Short Wave: To Unlock Sublime Flavor, Cook Like A Scientist

What is flavor? Is it merely what your nose and tongue tell you?

Does “sweet” or “salty” really capture the experience of eating? How do you put into words the flavor of a family recipe?

For cookbook author and recipe developer Nik Sharma, flavor is a full-body experience — beyond aroma and taste. His new cookbook, The Flavor Equation: The Science Of Great Cooking Explained In More Than 100 Essential Recipes, proposes that flavor is also comprised of sight, sound, mouthfeel, and emotion.

Drawing upon his background in molecular biology, Nik brings scientific inquiry to his cooking. As he develops recipes, he consults research papers and maintains a “notebook of hypotheses” for tracking his ideas. Naturally, we had to ask him to come on our show.

In today’s episode, Short Wave reporter Emily Kwong and Short Wave producer Rebecca Ramirez cook two recipes from Nik’s book and explore the scientific principles at work.

To see more of Nik’s recipes, check out his blog, A Brown Table.

Email us at shortwave@npr.org.

 

Short Wave Podcast

It’s science for everyone, using a lot of creativity and a little humor. Join host Maddie Sofia for science on a different wavelength.


Science Topics
Biology, Chemistry, Food Science, Psychology
Middle School, High School
7th Grade, 8th Grade, 9th Grade, 10th Grade, 11th Grade, 12th Grade, Adults

What are you looking for?

Organization

Short Wave (NPR)

Website URL

Type of Resource

Podcast

Assigned Categories