REVIEW: "What Einstein Told His Chef", Robert Wolke

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Why do crackers have holes? Why does fish smell like fish? How is vinegar made? Many adults and children asked these seemingly silly questions. It turns out that each of them has a very serious scientific basis. Today I will tell you about a wonderful book about the physical and chemical phenomena in your kitchen.

Robert Wolke dedicated this book to his wife Marlene Parrish. He calls her a colleague and inspiration; she is a culinary journalist and culinary instructor, her name is on the internal title. Apparently Marlene was in charge of the recipes in the book.

125 questions - 125 answers

The book is structured on the principle of "question - answer", many of the explanations are accompanied by recipes. They are intended to illustrate the processes described. This is a kind of laboratory work, the result of which can be eaten.

Volke has been answering the everyday questions of Washington Post readers for many years. What's so special about sea salt? What do home water filters do? What's the best way to remove fat from broth? What are microwaves? More than a hundred interesting notes have accumulated, explaining various phenomena occurring in the kitchen, from the point of view of chemistry and physics.

The topic is extremely interesting. After all, we are what we eat. It's a good idea to look at your kitchen through a scientific microscope. This will explain why some foods are healthy, while others are not very good, why we like some dishes and not others.

Who is this book for

For inquisitive minds who are interested in living and gaining new knowledge.
For parents who want to awaken the interest of growing children in physics and chemistry.
For chefs looking to enhance the flavor of their dishes.
For bloggers who write about food and want to get better at cooking.
For those who monitor their diet or lose weight.

If you fall into at least one of these categories, then you will not regret the time spent reading this book.

Honey and tar

My personal assessment of Robert Wolke's book What Einstein Told His Chef - 7 out of 10.

I'll tell you about three spoons of ointment and barrels of honey in which they dissolve.

Firstly, the book looks somewhat detached from our realities. Seriously, salted butter, kosher salt, tartar, corn oil, surimi - is it often on your table? That's just it. Gastronomic differences between countries are significant. Alas, this is almost not taken into account in the pages of the book.

But there are "international" products. For example, coffee. There is so much about caffeine. Volke debunks some myths about the aromatic drink.

Secondly, after an hour or two of reading, you get tired of scientific terms. This is not to say that there are many of them, but new words come across in almost every topic. Fortunately, Volka's syllable is light, he writes with humor. You read without missing and sometimes smiling.

Thirdly, the book was published in paperback, without a fringe. I don't like this format. The book is quite voluminous, heavy, and because of the paperback it is inconvenient to hold it in your hands. But for the same "finicky" like me, there are e-books.;)