTRY

I had an extremely busy two weeks of families and friends visiting with us, and also, a fun 10 day road trip of visiting familiar places, (but with sister and her family). And, now we are amidst the festive Golu celebrations. I have been SO busy, that I did not even get a chance to invite folks to my golu well ahead of time:( Well, there was also a slight chance of us not 'celebrating' golu this year due to our hectic schedules. BUT kids and dh pitched in with me to arrange a fabulous 9 step golu with great bommais(dolls). Unfortunately, not very many of my friends will be able to see and enjoy it with us this year.

I hope to post some pictures of our golu, (along with our vacation pics) here. May be you folks would enjoy seeing our golu and share our fun. Kids have started univ/college classes this week, and I am back to a maddening driving schedule of back to back events. This quarter, I am out on the road to Palo Alto or vicinity on all 6 days for both my children. (I am sure that one singled out day of the week, with no driving to PA, will be the one that will be spent on 'all day cleaning' of our home). I must have been out of my mind to have agreed to this schedule of driving. Oh well!

Here is something about the topic of this post. Inspired by the Kitchen Science discussions in the gifted homeschool group a while ago, I am listing the resources that I have collected so far. We have been doing Kitchen science as part of our every day casual learning. Let me admit, I never enjoyed cooking. I am one of those who likes to 'eat to live'. Seriously! I often thought of cooking as something that is done for hours by one person, to be just eaten (and finished) by many in just mere seconds:).

OK, it is a bit of exaggeration, but I cook elaborate meals only when I am in the 'mood'. I love for someone to cook and feed me most of the times; and I live on the simplest meals:). No, I do not always have the luxury of someone cooking for me, unless when I visit my home country. But dh and I enjoy eating out a lot. I like to cook for friends and special occasions, ofcourse. Our family is big on Indian foods, and it is hard for us to be without our usual south Indian meals for long. After a few days road trip, we come home longing for rasam and sambhar:). Or, we try to find an Indian restaurant on our road trips. Kitchen science learning and homeschooling actually motivated me to enjoy cooking. I liked the fact that kids got to participate in it. For our family, cooking meals is usually a family affair. On any day, dh and I, along with the kids would be crowding our kitchen making some of the simplest meals:).

Since we are a family of strict vegetarians, there are limits as to what we can really do with respect to kitchen/food science learning from a book or web resource. We were vegans for a while too, (and that was real tough when we traveled extensively), but then went back to being lacto-vegetarian. One thing I have learned living in CA for so many years is that 'vegetarian' means different things to different people here. I have had people give me choices of 'fish' and 'bird' menus, inspite of having mentioned to them that that we are 'vegetarians'. I was not aware that people called themselves 'vegetarians' when they consumed 'bird' or 'fish', but just avoided 'meat' alone. That phenomenon was actually new to our family, and was confusing initially. We have learned to explain our vegetarianism these days to people by simply stating (listing) what we don't eat :).

With respect to Kitchen/Food sciences, I have put together our own 'lessons' by just cooking with the kids, and following our family recipes, as well as experimenting a lot with the recipes from different cultures('masala' pasta, 'spice' salads, and 'saag or paneer' burrito or taco). I realized with passing time, that I was naturally incorporating the Ayurvedic food lessons and discussions in all our home cooking. It started out as a means of explanations to satisfy the curiosity and questionings from kids regarding the usage of certain foods and spices in our cooking, the practice of some home remedies for simple ailments, to some indepth learning and constant reference to Ayurvedic medical books. Since my parents had a strong influence in Ayurveda and Naturopathic cooking principles, it has been relatively easier for me to incorporate such principles quite causally without going through much of any formal preparation or lessons. We resorted to looking into many books for additional information. Parents and other relatives began to share their knowledge and recipes of Ayurvedic foods to add to our knowledge. We have also incorporated Health and Nutrition lessons along with our food science lessons. Organic foods and importance of pesticide free foods also became part of the learning. And we consider such a learning of kitchen science to be an ongoing one with every growing year. Both kids have been pretty independent making their own simple meals, cleaning utensils, dishwasher duties, laundry etc etc since age 5. I consider chores around the home and kitchen/food science as an integral part of their home education.

