Definition, use, and examples of the word Maillard Reaction.
For further reading, check out The Maillard Reaction Turns 100 by Sarah Everts for Chemical and Engineering News.
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I’m Jenn de la Vega and this is your culinary word of the day.
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Today’s word is Maillard Reaction.
It is spelled...m-a-i-l-l-a-r-d space r-e-a-c-t-i-o-n
Eric Schulze of Serious Eats writes:
“The Maillard reaction is many small, simultaneous chemical reactions that occur when proteins and sugars in and on your food are transformed by heat, producing new flavors, aromas, and colors.
Practically speaking, the Maillard reaction makes food more enticing to us humans, encouraging us to dig into a steak, drink a coffee, or chug a beer.* Unlike all the other omnivores prowling this earth, we no longer tend to find a hunk of raw cow shoulder particularly appetizing. But if that same muscle is ground up, formed into patties, and seared on a flattop, we'll eagerly line up around the block. In large part, that's because we have evolved to respond to two important signals when encountering food. The first is a "nutrition" signal that tells us the food will deliver a hefty dose of easily digestible calories, vitamins, and minerals. The second is a "general harmlessness" signal that tells us the food won't kill us. The Maillard reaction is evolution's way of combining these two signals into one super-signal, specific to the roasty or browned flavors of cooked food.”
According to food scientist Jessica Gavin,
“The Maillard reaction is a form of non-enzymatic browning that occurs in foods when proteins and/or amino acids chemically react with carbohydrates of reducing sugars. Applying heat during cooking accelerates and continues this intricate process, which elevates the taste, aromas, and appearance of food.”
Furthermore, from Science of Cooking:
“Maillard reactions generally only begin to occur above 285°F (140°C). Until the Maillard reaction occurs meat will have less flavor. This reaction is the basis of the flavoring industry, since the type of amino acid determines the resulting flavor.
In the process, hundreds of different flavor compounds are created. These compounds in turn break down to form yet more new flavor compounds, and so on. Each type of food has a very distinctive set of flavor compounds that are formed during the Maillard reaction. It is these same compounds that flavor scientists have used over the years to create artificial flavors.
The Maillard reaction should not be confused with Caramelization which occurs with sugars.“
Finally, Modernist Cuisine explains,
“The Maillard reaction, or its absence, distinguishes the flavors of boiled, poached, or steamed foods from the flavors of the same foods that have been grilled, roasted, or otherwise cooked at temperatures high enough to dehydrate the surface rapidly — in other words, at temperatures above the boiling point of water. These two factors, dryness and temperature, are the key controls for the rate of the Maillard reaction.
High-temperature cooking speeds up the Maillard reaction because heat both increases the rate of chemical reactions and accelerates the evaporation of water. As the food dries, the concentration of reactant compounds increases and the temperature climbs more rapidly.”
For further reading, check out The Maillard Reaction Turns 100 by Sarah Everts for Chemical and Engineering News.
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I’m Jenn de la Vega and this has been your culinary word of the day.
Next time on Culinary Word of the day, we “jump” into cooking.
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