Foam (culinary)
This article needs additional citations for verification. (March 2007) |
In cuisine, foam is a gelled or stabilized liquid in which air is suspended. Foams have been present in many forms over the history of cooking, such as whipped cream, meringue and mousse. In these cases, the incorporation of air, or another gas, creates a lighter texture and a different mouthfeel. Foams add flavor without significant substance, and thus allow cooks to integrate new flavors without changing the physical composition of a dish.[1]
More recently, foams have become a part of molecular gastronomy technique. In these cases, natural flavors (such as fruit juices, infusions of aromatic herbs, etc.) are mixed with a neutrally-flavored gelling or stabilizing agent such as agar or lecithin, and either whipped with a hand-held immersion blender or extruded through a whipped cream canister equipped with nitrous oxide cartridges. Some famous food-foams are foamed espresso, foamed mushroom, foamed beet and foamed coconut. An espuma or thermo whip is commonly used to make these foams through the making of a stock, creating a gel and extruding through the nitrous oxide canister.[2]
Creating culinary foam
To form a stable foam and
Foams consist of two phases, an aqueous phase and a gaseous (air) phase. Foams have been used in many forms in the history of cooking, for example:
When protein concentrations are increased to their maximum value the foaming powers and foam formation are generally increased. Often to compare foaming properties of various proteins, the foaming power at a specific protein concentration is determined.
A protein will always have certain stresses that it must overcome, such as gravitational and mechanical; it is the protein's ability to stabilize foam against these stresses that determines the foam's stability. The foam's stability is usually expressed as the time required for 50% of the liquid to drain from foam (a 50% reduction in foam volume).[3]
References
- ^ Robert Love (April 7, 2009). "Salad of Shaved Fennel, Aged Pecorino, Yuzu Froth". Food & Love (blog). Archived from the original on July 9, 2012. Retrieved April 17, 2009.
(This recipe utilizes a froth of yuzu juice.)
- ^ The Phantom Chef (11 August 2007). "How To Make Culinary Foam". The Belly Rules The Mind (blog). Archived from the original on 8 February 2008. Retrieved 5 April 2008.
- ^ Owen R. Fennema (2008). Fennema's Food Chemistry. Boca Raton, Florida.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)