The way we have done Kitchen/food science is to learn about all the ingredients in the recipes, nutritional value, Ayurvedic importance and reference, physiological chemistry, food chemistry, along with calorie content of the foods, health benefits etc. Unfortunately, I have no pictures to post on all our learning, as I did not have a digital camera at that time:). I hope the explanations help in getting the idea of what we have done. When the kids were younger, they did an extensive study on all kinds of lentils, Indian and other spices, herbs, their origin, usage, contents, nutritional value, Indian names and meanings, etc. Both kids prepared power point presentations, and illustrated some of their learning. They also created a Herbarium of the related botanical studies. One interesting and fun thing they enjoyed doing was lentil and spice charts; they made specimens of all kids of lentils and spices (also, see cook's thesaurus), in individual sealed, small plastic packages, and fixed them to the chart board. They added the labels along with information on each of the 'specimens', the original root words or derivation, nutritional or medical value of each of them, and usage. Then they presented it in the science fair exhibitions; (if you do this, make sure you keep these charts in a cool, dry place to keep them bug free. Ours lasted for 4-5years :)). They also enjoyed doing a couple of Food science and Kitchen chemistry experiment based coop classes a few years ago.

We also clubbed our gardening experiences in our backyard as part of our food 'lab' experience. We rotated crops, participated in community gardening and master gardening events, learned from our farmer/gardener about food plants, took field trips, etc to enrich our learning. The kids also jotted down the recipes in their 'lab' notebooks, while they took notes as they observed, and cooked together with me. They illustrated their notes when applicable. They cut, mixed, and ground materials when needed. They also participated in the shopping for the ingredients in the early years. (And budgeted the spending). We actually had cuisines from various countries on specific nights, (as part of vegetarian foods from around the world), and the kids researched their favorite recipe-based on the ingredients used -and shopped for them, and helped in cooking the meals. In the past couple of years, I have also started to translate all my parents' recipes to English. Both my kids have their own recipe notes and collection that I started them on a while ago. I would expect that grow with them:).

Now that the kids are older, (and are quite busy), they are more into simple recipes, nutritional value, health and calorie content. It is just amazing as to how much we cover with respect to kitchen and food sciences through our general conversation and discussions with every meal. These days cooking has become more about doing something simple and nutritious as possible. But the festivities give us an ample opportunity for our family to enjoy some of the wonderful elaborate Indian cooking that our family loves consuming.

Here are a few resources that I have found so far on general food science, kitchen science, kitchen chemistry, food chemistry and the like. This is not a comprehensive list. I hope this is of some use to you.

(Note: Re-posted in March 2010 after correcting formatting errors)

Here is a small sample of South vegetarian cooking(that we cook normally in our home) in a video form.

Web

Food science galore has many links, resources, websites. Plenty to browse and learn

Anywhere Anytime Chemistry Experience web, text and lab based lessons for science and non science majors

Kitchen Science Experiments by the Naked Scientists, who are physicians and researchers from Cambridge University. Wonderful resource for food, kitchen science learning

Accidental Scientist great website filled with loads of information, links, resources, activities, recipes, cooking experiments, etc

Big Learning: Cooking with Kids recipes, cooking projects, math and nutrition lessons etc

Cooking for Engineers nice blog with kitchen notes, recipes, pictures, book recommendations etc

Counter Top Chemistry This is part of Science House website with wonderful science and cooking activities for K-12 kids

Kitchen Chemistry This is intended to use along with the book Kitchen Chemistry by Ted Lister. Here is the index which gives a quick glance of topics, and activities in pdfs and video clips

Kitchen Science experiments from About.com Fun experiments using kitchen items

Kitchen Chemistry: Fun Food activities and Experiments Interesting experiments, projects, tips that you can do in the kitchen to learn science for the younger aged children. There is also wonderful book list at the end. There is also a kitchen experiment supply list for all the experiments

