About the sugar effect

I am asked about the "sugar effect", that I demonstrated sometimes during lectures.


I would demonstrate it in this way :

1. observing that water rolls on flour shows that the surface is rather hydrophobic

2. but kneading makes a dough: water goes in the flour through capillarity

3. when you knead, it is stronger and stronger, which shows that something happens (the gluten network formation)

4. but when you lixiviate, then you demonstrate the presence of the "gluten" network (+starch); this is due to protein bridging by water

5. if instead of lixiviating, you add the sugar, then the sucrose traps water and dissolves in it, making a continuous phase (syrup), in which the starch particles are suspended (you move from a D0(S)/D3(S) toward a D0(s)/D3(W) system).

For the "sugar effect",  it is much more efficient when icy sugar is used (because of faster dissolution).

And this is why doughs are more tender with sugar is added in the dough before cooking: instead of having this network, the flour is cemented by butter. 

The new workshop on Molecular Gastronomy

Dear Friends

When spring comes, new words flourish, but indeed, it is perhaps not unnecessary to say clearly that :

1. Sciences of nature (sometimes called natural sciences) are activities where you look for phenomena using the scientific method (observing a phenomenon, measuring it, grouping the data into equations, looking for a theory, trying to refute the theory)

2. Technologies are activities of improving the technique (often using the results of sciences of nature).

3. "Applied sciences" cannot exist : the tree is not the fruit. If it is a science, it is not "applied", and if it is applied, this is technique or technology (and there, whereas applied sciences don't exist, there are applications of sciences)

More focused, now :

4. Food sciences are activities about studying food scientifically.

2. Food technology is the activity of improving food (often using the  result of food sciences)

3. Among food sciences, there are sciences for ingredients (finding new compounds in food ingredients),

4. The science for looking for mechanisms occuring during cooking is called "molecular and physical gastronomy", shortened in "molecular gastronomy".

And this is why I invite you to distribute the announcement of the next "International Workshop on Molecular and Physical Gastronomy", in Paris (France), June  5-7.

The topic will be :  Flavour through Cooking.

application to : icmg@agroparistech.fr