Ask a guy with a PhD in Food Science (technically food chemistry) anything

Seconded. Also very curious.

Op here. Hold on let me switch to my laptop.

why won't op answer this? what's he hiding??

So that's a degree but what do you do exactly? Or what do you plan to do with that PhD?
Pro food critic?

cats and bananas op

This.
We want the truth!!!

hold up a sec

what are you hiding op?

do you like coffee?

How's the job?

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO THE CAT YOU SICKO

Not very. Somehow in the 2000s the word got out that potato chips were high in acrylamide and posed a threat to human health since the pure compound is carcinogenic.

Acrylamide is indeed present in potato chips, as well as coffee, burnt toast, brown/roasted meat bits, bread etc. Pretty much anywhere where there is non-enzymatic browning (i.e. frying, roasting, baking) there is a risk of acrylamide being present as it is one of the hundreds of byproducts of the Maillard reaction (or Maillard browning).

Essentially, for acrylamide to form arginine has to react with a reducing sugar at or beyond a high temperature threshold. Keep in mind there are hundreds of competing reactions in a given cooking process for a given food, many of which occur at temperatures lower than that of the temperature threshold for acrylamide to be favored. Even if it does form, it is subject to additional reactions with other compounds, thereby reducing its potential risk.

Google says the LD50 for acrylamide on rats is 124mg/kg body weight which is outrageous, considering there is likely to be less than 0.1 mg of acrylamide in a bag of burnt potato chips/crisps etc. Manufacturers try avoid any flak so they have certain processes to reduce arginine in raw potatoes prior to cooking. Simple things like soaking in brine or adding inute quantities of salts have been shown to leach/bind arginine and thus mitigate the potential presence of acrylamide in the finished product.

Perhaps a simple/stupid question, but what is exactly a healthy diet? Is there an actual consensus among scientists?

Ah. "Best-by" or "use-by" dates do not necessarily mean that a food item is unsafe, unfit for consumption, dangerous, spoiled, etc after the given date has passed.

THIS DEPENDS ON THE TYPE OF FOOD PRODUCT, AND WHETHER THE FOOD PACKAGING OR APPROPRIATE STORAGE CONDITIONS HAVE BEEN COMPROMISED.

For Twinkies for example, if left unopened, the "Best-by" date refers to date at which the manufacturer guarantees that that product will taste as acceptable as it did on the day of manufacture.

It has to do mainly with the sensory evaluation and acceptance of the product after a given period of time.

Perhaps their sensory panelists or sensory studies detected an off-flavor of off-odor consistently after 21 days from manufacture. Thus, after statistical and sensory test crap they determined that as the "best-by" date.

Now, if the Twinkie, or milk carton or salami were opened, then they are entirely subject to microbial or chemical degradation and will likely be unfit for consumption way before the "best-by" date. Again, it depends on whether the packaging has been compromised and storage conditions, etc.

What is that cat's reaction trying to convey?

what are the best ways of cooking (besides raw) the following vegetables to ensure maximum bioavailability of crucial macro/micronutrients?

broccoli
kale
chard
collard greens
cabbage
spinach

I don't know. Maybe the shape? I've seen gifs of cats being scared/startled by cucumbers.

Don't know. I'm satisfied with my life so far.

I'm currently a postdoc researcher and I plan to apply for teaching positions in a year or two. Eventually I want to claw my way through the academia-dick waving rat race and have my own research lab at a decent university.

I'm not a food critic. I'm not even a picky eater.

>I don't know. Maybe the shape?

Pfft some doctor you are.

Can you list a few "junk foods" that are absolutely awful for you? I want the worst of the worst. Preferably foods that you can't believe are even available for purchase.

>Claim to be food scientist
>Can't answer question about banana

Thanks for wasting my time.

In MY opinion, and based largely on my research, everyone should eat veggies and fruits. Dark and deeply colored fruits, and colorful veggies will generally do wonder with for your health.

Beets, blackberries, onions, kale, broccoli, carrots, tomatoes, garlic, spices, cranberries, etc. If it's colorful (and edible) eat it!

Long story short, colorful compounds are colored due to conjugation of double bonds; a feature that functions to stabilize/quench free radicals from oxidative damage, excessive cellular respiration, etc and keep you healthy.

Everything else in moderation.

I'm sorry, it's beyond my expertise.

This is an interesting question. The best way to answer this is by telling you that:

1) None of these really contain significant amounts of macronutrients (i.e. starch, protein, fat). They are mostly water and insoluble/indigestible fibers. The value in these vegetables is in their incredibly high content of micronutrients (minerals, vitamins, phytochemicals, antioxidants)...and flavor.

2) boiling will generally yield a lower bio availability of nutrients, as most of them will leach into the boiling water (if its a soup though, then they'll be there - if intact)

2) any prolonged or severe heat treatment will destroy heat-labile nutrients. Not all nutrients/ phytochemicals are heat labile but factors such as oxygen, metal ions, and acid can accelerate their degradation.

