A Glossary of the Craft

A Glossary of the Craft

Maillard reaction — the browning of amino acids and sugars under heat (see Vol. I); the source of the crust. Caramelisation — the browning of sugars alone under heat, without protein. Conduction / convection / radiation — the three ways heat travels to and through food. Thermal conductivity — how readily a material carries heat; copper high, clay low. Fermentation — the transformation of food by microbes (yeasts, bacteria, moulds). Lacto-fermentation — fermentation by lactic-acid bacteria, which acidify and preserve (kraut, kimchi, yoghurt). Levain — a naturally leavened sourdough starter; wild yeast and bacteria in balance. Gluten — the elastic protein network (glutenin + gliadin) that gives bread its structure. Rennet — the enzyme (chymosin) that coagulates milk into curd. Curd / whey — the solid and liquid fractions when milk coagulates. Water activity (a_w) — the free water available to microbes; lowering it (by drying, salting, sugaring) preserves. pH 4.6 — the acidity threshold below which Clostridium botulinum cannot grow; the line between safe high-acid and risky low-acid preserving. Nitrite — the curing salt that fixes colour and, crucially, inhibits botulism in cured meats; a benefit weighed against an honest risk. Conching / tempering — the smoothing of chocolate, and the controlled crystallisation of its cocoa butter for snap and sheen.