Food

Famous Foods of the Nineteenth Century

All of the following foods were invented during the nineteenth century. But what cities and towns were the cradles for these palate-pleasing products? Match the nineteenth century food to the place of its origin.

A1 Steak Sauce
Fig Newtons
Coca-Cola
Tabasco sauce
Saccharin
Dr Pepper
Campbell's Soups
Cotton Candy
Cracker Jack
Potato Chips

Avery Island, Louisiana
Waco, Texas
Camden, New Jersey
London, England
Atlanta, Georgia
Saratoga Springs, New York
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Baltimore, Maryland
Nashville, Tennessee
Chicago, Illinois

Impostors!

In each of these groups of favorite ethnic foodstuffs, there are either one or two items that don't actually belong -they are impostors! That is to say, they may look like they belong there, they may even taste like they belong there, but the foods in question are NOT genuinely part of the cuisine of the nation or ethnicity with which they are associated.

Show off your knowledge of the Real Thing! Identify the infiltrators and expose them for the impostors they are!

Mexican Cuisine: Enchilada, Chili, Quesadilla, Tamale, Chimichanga, Posole, Tostada.
Chinese Cuisine: Chow Mein, Chop Suey, Egg Foo Yeung, General Tso's Chicken, Peking Duck.
Indian Cuisine: Samosas, Chutney, Curry Powder, Tamarind Paste, Naan, Papadum.
Italian Cuisine: Pizza, Deep-Dish Pizza, Ravioli, Tiramisu, Chicken Tetrazzini, Veal Scallopini.

Name That Technique

Each of these questions provides for you a description of a particular food preparation technique. Your job is to identify the name of the technique and identify what the technique is used for or what purpose it serves.

Example:
In a hot pan, combine equal quantities of melted butter and flour and cook together to form a cohesive, very hot paste.
Name of technique: roux (or making a roux)
What is it used for? thickening liquids such as sauces, gravies, and soups

Begin with two quarts of freshly-made chilled broth. Add two lightly beaten egg whites and two crushed eggshells and stir gently into the broth. Heat the broth to a low simmer, and keep at a low simmer for 10 to 20 minutes, pushing the scum to the side of the pot with a spoon as it rises. Remove from heat and let stand one hour. Strain broth through a clean damp cloth into a clean, dry, nonreactive bowl or pot, avoiding scum. Discard scum and sediment.
Name of technique:
What is it used for?
Pour milk into sterilized glass bottles or jars. Do not seal. Place bottles/jars in a deep pot and fill pot with water until it comes above the fill line of the milk in the jars. Heat the water until the milk temperature registers 145 degrees Fahrenheit and maintain that temperatur e for 30 minutes, then cool the water rapidly using cold water and/or ice until the milk temperature registers between 40 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove milk bottles/jars and cover or seal and refrigerate.
Name of technique:
What is it used for?
Bring a pot of water to a heavy simmer but not an open boil. Place egg in simmering water carefully using a slotted spoon. Simmer for 1 minute exactly, not permitting water to boil. Cool egg immediately in ice water.
Name of technique:
What is it used for?
Dice pork kidney fat, add a small quantity of water, and heat slowly in a heavy pan until all meltable portions of the fat have turned to liquid. Drain off the liquid fat into a clean dry crock and let cool.
Name of technique:
What is it used for?
Joint slaughtered and dressed meat. Place meat on racks in a cool dry place with an ambient temperature of no higher than 40 degrees Farenheit, allowing space between each piece. Sprinkle meat with a light layer of salt and allow to cool completely to ambient temperature. When meat is cool, rub with a mixture of salt, sugar, and potassium nitrate so that it is thickly coated. The mixture should be in the following proportion: for every 10 pounds of meat, 1 cup salt, 1/4 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons potassium nitrate. Pack meat into sterilized crock or tub and cover with cheesecloth. Salt mixture should be reapplied six to eight days later.
Name of technique:
What is it used for?

Food Science

What unit of culinary measure was invented by Wilbur Scoville and what does it measure?
To what cooking process does the Maillard Reaction pertain?
What is the primary culinary use of gaseous N2O?
Describe the possible source(s) and function of CO2 in the process of baking a cake.
What are the three types of compounds that create naturally-occurring colour in fruits and vegetables?
If butter is an amorphous solid, how would you describe mayonnaise?
What is the technical term for the "weeping" of liquid from a starch-gelled mixture such as a pie filling?
If maltose is less sweet than dextrose, what can we say about the relationship between molecular weight and the relative sweetness of simple sugars?
When arthropod shellfish like lobsters, shrimp, and crabs are put into boiling water, the heat destabilizes the proteins in the surface of the exoskeleton. What chemical is released through this process, and what does that chemical do?
Your friend gives you a recipe for chocolate cake, and you take it home and make it, following the recipe to the last detail. It calls for butter, sugar, flour, eggs, milk, baking soda, vanilla extract, a pinch of salt, and Dutch-process cocoa powder. You mix it up and put it in the oven and are devastated to discover that it is flat as a pancake it didn't rise at all! Why didn't it rise, and what two ingredients could you possibly alter in order to make sure that it rises the next time you attempt this recipe?