Discovery channel UK site on Kitchen Chemistry wonderful information on kitchen chemicals, kitchen chemistry of cooking, Molecular Gastronomy etc

Kitchen Science for pre-school age kids. This is a Penn State site with some ideas and lessons on kitchen science activities

Kitchen Chemistry Experiments for K-6th grade kids. Interesting experiments using kitchen materials

Pittsburg Teachers Unit curriculum materials for Kitchen Chemistry. This site has some wonderful topics on food chemistry, food concepts, Nutrition, etc

Science and Scientists Behind the Food Wonderful unit from Discovery Education. This has down-loadable lessons, experiments, food scientist resources, teacher's guide, interactive etc. See the lessons on Food Chemistry: Proteins; Enzymes: Enzymatic Browning; Microbiology: Yest Growth

Food Info site multilingual site; provides information on food, food components, food ingredients, food additives etc

Intro to Food Industry There are eight lessons on Food industry

Agriculture in the Classroom Check out the Teacher's Resources on Food related topics, virtual tours, research based topics and lessons, etc. Also check out the kid's pages on the site
Video and Media Resources Cool movies and videos on Food safety, Food marketing, Food chemistry of Pizza, Solving the mystery of foodborne Illness, and Food safety music

The Cook's Thesaurus This is an encyclopedia with thousands of cooking ingredients and tools with pictures

Kitchen Chemistry from Gateway of Educational materials. Resources, book lists, some experiments

Food Science wonderful classroom experiments, demos, and resources for beginning food scientists

Kitchen Chemistry materials related to the Kitchen Chemistry book by Heston Blumenthal. is the index of topics and also video clips associated with the topics

Kitchen Science videos from Instructables. Do a search for edible science, food science for interesting relevant videos

Kitchen Chemistry article and resource links from Discover this

Food Science galore wonderful links and resources on various topics of food science. There is baking, fruits and vegetables, milk, candy resources and more

Other resources

Kitchen Chemistry book for K-8 science education. Read reviews about this book and course here

Kitchen Chemistry Unit from Pittsburg Teacher's Institute Extremely wonderful site with units on various concepts of Kitchen Science as follows

Using Kitchen Chemicals to Identify Key Concepts in Chemistry
From the Kitchen to the Classroom: Ideas and Lessons for the Science Teacher
Kitchen Chemistry: Fun Food Activities and Experiments
Making the Connection between Science and Kitchen Activities; A Curriculum Unit for Secondary Special Needs Students Introducing Chemical Concepts with Food

Food Science Labs wonderful labs from Univ of Nebraska

Food Science Teaching Resources From the Institute of Food Technologies; check out the cool links and resources

Video and Media Resources on Food Science Interesting list of videos with teacher's manuals, student guides as pdfs

A to Z Food Chemistry Interesting links, resources, experiments, pdfs etc

Science and Our Food Supply Free teacher's materials from NSTA Learning Center for Middle School level. Also check Science and Food Safety: Growth and Reproduction of Cells;Science and Food Safety: Microbes, Friend or Foe; Science of Food Safety: Food and You

Utah Educational Student Interactives for Grades 7-12 Interactives on health education, nutrition and food topics

Food Preservation Lessons on food preservation and the conditions that encourage or inhibit growth of microorganisms

Bacteria's role in Food lesson plans from Utah Education Network. There are other nutrition, food and cooking science lessons on this site

Food and Nutrition I and Food and Nutrition II lesson plans for food preparation and nutrition

Food Service and Culinary Arts Quality food preparation, sanitation, hospitality etc

Kitchen Chemistry from MIT: FREE This is an UG level course, offered through OCW from MIT. There are lesson plans, and information on book and materials used on the site. Also there is a Yahoo Group on MIT Kitchen Chemistry(not associated with MIT), that is run by a homeschooling mom, and the Kitchen Chemistry course from MIT OCW is used in the discussions

