Flavor tome?
May 25, 2009 12:25 PM Subscribe
What are the main basic references on the art & science of flavor creation?
I am a layperson with a stale (mostly forgotten) college chemistry background, using my kitchen and easily-obtainable lab equipment such as may be required.
I need to create a few flavors, and I need to know the different flavor classes (?), how to predict behaviors during the extraction process, how to best carry out that process, stabilizing / preserving, etc.
Flavorchemist.org is one place that has information, but it's for professionals, and its Library section is just a long alphabetical PDF list of pertinent literature.
I am a layperson with a stale (mostly forgotten) college chemistry background, using my kitchen and easily-obtainable lab equipment such as may be required.
I need to create a few flavors, and I need to know the different flavor classes (?), how to predict behaviors during the extraction process, how to best carry out that process, stabilizing / preserving, etc.
Flavorchemist.org is one place that has information, but it's for professionals, and its Library section is just a long alphabetical PDF list of pertinent literature.
When I was browsing the reference section of a medical library, I came across a fascinating work in the reference section called the Handbook of Food Analytical Chemistry. It was so interesting, I'll never forget it! Amazon has a preview, so you can see if it's what you have in mind.
Other possibilities here.
posted by aquafortis at 3:00 PM on May 25, 2009
Other possibilities here.
posted by aquafortis at 3:00 PM on May 25, 2009
My go-to book for all "kitchen science"-type things is Harold McGee's On Food and Cooking: the Science and Lore of the Kitchen. But offhand, I don't recall it talking much about your specific query. It might have references to other useful things, though.
posted by chalkbored at 3:26 PM on May 25, 2009
posted by chalkbored at 3:26 PM on May 25, 2009
This question smells a bit fishy (no pun intended). If you want to create new flavours, it's a simple matter of mixing natural flavouring materials (basil + cinnamon + clove, for example). But the primary reason for extracting the actual active compounds is for industrial purposes. i.e. so a company can cheaply and efficiently create a particular food product by adding the active ingredient rather than mixing a whole lot of nutmeg into a vat.
doing my own extractions
This part, in particular, appears to be the job of a flavorist. From this link:
Because of the range of knowledge and skills needed to build flavors, training to become a flavorist requires a minimum commitment of 7 years. That’s in addition to any academic preparation...
Trainees spend their first 5 years in a flavor-development laboratory, learning the basics of the flavor industry. Working with at least two senior flavorists, trainees discover which chemicals are available for creating flavors and how those chemicals are used. Trainees hone their sensory skills as they gradually begin mixing chemicals for specific flavors. They also must learn the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s regulations that apply to flavoring agents.
I can only presume that you're hoping to create something new, and salable, by using backyard chemistry techniques (otherwise why do you need to do extractions?). But frankly, this doesn't sound like a good idea.
If you just want to get a feel for flavoring (particularly natural flavoring materials), I would just grab an old textbook such this (Amazon link here), since the old books are cheaper than the new ones. Either way, this is a simple search in Google Books.
posted by kisch mokusch at 5:39 PM on May 25, 2009
doing my own extractions
This part, in particular, appears to be the job of a flavorist. From this link:
Because of the range of knowledge and skills needed to build flavors, training to become a flavorist requires a minimum commitment of 7 years. That’s in addition to any academic preparation...
Trainees spend their first 5 years in a flavor-development laboratory, learning the basics of the flavor industry. Working with at least two senior flavorists, trainees discover which chemicals are available for creating flavors and how those chemicals are used. Trainees hone their sensory skills as they gradually begin mixing chemicals for specific flavors. They also must learn the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s regulations that apply to flavoring agents.
I can only presume that you're hoping to create something new, and salable, by using backyard chemistry techniques (otherwise why do you need to do extractions?). But frankly, this doesn't sound like a good idea.
If you just want to get a feel for flavoring (particularly natural flavoring materials), I would just grab an old textbook such this (Amazon link here), since the old books are cheaper than the new ones. Either way, this is a simple search in Google Books.
posted by kisch mokusch at 5:39 PM on May 25, 2009
Response by poster: Kisch, thank you for doing a web search. I was interested in having input from people with prior knowledge of resources, not just the results of a Google Books search.
posted by gorgor_balabala at 1:49 AM on May 26, 2009
posted by gorgor_balabala at 1:49 AM on May 26, 2009
Well, as somebody with lab experience, I can tell you that the "gold" standard, procedurally speaking, in most experimental (biology and chemistry) laboratories is Current Protocols. Which means, for your project, the resource you will require will be Current Protocols in Food Analytical Chemistry. Good luck, and I hope you don't poison anyone!
posted by kisch mokusch at 2:24 AM on May 26, 2009
posted by kisch mokusch at 2:24 AM on May 26, 2009
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by gorgor_balabala at 12:29 PM on May 25, 2009