Kosher vs. Halal

Kashrut (Jewish dietary law) and Halal (Islamic dietary law) are similar in many respects, placing prohibitions on various foodstuffs, regulating the preparation and storage of foods, and governing the ways in which food animals can be killed, among other things. But they are also very different.. In each of the following questions, a particular food-related practice is listed. Identify whether it pertains to kashrut, halal, both, or neither.

The flesh of carnivorous animals may not be eaten.
Kashrut? Halal? Both? Neither?
Alcoholic beverages are permitted, as long as they conform to certainrules of manufacture.
Kashrut? Halal? Both? Neither?
Animals may only be slaughtered using a specific type of ritually specified knife.
Kashrut? Halal? Both? Neither?
Permissible fish types must have both fins and scales.
Kashrut? Halal? Both? Neither?
Food animals must be individually blessed at the time of slaughter.
Kashrut? Halal? Both? Neither?
Separate cooking and eating utensils (pots, pans, plates, silverware, etc.) must be used for the eating of dairy vs. meat dishes.
Kashrut? Halal? Both? Neither?
The same rules in regard to food and eating apply year-round.
Kashrut? Halal? Both? Neither?
Various nerves, blood vessels, and other internal structures of food animals are considered impermissible and must be removed by the butcher, even when the animal is otherwise permitted for eating.
Kashrut? Halal? Both? Neither?
Assuming proper slaughtering technique is observed, one may opt to serve dishes made of camel, gazelle, giraffe, or antelope.
Kashrut? Halal? Both? Neither?
Bacon may be out of the question, but meat-free vegetarian "Fakin' Bacon" is acceptable.
Kashrut? Halal? Both? Neither?

Tutti Frutti Ten!

In much the same way as the cotton gin revolutionized the processing of cotton, this machine revolutionized the processing of pineapple. The machine carries the last name of the man who invented it. What is the name of the machine?
Everybody knows that Ray Kroc catapulted the fast-food burger joint to fame and worldwide ubiquity in 1955 when he took over the struggling McDonald's burger business and began to franchise it. But what about McDonald's' many competitors? Place these major national and regional burger chains on a timeline from oldest to newest: Krystal, White Castle, Wendy's, Steak 'n Shake, Burger King, In-N-Out Burger.
Among the American food reformers of the late nineteenth century there was a wealthy and well-known crackpot who believed that thorough chewing of food was the secret to perfect health, going so far as to send specimens of his own feces to leading scientists around the world through the mail to prove that his mastication technique led to perfect digestive health and an absence of "auto-intoxicating" bacteria in the colon. Who was this guy and what was the name for his eponymous chewing method?
Betty Crocker, Duncan Hines, Chef Boyardee, Marie Callender, Colonel Sanders and Jimmy Dean... all are familiar brands to the average American consumer. Which of these were also real names of the real people involved with the foods in question?
Flowers make a lovely and classic garnish, but one must choose carefully... some are lovely to look at but poisonous to eat. Of the following ten types of flowers, identify the edible ones: daylily, lily of the valley, nasturtium, rose, daffodil, violet, buttercup, sweet pea, marigold, dandelion.
What do Sara Lee products and Tootsie Rolls have in common -aside from the fact that you can serve them for dessert?
What now-ubiquitous kitchen appliance was first patented in 1851 and involved a steam-engine to help it keep its cool?
"Cincinnati-style" chili is a regional delicacy, served over spaghetti and enhanced with the addition of cinnamon and cloves. You can order it in many different permutations depending on what toppings you like, including "three way chili" (with cheese), "four way" (cheese and chopped onion), and "five way" (cheese, chopped onion, and beans). What were the name and nationality of the man who invented this local speciality?
What are you talking about if you're using phrases like "hard ball" and "soft crack"?
What nineteenth-century diplomat's name is associated with a pudding (sometimes used as a pie filling) made of custard flavored with maraschino cherries, chestnut (or sometimes cauliflower) purŽe, and candied fruits soaked in wine?