I'm 100% sure there are papers out there that explore the effects of cooking methods of nutrient availability of these individual vaggies. If you would REALLY like more info on these veggies, I can try to dig some of from databases.

TL;DR: juicing them will probably be the most optimal but least fun/tasty

OP confirmed as a secret lobbyist for Big Banana?

Are you the shithead that invented the naked egg taco?

what about steaming? could you find me one or two things on that to at least compare them to boiling? and what about sauteeing? i know there's some micronutrients that are fat-soluble and some that are water-soluble, but i don't know whether one type is more present in green leafy vegetables or not.

Are you a food engineer?

Not sure what you want me to say. All food has some nutritional value, be it all starch, sugar, fat etc. The fact that they are either mostly starch/fat, sugar/fat, etc make them poor dietary choices compared to other foods which may be available for consumption.

In moderation and with mindfulness, these are acceptable dietary choices. I eat some cheetos or pork rinds every now and then, absolutely nothing wrong them.

If you want concrete examples of junk foods I believe are outrageous, I would consider the 7-Eleven Iced Honey Buns to be pretty damm ghastly products
myfitnesspal.com/food/calories/7-11-select-iced-honey-bun-290709609

Look at the %DV for guidance. I'm sure there are more products like these out there, but the iced honey bun always baffled me.

...

Dole

I wish. That fucker probably got a promotion to head of product development and a sweet $5k bonus.

Seriously though, most of these inventions were ideas provided by the consumers in a stupid focus group or survey. I never liked the Product Development of Sensory Evaluation side of Food Science.

Compared to boiling, steaming will be much better at retaining micronutrients because leaching losses will be minimized. A quick sauteeing or stir fry will probably not cause too much in losses, at least that's my quick assessment.

Looking at a nutrition data of representative dark leafy green (kale; nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/2461/2), looks like its got high amounts of fat-soluble vitamins A and K, as well as good fatty acids. I honestly don't believe a quick sautee will cause significant leaching of these nutrients (or unlisted antioxidants and phytochemicals) into the sauteeing oil.

Boiling will be the worst option, pretty much most of the time, as it can essentially be seen as an extraction method.

No, chemistry emphasis.

I do have several food engineering colleagues, however.

To clarify, food engineers design and research the machinery and parameters used for commercial food manufacturing and preservation. Not to be confused with genetic engineering, etc.

Ok.
Are you a bromatologist, then?

Sure.

My undergrad was in chemistry and Master's and PhD in Food Science. I've never actually heard the term bromatologist.

Very well.
So, does that make you a good cook? Do you know a lot about molecular gastronomy?

Not necessarily, I don't think I'm a stellar cook nor do I think my degree made me a better cook or a foodie. I still suck at baking, probably because I don't have a passion for baking/cooking.

At least in academia, you won't see the terms "molecular gastronomy" very often. I think that was something coined by chefs who wanted to do cool-looking flashy foods/food pieces.

Will eggs kill me?

Are artificial sweeteners bad

If I ate nothing but semen, how fast would I become malnourished?

If you were a real food scientist you would get that banana away from that cat pronto. And you would know why...

Semen is very nutritious. High in riboflavin.

Depends on your individual state of health, but most likely no, eggs will not kill you.

Which artifical sweetners were you concerned with? If you suffer from phenylketonuria, you should avoid aspartame. If not, aspartame and other artifical sweetners are safe.

Depends. How much semen were you/or do you currently consume? It is indeed high in protein and sometimes fructose. I did'nt know about riboflavin though.

I...I really don't know why I would need to separate the two. Can't the cat just walk away?

Aspartame consistently gives me irritable bowl syndrome. One can is OK. 2 or 3 and my a-hole will have a blow out. Before I realized what was causing it, I thought I needed to be hospitalized, it was that uncomfortable. Maybe I'm a genetic misfit of some sort, but I don't think I have phenylketonuria.

That banana has him cornered

What is your favorite Little Debbie?

10/10 thread, OP. Very informative

My question:
I've always heard that diet has a strong effect on one's mood, and that people with less "healthy" diets having generally the worse off disposition. How tf does that work?

heee nort like... du bunanaaaaaa

What was your thesis about, and what sort of equipment did you use (NMR, Spec etc)?

I'm doing a PhD in computational chemistry/chemical physics so I don't really use lab equipment anymore, but when I teach undergrad lab it's fun to fuck around with the instruments. I don't really know what I'm doing more than a 3rd or 4th year undergrad though.

How would you rework the US food pyramid seeing as its heavy grain focused

OP
How do I get sick gains without negatively impacting my health.

Also what are some foods to help me sleep better. I often find myself shitposting late at night

How does sodium citrate emulsify sauces?

Do you think veganism has a high co-incidence of eating disorders? Do you see it as a form or orthorexia? Why or why not?

not OP, but I just think your mind is'nt weighed down in the subconscious by worrying about having a heart attack.

What do you think about the claim that saturated fat isn't actually bad for you and that refined sugar is the real killer of Americans and the cause of the heart disease epidemic?

How do you feel about he claims that artifical sweeteners lead to weight gain and an increased risk of dementia?

