Course

The Chemistry of Cooking

Faculty
Science & Technology
Department
Chemistry
Course code
Chem 1100
Credits
4.00
Semester length
15
Max class size
36
Method(s) of instruction
Lecture
Lab
Course designation
None
Industry designation
None
Typically offered
To be determined

Overview

Course description
This course uses the science of chemistry to understand what happens when food is cooked. Topics include basic nutrition, cooking meats, fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains and breads. The production of chocolate, beer, wine and distilled spirits are also studied. Students practice cooking and carry out experiments to illustrate and understand cooking practices. Students may have the opportunity to taste foods during the course, but are not required to eat anything. This course is a first-year university level lab science course for non-science majors.
Course content

Introduction

  • basic nutrition
  • the chemical structures and properties of water, fats, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals
  • types of heat transfer during different cooking methods
  • taste and smell
  • units and measurement
  • scaling recipes up and down

Eggs and Meats

  • amino acids
  • protein denaturation during cooking
  • Maillard reactions
  • egg foams 
  • emulsions

Fruits, Vegetables, Herbs and Spices

  • chemicals that give plants colours (chlorophyll, carotenoids and anthocyanins)
  • essential oils
  • starch
  • pectin gels
  • processing tea and coffee
  • caramelization reactions
  • enzymatic browning

Legumes and Grains

  • cooking beans
  • oligosaccharides and flatulence
  • flour production and types
  • gluten formation in bread
  • chemical leavening agents

Chocolate

  • production
  • tempering 

Alcohol and Vinegar

  • production of beer, distilled spirits and vinegar 

Laboratory Content

Experiments will be selected from:

  • Introduction to measurement
  • Unit conversion
  • Basic calorimetry: determining the heat produced by burning food
  • Emulsions: mayonnaise
  • Egg foams
  • Boiling point elevation: making lollipops
  • Quick breads: effects of leavening agents on pancakes
  • Quick breads: effects of flour protein level on muffin texture
  • Fermentation: making alcohol and reductions
  • Fermentation: making vinegar and vinaigrettes
  • Determination of the effect of cooking on vitamin C levels in peppers 
  • Diffusion and spherification
  • Carminic acid
Learning activities
  • lectures
  • classroom demonstrations
  • problem sessions
  • videos
  • guest lectures, where possible
  • class discussions
  • labs 
Means of assessment

Assessment will be in accordance with the Douglas College Evaluation Policy. The instructor will present a written course outline with specific evaluation criteria at the beginning of the semester. Evaluation will be based on the following:

Minimum of two tests: 20-30%

Homework and/or in class activities: 20-30%

Final exam: 30%

Laboratory: 20%

Total: 100%

Notes:

A student who misses three or more laboratory experiments will earn a maximum of a D grade. A student may be subject to a mark penalty and/or may not be allowed to perform the experiment at the discretion of the instructor if they arrive late, unprepared, impaired, unsafely attired or for similar reasons. If a student is not permitted to perform the experiment, this is considered a missed lab.

A student who achieves less than 50% in either the lecture or laboratory portion of the course will earn a maximum of a D grade.

Learning outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to:

  • calculate the required daily calorie intake for a person, given their mass and activity level;
  • identify a molecule as a saturated fat, unsaturated fat, carbohydrate or amino acid, given its chemical structure; 
  • explain the relationship between chemical structure and solubility in water and oils;
  • explain the consequences of vitamin deficiency to overall health;
  • explain how conduction, convection and radiation are involved in various cooking processes;
  • convert between units and use density to convert between mass and volume;
  • scale a recipe up or down when using metric or non-metric units;
  • explain how proteins are denatured by high temperatures;
  • describe the Maillard reaction and its connection to the flavor of browned meat;
  • describe the structure of micelles, lipid bilayers and egg foams;
  • describe the effect of heat on collagen and its transformation into gelatin;
  • explain how cooking changes the colour of green vegetables;
  • explain how pH changes the colour of some foods;
  • describe the structure of a pectin gel;
  • discuss how essential oils in herbs and spices contribute to taste and smell;
  • identify how and why processing changes the taste and smell of tea and coffee;
  • explain the connection between oligosaccharides and flatulence;
  • describe the production of flour, including chemical aging;
  • describe gluten formation in producing bread and relate protein structure to the plasticity and elasticity of breads;
  • explain how and why chemical leavening agents are used to produce quick breads and batters;
  • describe the process used to produce chocolate; 
  • explain how chocolate's crystal structure relates to its glossy appearance and brittleness;
  • discuss the caramelization reactions that carbohydrates undergo when cooked;
  • explain how and why grain is malted to make beer;
  • discuss how ethanol content is increased by distillation using pot or column stills;
  • calculate the amount of ethanol in a particular sample of beer, wine or spirits;
  • describe the negative effects of both short and long term over consumption of ethanol;
  • explain how vinegar is made from ethanol;
Textbook materials

Consult the Douglas College Bookstore for the latest required textbooks and materials. Example textbooks and materials may include:

McGee, H. (current edition). On Food and Cooking. Scribner: Toronto.

Douglas College, Chemistry 1100 Laboratory Manual.

Requisites

Prerequisites

One of:

MATU 0410 with a grade of C or better

or

Precalculus 11 with a grade of C- or better

or

Precalculus 12 with a grade of C- or better

or

Foundations of Math 11 with a grade of C- or better

or

Foundations of Math 12 with a grade of C- or better

Corequisites

None

Equivalencies

None

Course Guidelines

Course Guidelines for previous years are viewable by selecting the version desired. If you took this course and do not see a listing for the starting semester / year of the course, consider the previous version as the applicable version.

(Current)

Course Transfers

These are for current course guidelines only. For a full list of archived courses please see https://www.bctransferguide.ca

Institution Transfer details for CHEM 1100
Alexander College (ALEX) ALEX CHEM 1XX (4)
Athabasca University (AU) AU CHEM 2XX (3)
Capilano University (CAPU) CAPU CHEM 130 (4)
College of New Caledonia (CNC) No credit
College of the Rockies (COTR) COTR CHEM 1XX (3)
Columbia College (COLU) COLU CHEM 1st (4)
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) KPU CHEM 1101 (4)
Langara College (LANG) LANG CHEM 1XXX (4)
Nicola Valley Institute of Technology (NVIT) No credit
North Island College (NIC) NIC CHE 1XX (3)
Northern Lights College (NLC) No credit
Okanagan College (OC) No credit
Simon Fraser University (SFU) SFU CHEM 1XX (4)
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU CHEM 1XXX (3)
University Canada West (UCW) UCW SCIE 1XX (3)
University of British Columbia - Okanagan (UBCO) UBCO SCIE_O 1st (3)
University of British Columbia - Vancouver (UBCV) UBCV FNH_V 1st (3)
University of Northern BC (UNBC) UNBC CHEM 110 (3) & UNBC CHEM 1XX (1)
University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) UFV CHEM 1XX (4)
University of Victoria (UVIC) UVIC SCIE 1XX (1.5)
Vancouver Island University (VIU) VIU CHEM 1st (4)

Course Offerings

Summer 2025

CRN Days Instructor Status
Maximum seats
36
Currently enrolled
0
Remaining seats:
36
On waitlist
0
Building
New Westminster - South Bldg.
Room
S3825
Times:
Start Time
10:30
-
End Time
12:20
Section notes

CHEM 1100 001 - Must also register for CHEM 1100-L01.