Pantry and produce
6 short explainers. Read them in order, or jump to the question you have right now.
- 199Ethylene and ripeningPlants make ethylene, a gas that tells fruit to ripen. Starch turns to sugar, the flesh softens, the color shifts. Ripe bananas give off a lot of it, so a…
- 200Salt types and measuringTable, kosher and sea salt are all mostly sodium chloride. They differ in crystal size. Small crystals pack tightly and big flakes leave air gaps, so a…
- 201Which vinegar for whatAll vinegars get their sourness from acetic acid, usually around 5 percent in common table types. What differs is what was fermented. White distilled is…
- 202Oil and smoke pointsPast its smoke point, oil breaks down. Some of the fat splits into acrolein, the acrid smoke that stings your eyes, and the oil turns bitter. Pull the pan…
- 203Honey and mapleHoney is mostly fructose and glucose, plus less than a fifth water. Maple syrup is mostly sucrose in water. Fructose browns at a lower temperature than…
- 204Canned tomatoes and beansCanning seals food in a can and heats it hot enough to kill spoilage microbes, so cans last for years. The food inside is already cooked. Skip any can…