Whats the deal with ketosis? is fasting and such dangerous, does your stomach actually eat itself before the fat?

Quick, let's spam the thread with tons of questions while OP is asleep.

What sort of processes do food go through to make sure they stay fresh? For example, commercially produced bread. Either with or without preservatives

What do you think about Kosher certification? Is it another Jewish scheme to scam the goyim?

Do you play final fantasy xiv?

What's the best oil to pan fry in? Do some oils have different polymerization rates?

I just made a character today, what am I in for

Kosher is a way to protect the tribe from "unsafe food"
Like halal, it also serves to get jobs for those of the respective religion

Thanks OP, this is interesting stuff.

Is there a chemical/biological basis for why I like chicken wings so much, or am I just an impressionable fag?

An mmo with a great story, good community and loads of catgirls. What server?

Alexander

Ahhh damn cactuar here. Need to come to the best server.

What's the endgame for hfcs?

can you reproduce all secret restaurant sauces of michelin restaurants?

can you reproduce the cooking technique so you create exactly the same food as prepared by a michelin chef?

Is there any significant difference between glucose, corn syrup and invert sugar? Seems like they are interchangeable in recipes.

If that's an rp server, no thanks
Prolly will join the /a/ fc if I buy the game

How much of the alcohol used during cooking actually evaporates?

do you have a fake email that has no relation to your real life? I would like to talk to you if Im allowed, Im studying something similar.

R8 my diet
Cereal (usually Nutrigrain) in the morning
If I'm working, usually I have a museli bar or two, or maybe once a week I'll grab a banana or an apple for morning tea.
For lunch and dinner I often make up a big batch of something that lasts for a couple of days, most often carbonara, an indian curry or something with a mince mix (lasagna, bolognaise, chili, etc). I usually eat ice cream for dessert and often have a savory snack before i go to bed, like chips.
I eat out once or twice a week (ranging from KFC to the local Japanese restaurant.
I drink barely any soft drinks, maybe two cans a month, I drink lots of water.

I'm a bit overweight, 90kg and around 6 foot.

Wow that's a lot of carbs. No wonder you're overweight.
>Wake up carbs
>Once in a while morning tea fruit carbs!
>For lunch I make a big batch of carbs!
>For dessert it's cream + carbs!
>Then a snack of fried carbs!
>Sometimes I eat out and have chicken fried in carbs or fish rolled in carbs!
>WHY IS I FAT????!!!!

You didn't earn it, but I feel feel bad for you

I would like to know this too. So many uncertain bullshit answers out there

Hey, I'm not in denial or anything, you're right, I eat a lot of carbs.

My grandma will make food and then leave it out (covered) all day, and REFUSE to put it in the fridge until she goes to bed. If I put it in the fridge she'll take it back out "so the family knows it's there", or something. We're talking food left out of the fridge for 12 - 14 hours on average.

How bad is this?

The thing is, I don't really know what it means. What are carbs? What do they do? How much of them should I eat? I'm outing my diet because I want to know more, not because I want to shift the reason I'm 10kg overweight to something else.

Cactuar is one of the major NA worlds and where the /a/ fc is avoid balming at all costs if you hate ERP

Im not OP
Generally 8 hrs is the max total, but I've survived far longer. I live with people who like to leave food out like that.

Carbs=sugar

Instincts. The bright color and shape probably set off the same unconscious triggers in the cats brain, in the same way as a venomous snake would.

Wtf is wrong with these people? Don't they know that bacteria can double every 20 min in food left at room temperature? Food safety experts always recommend refrigerating food as soon as possible for a reason

This kind of question is really hard to answer. It depends on the type of alcohol, at what heat, and how long its being cooked for. Generally speaking, there is always at least 20% of the alcohol left in normal cooking processes.

A good test is to pour 100 ml of your desired alcohol into a hot pan at 150 C. And then do the same with water. Both will evaporate very fast. now do the same but combine the two liquids first.

Better than most Americans, not great though. You eat a little too much if you don't work out. I'd cut the snacks/dessert and reduce your lunch.

Actually its more around 40%, but some of the alcohol becomes inactivated.

Based quotation marks poster

This. Even though they don't all taste sweet like dessert your body treats them all the same. Carbohydrates are pure energy for the human body and calorie for calorie are the easiest for your body to use. That being said, this means they tend to run through you fairly easily not providing much in the way of satiation. This means it's very easy to consume much more calories than necessary for your daily energy needs. The human body is also designed to take excess carbohydrate calories and transform them into lipids for efficient storage in case of famine. Eat more vegetable fiber first and foremost retain protein and fat consumption, limit carbs. Or, start working out/doing physical labor like a mad man to make use of all that energy.

Do garlic and other types of allium differ somehow to our palate? I can't stand onions to the point I can't eat them without spitting them out, but garlic is one of my favorite flavors of all time.

God trips is proof

How much have you studied actual chemistry to get your degree? Not trying to be snide, actually curious

t. chemical engineering student

>do garlic and onions taste different?

Get a load of this guy