Learning Goals

KSI is about learning science and scientific reasoning so that participants can make their food come out the way they desire with regard to its texture, taste, and appearance.

We start by perfecting simpler components of dishes (e.g., pudding) in order to progress to more complex dishes (e.g., tiramisu, banana pudding cake). We focus on doing this in three ways:

Engaging in an iterative investigation process until dishes are perfected
Varying ingredients and procedures systematically so that we can find out what roles these things play in making the dish come out the way that it does.
Understanding and explaining when, why, and how these changes happen by collecting scientific evidence.

We seek to foster the development of
1) scientific reasoning and thinking skill & terminology

experimenting
systematic inquiry
variables, variations, trials
building explanatory theories

2) identities as cooks, scientist, and investigators
3) kitchen science content knowledge

Our investigative focus is on the role that different leaveners and thickeners play in the foods we prepare, cook, and eat. The science content we focus on with regard to each of these is as follows:
Leaveners

Baking soda/ baking powder
- Acids & Bases
- Reactions
Yeast (Fungi)
- Sugar metabolization and fermentation
Eggs
Proteins
- States of mater
- Liquid, solid, gas
Flour
- Gluten proteins

Thickeners

Protein thickeners
- Eggs
- Flour (both a protein and a starch thickener)
Starch thickeners
- Tapioca Flour, Instant Tapioca, Cornstarch, Rice flour, Arrowroot, Oat flour
  - Starch granules
  - Amylose & Amylopectin starch molecules
- Gelatinization
  - Absorption, swelling
  - Temperature

Last modified 25 January 2008 at 4:22 pm by cmgardne