Hervé This: The Man Who Can Unboil an Egg

Meet Hervé This, French physical chemist who, along with physicist Nicholas Kurti, founded the "Molecular Gastronomy" culinary movement (he wrote the famous book with the same title). Hervé is famous for being the man who could unboil an egg.

His specialism is the science of cooking. For him, every foodstuff is 'a chemical mixture'. 'When aromatic compounds are formed on the surface of a roast,they are the result of a chemical reaction. When mushrooms turn black after being chopped, it is the fruit of a chemical reaction.'

Over the years, his musings on chemical reactions have led to a number of discoveries. He has worked out how to uncook an egg. He has calculated that you can produce 24 litres of mayonnaise with a single yolk. He has invented a Béarnaise sauce by replacing butter with melted chocolate, as well as 'chocolate chantilly' (a form of whipped chocolate prepared in the same way as crème chantilly). He's baked an egg for an hour at 55°C, managing somehow to leave the yolk 'exceptionally smooth and tender'.

Oh, and how do you unboil an egg? Hervé explains:

... when an egg is cooked, the protein molecules unroll themselves, link up and enclose the water molecules. In order to 'uncook' the egg, you need to detach the protein molecules from each other. By adding a product like sodium borohydride, the egg becomes liquid within three hours. For those who want to try it at home, vitamin C also does the trick.

Link - via kottke (Photo: MenuPages Blog)


Newest 5
Newest 5 Comments

The unseen and perhaps true value in uncooking an egg is the ability to reverse the process in similar organic protiens. The cataract of the eye for example could be perhaps reversed without surgery by turning the lens or cornea clear again without the removal and repacement.Will the tissue live ? Who knows the whole process has just opened up as a possibility, but what potential !
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
Off Topic: Is it just me, or does the man pictured above bear a striking resemblance to Franklin D. Roosevelt ?

use the link below and compare pictures.

http://history1900s.about.com/library/photos/blyfdr89.htm
Abusive comment hidden. (Show it anyway.)
Login to comment.




Email This Post to a Friend
"Hervé This: The Man Who Can Unboil an Egg"

Separate multiple emails with a comma. Limit 5.

 

Success! Your email has been sent!

close window
X

This website uses cookies.

This website uses cookies to improve user experience. By using this website you consent to all cookies in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

I agree
 
Learn More