What causes a beer belly? A beer belly isn’t so much caused by beer as it is caused by excess calories, along with hormones and genetics that dictate where your body stores the fat. Our bodies have evolved to store any excess calories that we consume as fat. We are not the only animals to […]
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How do fish farms work? Fish farms work by raising fish from eggs to full sized fish in a carefully controlled environment. There are different ways to farm fish, and they all have their benefits and problems, but they are all trying to overcome a situation that we have created ourselves. The situation is that
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Why does starch thicken sauce? Starch thickens sauces because starch granules swell when they are heated in water. As they swell, they trap water and release long starch molecules that tangle together, turning a thin liquid into a thicker one. Starch is a complex carbohydrate that is produced by green plants as their main way
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What is jerky? Jerky is traditionally strips of dried meat that are eaten as a snack or as a way to get protein and energy on long journeys where there is no access to refrigeration. The concept of jerky has been around for thousands of years, but the word has only existed in English since
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Why were spices so valuable in the past? You can buy a jar of spices today for a few dollars, but for a large part of history, some spices were extremely valuable. A few were even said to be worth their weight in gold. This was generally down to how hard they were to get,
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Who was Mrs. Beeton? Mrs. Beeton was Isabella Beeton. If you are British, you have probably heard her name in reference to all of the household management and recipe books that were released in her name. Even if you are not British, there is a strong chance that you have heard of her. I say
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Why does oil splash when cooking? Oil splashes when cooking because water in the food hits the hot oil and instantly vaporizes into steam. If you have ever dropped food into a frying pan and been sprayed with hot oil, you’lI understand this problem. It basically comes down to the heat of the oil, the
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Why do we get sleepy after eating? We get sleepy after eating because digestion, hormones, and our body clock can all reduce alertness, especially after a large meal. A lot of people notice that after a large lunch it becomes very difficult to stay awake through the afternoon, and the coffee starts to look more
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What makes us hungry or full? Hunger is driven by signals such as ghrelin, while fullness comes from a mix of stomach expansion, nerve signals, and hormones released by the digestive system. Ghrelin is known as the “hunger hormone” because it is released when the stomach is getting empty and it is one of the
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What is Monosodium Glutamate? Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) is a salt used to add flavor to food. MSG is the sodium salt of glutamic acid. Glutamic acid is an amino acid that occurs naturally in lots of foods, such as tomatoes, cheese, mushrooms, and seaweed. In foods, glutamic acid often loses a hydrogen ion and becomes
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