I chose this chapter for my discussion because I find the concept of the Maillard reaction very interesting. The Maillard reaction occurs with the interaction and reactions between two key substances: amino acids and sugar during the heating processes opposed to the process of caramelization that this process is commonly mistaken for. The differences is that caramelization occurs between sugars only. The Maillard reaction is responsible for our 5 senses springing to life in the cooking process. It is what gives our favorite foods, such as steak, the smell that attracts us to it and makes us hungry. it is what gives its appetizing color. It is also what gives it it's great taste that makes you crave more. this reading was so interesting to me because I always knew how big of a role food played on our 5 senses, but I didn't know there was a name for something that is the cause for the way food tastes, smells, and looks. This completely blew my mind because before learning about this in this class, I believed food was the way it was…because it simply was. I had never thought about the scientific chemical reactions that went into every aspect of it during the cooking, baking, grilling, etc. processes. This explains why things like meat smell. look, and taste completely different when they transition stages between raw, perfectly cooked, and burnt. an example stated in this reading talked about how adding certain elements can even speed up the Maillard process. For example, when i bake any type of bread, I always brush the top of it with an egg wash. I didn't know why I did this, all the baking recipes just told me to do. No explanation to back up why this extra step did what it did. All I knew was that it gave me the desired effect of having my bread an appealing, beautiful golden brown color. I now know there is a whole scientific name and process that explains why this occurs.

I chose this chapter for my discussion because I find the concept of the Maillard reaction very interesting. The Maillard reaction occurs with the interaction and reactions between two key substances: amino acids and sugar during the heating processas opposed to the process of caramelization that this process is commonly mistaken for. The differences is that caramelization occurs between sugars only. The Maillard reaction is responsible for our 5 senses springing to life in the cooking process. It is what gives our favorite foods, such as steak, the smell that attracts us to it and makes us hungry. it is what gives it it's appetizing color. It is also what gives it it's great taste that makes you crave more. this reading was so interesting to me because I always knew how big of a role food played on our 5 senses, but I didn't know there was a name for something that is the cause for the way food tastes, smells, and looks. This completely blew my mind because before learning about this in this class, I believed food was the way it was...because it simply was. I had never thought about the scientific chemical reactions that went into every aspect of it during the cooking, baking, grilling, etc. processes. This explains why things like meat smell. look, and taste completely different when they transition stages between raw, perfectly cooked, and burnt. an example stated in this reading talked about how adding certain elements can even speed up the Maillard process. For example, when i bake any type of bread, I always brush the top of it with an egg wash. I didn't know why I did this, all the baking recipes just told me to do. No explanation to back up why this extra step did what it did. All I knew was that it gave me the desired effect of having my bread an appealing, beautiful golden brown color. I now know there is a whole scientific name and process that explains why this occurs.