Part III of the series on cooking systems presents a qualitative description of cooking methods such as open pan cooking, pressure cooking, steam cooking, solar energy-based cooking, microwave cooking, etc. A large number of chemical and physical changes occur during the process of cooking. These changes have been comprehensively covered in published literature including some textbooks. An attempt has been made to discuss a brief coherent description regarding the changes occurring in starches, proteins, fats, etc. The kinetics of the cooking reaction has also been investigated. This information can be advantageously employed for developing a protocol for an optimum temperature–time program. Because the cooking process is practically thermally neutral, a good scope is available for the optimization of energy supply. It was also thought desirable to understand the kinetics of degradation of proteins, vitamins, anti-nutrients, and flavors in different cooking practices, including microwave ovens and pressure cookers. The mechanism of cooking of rice and lentils has been described. The cooking process involves first the transfer of water from bulk to the particle surface, where the resistance for transfer is provided by a thin film in the vicinity of grain (rice and lentils) surfaces. Second, water has to transfer from the external surface to swollen cooked mass to uncooked core. Finally, on the surface of the uncooked core, the cooking reaction occurs. All published literature regarding this mechanism has been systematically analyzed, and the procedure has been given regarding the rate controlling step(s) and the estimation of the overall rate of cooking. For this purpose, the mathematical models have been given and methods have been described for the quantitative evaluation of the model parameters. A substantial amount of additional work is needed on the mechanism of cooking and suggestions have been made for future research.
The kinetics of ascorbic acid degradation in drumstick (Moringa olifera) leaves as well as in pure ascorbic acid solutions at the initial concentrations present in drumstick leaves over a temperature range of 50-120 • C (isothermal temperature process) has been studied. The degradation kinetics of ascorbic acid was also evaluated in normal open-pan cooking, pressure-cooking and a newly developed and patented fuelefficient eco cooker (non-isothermal heating process). The ascorbic acid degradation followed first-order reaction kinetics where the rate constant increased with an increase in the temperature. The temperature dependence of degradation was adequately modelled by the Arrhenius equation. A mathematical model was developed using the isothermal kinetic parameters obtained to predict the losses of ascorbic acid from the time-temperature data of the non-isothermal heating/processing method. The results obtained indicate the ascorbic acid degradation is of similar order of magnitude in all the methods of cooking.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.