Food and Science lesson plans on physical, microbiological, and chemical principles that affect the food we consume

ZOOM Kitchen Chemistry Online There are activities for both virtual and real kitchen science

Watch Kitchen Chemistry with Heston Blumenthol wonderful videos on kitchen science, food science and cooking

Kitchen Math I and II Importance of maths in food science and nutrition

Utah Education Network Do a search here to find lessons on topics of food science, health, agriculture, cooking etc

Exploratorium Chemistry Snacks simple experiments

Discover this Kitchen Chemistry kit for ages 8 and up

Cooking With Chemistry experiments and activities originally held as part of one day workshop for teacher's in MN. Scroll down to check out all the experiment links

Chemistry Question.com talks about chemistry in daily life. Learn all about the chemistry behind, rice cooking, or pasteourized milk etc

Herbal Roots blog and Herbarium information with pictures

There are some downloadable pdfs here on various kitchen science topics

Ideas for Food Science Labs.doc
Ferm teacher's guideTG.pdf
FermSG.pdf
experiments_foodscience.pdf
biofood.pdf ProteinsSG.pdf
ProteinsTG.pdf Kitchen Science.pdf
Kitchenchemistry.pdf

Agriculture and Environment Lesson Plans site offers a variety of topics and lesson plans for Agriculture, food science, and culinary science. Check out some of the topics below and more on site

Baking Bread Lesson and Field Trip
Be a Food Detective Lesson Plan - PDF
Become a Solar Chef Lesson Plan
Candy Hands On Activities - Science of Cooking
Carbohydrates Simple and Complex
Chemical Leavening Agents Lesson Plan
Culinary Arts Curricula
Eat Your Veggies Lesson Plan
Edible Plants Lesson Plan
Egg Math
Energy B Plans
Food Science Experiments
Food Science Lesson Plans and Experiments
Hidden Story of Food Lessons
Introduction to the Food Industry - Lesson Plan
Kitchen Equipment Basics Lesson Plan
Kitchen Math Lesson Plan
Leavening Experiment - Lesson Plan
Microbes Lesson Plans
Pizza Explorer - Food Chemistry Unit
Popcorn Teaching Guide
Science of Cooking Activities
S cience of Cooking Bread Hand's On Activities
Snack Search Lesson Plan - PDF
Spice Geography Lesson Plan
There are Microbes in My Food Lesson Plan
Food Science and Culinary Arts

Science/Chemistry Project/Experiment Books

Science Experiments to Do at Home, Kitchen Chemistry by Robert Gardner. This book lists several great experiments that students can do using materials found at home

Science Projects About Kitchen Chemistry (Science Projects) by Robert Gardner. This book has great ideas for experiments using kitchen items

Science Arts: Discovering Science Through Art Experiences (Bright Ideas for Learning) by MaryAnn F. Kohl and Jean Potter. This book lists many art activities using scientific concepts

Simple Chemistry Experiments With Everyday Materialsby Louis V. Loeschnig. This book gives detailed chemistry experiments using common materials

Simple Kitchen Experiments: Learning Science With Everyday Foodsby Muriel Mandell and Frances W. Zweifel. This book tells about experiments with common foods

Simple Science Experiments With Everyday Materialsby Muriel Mandell and Frances Zweifel. This book contains lots of hands-on experiments using easily found materials

Primary Science Samplerby Sandra Markle. This book has samples of several different science activities as well as experiments

The Science Explorer Out and About: Fantastic Science Experiments Your Family Can Do Anywhere! by Pat Murphy. This book features great experiments for all ages

Sensational Science Activities with Dr Zedby Gordon Penrose. This book features the zany Dr. Zed performing numerous experiments

Janice VanCleave's Teaching the Fun of Science by Janice VanCleave. This book has several experiments that deal with liquids, solids, acids, bases, gases, and matter

Best of Wonderscience: Elementary Science Activities, Volume I by James H. Kessler and Ann T. Bennett. Hands on activities originally published in Wonderscience magazines